''Sappy Bull Fighters'' is a 1959

short subject A short film is a film with a low running time. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) defines a short film as "an original motion picture that has a running time of not more than 40 minutes including all credits". Other film or ...

directed by

Jules White Jules White (born Julius Weiss; 17 September 1900 – 30 April 1985) was an American film director and producer best known for his short-subject comedies starring The Three Stooges. Early years White began working in motion pictures in the ...

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 as ...

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 comedy. Six total ...

(

Moe Howard Moses Harry Horwitz (June 19, 1897 – May 4, 1975), better known by his stage name Moe Howard, was an American comedian and actor. He is best known as the leader and straight man of the Three Stooges, the farce comedy team who starred in motion ...

Larry Fine Louis Feinberg (October 4, 1902 – January 24, 1975), better known by his stage name Larry Fine, was an American actor, comedian and musician. He is best known as a member of the comedy act the Three Stooges and was often called "The Middle St ...

, and

Joe Besser Joe Besser (born Jessel Besser, August 12, 1907 – March 1, 1988) was an American actor and comedian known for his impish humor and wimpy characters. He is best known for his brief stint as a member of The Three Stooges in movie short subject ...

in his final starring role). It is the 190th and final entry in the series released by

Columbia Pictures Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc., Trade name, doing business as Columbia Pictures, is an American film Production company, production and Film distributor, distribution company that is the flagship unit of the Sony Pictures Motion Picture Group ...

starring the comedians between 1934 and 1959.

Plot

The Stooges, renowned vaudeville performers, embark on a journey to Mexico to present their comedic burlesque rendition of a bullfight. In this farcical spectacle, Joe assumes the role of the intrepid matador, while Moe and Larry don a bull costume, embodying the role of the formidable bovine adversary. However, upon their arrival, they are confronted with the disheartening news of their performance cancellation, purportedly due to their refusal to comply with the manager's demand for additional unpaid shows. Stranded in a foreign land without financial means to return home, the trio faces a precarious predicament. Fortuitously, their plight garners the sympathy of the gracious señorita Greta, who extends them an opportunity to showcase their talents at the local bullring. However, amidst the ensuing chaos, a misunderstanding ensues, leading to an inadvertent exchange of belongings, with Greta inadvertently departing with the Stooges' suitcase. Complications escalate when Joe's innocent gestures of gratitude toward Greta provoke the ire of her excessively jealous husband, José. The following day, as the Stooges execute their act with aplomb at the bullring, they unwittingly incur the wrath of José, who orchestrates a vengeful reprisal. Consequently, a live bull is unleashed into the arena, triggering a frenzied flight for safety by Moe and Larry. Oblivious to the danger, Joe confronts the raging beast head-on, inadvertently confronting the live bull. Nonetheless, Joe's inadvertent bravado earns him the admiration of the spectators, who acclaim him with fervent cries of "¡Ole, Americano!" as he is triumphantly escorted from the arena.

Cast

Credited

as Moe *

as Larry *

as Joe *

Greta Thyssen Greta Thyssen (born Grethe Karen Thygesen; 30 March 1927 – 6 January 2018) was a Danish film actress and former model, long-resident in the United States. Born in Hareskovby, Denmark, she appeared in films and television series between 1956 an ...

as Greta *

George J. Lewis George J. Lewis (December 10, 1903December 8, 1995) was a Mexican-born actor who appeared in many films and eventually TV series from the 1920s through the 1960s, usually specializing in westerns. He is probably best known for playing Don Aleja ...

as José

Uncredited

Joe Palma Joe Palma (born Joseph Provenzano; March 17, 1905 – August 14, 1994) was an American film actor. Palma appeared in over 120 films between 1937 and 1968. He was well known as a supporting player for The Three Stooges and his brief tenure a ...

as bullring attendant and spectator * Charles Cross as spectator and stagehand *

Cy Schindell Seymour "Cy" Schindell (March 4, 1907August 24, 1948) was an American actor. He appeared in 37 Three Stooges short subjects, mostly as a heavy, though he was never credited in any Stooge shorts. Career Brooklyn-born Schindell was born Seymour ...

