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{{Short description|1938 American short film by Charley Chase}}
{{Infobox Film |
{{Infobox film
| name = Flat Foot Stooges |
| image = FlatFootstoogesTITLE.jpg|
| name = Flat Foot Stooges
| caption = |
| image = FlatFootStooges lobbycard 1938.JPG
| director = [[Charley Chase]]
| caption =
| director = [[Charley Chase]]
| writer = Charley Chase |
| writer = Charley Chase
| starring = [[Moe Howard]]<br>[[Larry Fine]]<br>[[Curly Howard]]<br>[[Dick Curtis]]<br>Lola Jensen<br>[[Chester Conklin]]<br>[[Heinie Conklin]]<br>[[Al Thompson]] |
| starring = [[Moe Howard]]<br>[[Larry Fine]]<br>[[Curly Howard]]<br>[[Dick Curtis]]<br>Lola Jensen<br>[[Chester Conklin]]<br>[[Heinie Conklin]]<br>[[Al Thompson]]
| cinematography = [[Lucien Ballard]] |
| cinematography = [[Lucien Ballard]]
| editing = [[Art Seid]]
| editing = [[Art Seid]]
| producer = Charley Chase<br>[[Hugh McCollum]] |
| producer = Charley Chase<br>[[Hugh McCollum]]
| distributor = [[Columbia Pictures]] |
| distributor = [[Columbia Pictures]]
| released = December 5, 1938 |
| released = {{Film date|1938|12|05|U.S.}}
| runtime = 15' 37" |
| runtime = {{duration|m=15|s=25}}
| country = United States
| country = United States
| language = English
| language = English
}}
}}


'''''Flat Foot Stooges''''' is the 35th [[short subject]] starring American [[slapstick]] comedy team the [[Three Stooges]]. The trio made a total of 190 shorts for [[Columbia Pictures]] between 1934 and 1959.
'''''Flat Foot Stooges''''' is a 1938 [[short film|short subject]] directed by [[Charley Chase]] starring American [[slapstick]] comedy team [[The Three Stooges]] ([[Moe Howard]], [[Larry Fine]] and [[Curly Howard]]). It is the 35th entry in the series released by [[Columbia Pictures]] starring the comedians, who released 190 shorts for the studio between 1934 and 1959.


==Plot==
==Plot==
The trio are firemen at Engine Company No. 1, a venerable institution reliant on horse-drawn fire engines. A conflict emerges when a dubious salesman, Mr. Reardon, attempts to persuade Fire Chief Kelly of the obsolescence of horse-powered engines, only to face rejection. Undeterred, Reardon resorts to nefarious means, sabotaging the firehouse through arson.
[[File:Flatfootstogges.jpg|thumb|150px|left|The boys try to rescue the fire chief's daughter ([[Lola Jensen]]) from danger.]]
The trio once again play firemen (see ''[[False Alarms (1936 film)|False Alarms]]'') at an engine company that still employs horse-powered engines. After sleazy salesman Mr. Reardon ([[Dick Curtis]]) fails to convince Fire Chief Kelly ([[Chester Conklin]]) that horse-powered engines are on the way out, he tries to sabotage the firehouse by committing [[arson]]. He drops a can of [[gunpowder]] into the old-fashioned pump [[boiler]] and the chief's daughter sees him. Reardon does not know that the can has a leak, and a [[duck]] has been eating the spilled gunpowder. The duck alights on a window ledge in the station and lays an [[Egg (biology)|egg]], which falls to the floor and explodes like a [[hand grenade]], starting a fire. Realizing too late that the blaze is coming from their own fire station, the Stooges manage to arrive just in time to save the chief's daughter ([[Lola Jensen]]) from the flames.


During his clandestine act, Reardon inadvertently triggers a chain of events culminating in an accidental explosion. The presence of a leaking can of gunpowder, coupled with the unwitting intervention of a duck, catalyzes the conflagration that engulfs the station. As chaos unfolds, the chief's daughter becomes embroiled in the turmoil, sustaining unconsciousness in the ensuing melee.
=="Wrong Way" Corrigan==
⚫
Upon realizing they are heading in the wrong direction, Curly quips "Hey, we're doing the Corrigan!", a reference to aviator [[Douglas Corrigan|Douglas "Wrong Way" Corrigan]].


