''Spooks!'' is a 1953

short subject A short film is any motion picture that is short enough in running time not to be considered a feature film. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences defines a short film as "an original motion picture that has a running time of 40 minutes ...

directed by Jules White starring American

slapstick Slapstick is a style of humor involving exaggerated physical activity that exceeds the boundaries of normal physical comedy. Slapstick may involve both intentional violence and violence by mishap, often resulting from inept use of props such ...

comedy team

The Three Stooges The Three Stooges were an American vaudeville and comedy team active from 1922 until 1970, best remembered for their 190 short subject films by Columbia Pictures. Their hallmark styles were physical farce and slapstick. Six Stooges appear ...

(

Moe Howard Moses Harry Horwitz (June 19, 1897 – May 4, 1975), known professionally as Moe Howard, was an American actor and comedian. He is best known as the leader of The Three Stooges, the farce comedy team who starred in motion pictures and television ...

Larry Fine Louis Feinberg (October 5, 1902 – January 24, 1975), known professionally as Larry Fine, was an American actor, comedian, and musician. He is best known as a member of the comedy act the Three Stooges. Early life Fine was born to a Russian Je ...

and

Shemp Howard Samuel Horwitz (March 11, 1895 – November 22, 1955), known professionally as Shemp Howard, was an American actor and comedian. He was called "Shemp" because "Sam" came out that way in his mother's thick Litvak accent. He is best known as the ...

). It is the 148th entry in the series released by

Columbia Pictures Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc. is an American film production studio that is a member of the Sony Pictures Motion Picture Group, a division of Sony Pictures Entertainment, which is one of the Big Five studios and a subsidiary of the multi ...

starring the comedians, who released 190 shorts for the studio between 1934 and 1959.

Plot

The Stooges are private detectives that are hired to track down a kidnapped girl name Mary Bopper (Norma Randall), daughter of George B. Bopper ( Frank Mitchell). They decide to trace Bopper back to where she was last seen, which leads them to mad scientist Dr. Jeckyl (

Philip Van Zandt Philip Van Zandt (October 4, 1904 – February 15, 1958), sometimes billed as Phil Van Zandt, was a Dutch-American actor of stage, film, and television. He made nearly 250 film and television appearances between 1939 and 1958. Life and career ...

) and his assistant, Mr. Hyde (

Tom Kennedy Thomas or Tom Kennedy may refer to: Politics *Thomas Kennedy (Scottish judge) (1673–1754), joint Solicitor General for Scotland 1709–14, Lord Advocate 1714, Member of Parliament for Ayr Burghs 1720–21 * Thomas Kennedy, 9th Earl of Cassilis ...

). There is also a gorilla kept imprisoned in the house for experimental purposes. The Stooges arrive to rescue the kidnapped girl disguised as door-to door pie salesmen.

Cast

as Moe *

as Larry *

as Shemp and Bat *

Phil Van Zandt Philip Van Zandt (October 4, 1904 – February 15, 1958), sometimes billed as Phil Van Zandt, was a Dutch-American actor of stage, film, and television. He made nearly 250 film and television appearances between 1939 and 1958. Life and career ...

as Dr. Jekyll *

as Mr. Hyde * Norma Randall as Bea Bopper *

Steve Calvert Steve Calvert (born William Seeger; June 28, 1916, Peoria, Illinois – died March 5, 1991, Los Angeles County, California) was a prolific gorilla suit performer in many Hollywood films and television shows from the late 1940s through the 1950s. He ...

as Gorilla (uncredited) * Frank Mitchell as George B. Bopper (uncredited)

Production notes

''Spooks!'' was the first of two Stooge shorts (the other being ''

Pardon My Backfire ''Pardon My Backfire'' is a 1953 short subject directed by Jules White starring American slapstick comedy team The Three Stooges (Moe Howard, Larry Fine and Shemp Howard). It is the 149th entry in the series released by Columbia Pictures starring ...

'') made by Columbia Pictures in 3D, after the 3D craze of 1953 began with ''

Bwana Devil ''Bwana Devil'' is a 1952 American adventure B movie written, directed, and produced by Arch Oboler, and starring Robert Stack, Barbara Britton, and Nigel Bruce. ''Bwana Devil'' is based on the true story of the Tsavo maneaters and filmed with th ...