and

Eddie Laughton Eddie Laughton (20 June 190321 March 1952) was a British-American film actor. He appeared in more than 200 films between 1935 and 1952, and is best known for his work with The Three Stooges. Career Laughton's family immigrated to the United Stat ...

as bullring attendants (stock footage) *

Manuel Granada Manuel Granada (6 November 1896 - 30 January 1974) was an Argentine actor who appeared in American, Spanish, Argentine and Mexican films. For the first half of his career, he worked under the names Paul Ellis and Manuel Granado. Granada was bor ...

as bullfight announcer (stock footage) The ThreeStooges.net website claims that a young

Mary Tyler Moore Mary Tyler Moore (December 29, 1936 – January 25, 2017) was an American actress, producer, and social advocate. She is best known for her roles on '' The Dick Van Dyke Show'' (1961–1966) and ''The Mary Tyler Moore Show'' (1970–1977), whic ...

appeared in an uncredited bit part.''Mary Tyler Moore'' at threestooges.net
/ref>

Production notes

''Sappy Bull Fighters'' is a reworking of 1942's ''

What's the Matador? ''What's the Matador?'' is a 1942 short subject directed by Jules White starring American slapstick comedy team The Three Stooges ( Moe Howard, Larry Fine and Curly Howard). It is the 62nd entry in the series released by Columbia Pictures starr ...

'', a parody of the 1941 film '' Blood and Sand''.Solomon, Jon. (2002) ''The Complete Three Stooges: The Official Filmography and Three Stooges Companion'', p. 209; Comedy III Productions, Inc., Minimal recycled footage from the original was used, including long shots and voice tracks of

Curly Howard Jerome Lester Horwitz (October 22, 1903 – January 18, 1952), better known by his stage name Curly Howard, was an American comedian and actor. He was a member of The Three Stooges comedy team, which also featured his elder brothers Moe and ...

riding the bull. The film begins with an inside joke: an advertising poster promotes the Stooges, and the bottom of the poster lists another performer, one "Julio Blanco" (the Spanish approximation of producer-director Jules White). The remake was filmed over two days in mid-1957 (July 15–16, 1957), and marks

's screen farewell as a Stooge: it was the last Stooge short produced for and released to theaters. The films Besser made with the Stooges were released out of sequence. The last short in which Besser worked was actually ''

Flying Saucer Daffy ''Flying Saucer Daffy'' is a 1958 short subject directed by Jules White starring American slapstick comedy team The Three Stooges (Moe Howard, Larry Fine and Joe Besser). It is the 187th entry in the series released by Columbia Pictures starring ...

'', filmed in December 1957. After this last film was finished, Besser left the act to tend to his ailing wife. Besser would be succeeded by fellow Columbia

two-reel A short film is a film with a low running time. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) defines a short film as "an original motion picture that has a running time of not more than 40 minutes including all credits". Other film or ...

comedian

Joe DeRita Joseph Wardell (July 12, 1909 – July 3, 1993), known professionally as Joe DeRita, was an American actor and comedian, who is best known for his stint as a member of The Three Stooges in the persona of Curly Joe DeRita. Early life DeRita ...

(as "Curly Joe") in the trio's subsequent projects. By the time ''Sappy Bull Fighters'' was released in June 1959, the Stooges were experiencing a rebirth in popularity, due to the release of their shorts on television. In essence, the theatrical release of ''Sappy Bull Fighters'' actually competed with the enormously successful television revival. At 15:12 ''Sappy Bull Fighters'' is the shortest film the team made at Columbia Pictures. The longest is ''

A Pain in the Pullman ''A Pain in the Pullman'' is a 1936 short subject directed by Preston Black starring American slapstick comedy team The Three Stooges (Moe Howard, Larry Fine and Curly Howard). It is the 16th entry in the series released by Columbia Pictures s ...

'' (1936) at 19:46.

References

External links

*
''Sappy Bull Fighters'' at threestooges.net
{{The Three Stooges 1959 films 1959 comedy films The Three Stooges films American black-and-white films The Three Stooges film remakes Films directed by Jules White Bullfighting films Films set in Mexico Columbia Pictures short films 1950s English-language films 1950s American films