''. It originally premiered on May 20, 1953 with the Columbia western ''

Fort Ti ''Fort Ti'' is a 1953 American 3-D Western film directed by William Castle, and starring George Montgomery and Joan Vohs. Written by Robert E. Kent, the film is the first Western to be released in 3-D and the first 3-D feature to be released i ...

'' (also in 3D).Solomon, Jon. (2002) ''The Complete Three Stooges: The Official Filmography and Three Stooges Companion''; Comedy III Productions, Inc., Hence, the lines in the opening scene (addressed to client George B. Bopper, who's awakened the snoozing Stooges):

Moe: We'll be with you before you can say "Fort Ticonderoga."
Larry: If you can say "Fort Ticonderoga."

Both the Columbia 3D

Edmond O'Brien Eamon Joseph O'Brien (September 10, 1915 – May 9, 1985) was an American actor and film director. His career spanned almost 40 years, and he won one Academy Award, two Golden Globe Awards, and two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. O'Brien w ...

thriller ''

Man in the Dark ''Man in the Dark'' is a 1953 film noir drama 3-D film directed by Lew Landers and starring Edmond O'Brien, Audrey Totter and Ted de Corsia. It is a remake of the 1936 Ralph Bellamy film ''The Man Who Lived Twice''. It was the first Columbia Pi ...

'' and ''Spooks!'' were originally sepia toned in order to allow for more light to pass through the Polaroid filters necessary for the dual-strip 3D projection method of that time. The process did not work as expected and the idea was dropped after these two productions. This is also the first short in the series filmed for flat wide-screen. Although some films of this period were composed for the Academy aspect ratio and released in wide-screen during the confusion, ''Spooks!'' and future releases were composed at 1.85:1, Columbia's house ratio. ''Spooks!'' was filmed on May 11–15, 1953, and released just 31 days after production due to Columbia Pictures' desire to cash in on the 3D craze. Conversely, it took five full days to complete filming, due to the complexity of shots and angle required for 3D viewing. New Stooge films produced at the time generally took no more than three days to complete, with remakes usually being completed in a single day.

In popular culture

''Spooks!'' was one of five Stooge films included in the

TBS TBS may stand for: Entertainment * Taipei Broadcasting Station, a radio station in Taipei, Taiwan * Tokyo Broadcasting System, a stock holding company in Tokyo, Japan ** TBS Television (Japan), a television station ** TBS Radio, a radio statio ...

1995 Halloween special ''The Three Stooges Fright Night'' along with ''

If a Body Meets a Body ''If a Body Meets a Body'' is a 1945 short subject directed by Jules White starring American slapstick comedy team The Three Stooges (Moe Howard, Larry Fine and Curly Howard). It is the 86th entry in the series released by Columbia Pictures starr ...

'' (1945), ''

We Want Our Mummy ''We Want Our Mummy'' is a 1939 short subject directed by Del Lord starring American slapstick comedy team The Three Stooges (Moe Howard, Larry Fine and Curly Howard). It is the 37th entry in the series released by Columbia Pictures starring the c ...

'' (1939), ''

The Hot Scots ''The Hot Scots'' is a 1948 short subject directed by Edward Bernds starring American slapstick comedy team The Three Stooges (Moe Howard, Larry Fine and Shemp Howard). It is the 108th entry in the series released by Columbia Pictures starring th ...

'' (1948), and ''

Malice in the Palace ''Malice in the Palace'' is a 1949 short subject directed by Jules White starring American slapstick comedy team The Three Stooges (Moe Howard, Larry Fine and Shemp Howard). It is the 117th entry in the series released by Columbia Pictures starr ...

'' (1949).

References

External links

* *
''Spooks!'' at threestooges.net
{{The Three Stooges 1953 films 1953 comedy films The Three Stooges films American black-and-white films Films directed by Jules White Mad scientist films 1953 3D films 3D short films Columbia Pictures short films American comedy films 1950s English-language films 1950s American films