Amidst this chaos, the Stooges, having unwittingly diverted the firehorses to a Turkish bath, are ill-prepared to respond to the fire alarm. Their belated realization of the blaze's origin within their own station prompts a frantic race against time. Despite their initial missteps, the trio manages to mobilize, arriving in the nick of time to rescue the chief's daughter from the inferno, thus averting a catastrophic outcome.
Corrigan had recently returned from a [[transcontinental]] flight from [[Floyd Bennett Field]] in [[Brooklyn, New York]] to [[Long Beach, California]]. Instead of returning to New York, he bypassed it, and headed to [[Ireland]].<ref>Solomon, Jon. (2002) ''The Complete Three Stooges: The Official Filmography and Three Stooges Companion'', p. 129; Comedy III Productions, Inc., ISBN 0-9711868-0-4</ref>


==Production notes==
==Flubs==
Filmed on October 25–28, 1938,<ref name=pauley>{{cite book | last = Pauley | first = Jim | title = The Three Stooges Hollywood Filming Locations | publisher = Santa Monica Press, LLC | year = 2012 | location = [[Solana Beach, California]] | pages = 106 | url = http://www.santamonicapress.com/index.php?page_name=threestooges&page_type=book&show=desc&hide0=excerpt&hide1=author&hide2=reviews&hide5=number5 | isbn = 9781595800701}}</ref> the title ''Flat Foot Stooges'' is a pun on the 1938 jazz song "[[Flat Foot Floogie (with a Floy Floy)]]".<ref name=solo>Solomon, Jon. (2002) ''The Complete Three Stooges: The Official Filmography and Three Stooges Companion'', p. 129; Comedy III Productions, Inc., {{ISBN|0-9711868-0-4}}</ref>
A rarity among Stooge shorts, the boys are shown flubbing their lines a few times here:
*While explaining his invention, [[Curly Howard|Curly]] says, "The horses fall on the harness", looks confused, then says "Ah – the harness falls on the horses."
*In a more obvious error, [[Moe Howard|Moe]] asks Curly, "Whaddya expect a fire mouse – I mean, uh - firehouse mouse to smell like? A [[petunia]]?" Curly tries to respond, only to be silenced by Moe and merely mutters, "It's, you know...", as though he is confused from Moe's line, possibly even waiting for the director to [[cut (transition)|cut]].
*While Moe and Larry are giving Annie the horse a massage, Moe tells Larry to put "a little more pressure on his left vertebrae", though Annie is actually a female.
*Moe also has an odd exchange with Larry where he appears to forget the name of the firehouse dog, though the exchange may have been intentional:
::'''Moe''': "Go get 'what's his name'.
::'''Larry''': "Who?"
::'''Moe''': "What IS his name??"
::'''Larry''': "Butch?"
::'''Moe''': "Yeah, Butch..."


A rarity among Stooge shorts, the boys are shown reciting dialogue incorrectly on several occasions, a result of director [[Charley Chase]]'s rushed directing style. Chase rarely stopped for retakes in an effort to finish a film ahead of schedule.<ref name=solo/>
==Notes==

*The title is a pun on the jazz song "[[Flat Foot Floogie (with a Floy Floy)|Flat Foot Floogie]]", which had been released earlier in 1938.
When Larry slides down the fire pole and is accidentally punched by Moe, he calls himself a "victim of circumstance". This marks the first time a Stooge other than Curly says the line.
*Moe accidentally alternates between calling Fannie "him" and "her" during the horse's massage at the [[turkish bath]].

⚫
Upon realizing they are heading in the wrong direction, Curly quips "Hey, we're doing the Corrigan!", a reference to aviator [[Douglas Corrigan|Douglas "Wrong Way" Corrigan]]. Corrigan had recently returned from a [[transcontinental flight]] from [[Floyd Bennett Field]] in [[Brooklyn, New York]] to [[Long Beach, California]]. Instead of returning to New York, he bypassed it, and headed to [[Ireland]].<ref name=solo/>

''Flat Foot Stooges'' marks the first usage of "[[Three Blind Mice]]" as the Stooges' title theme. However, this was not put to permanent use until ''[[We Want Our Mummy]]''.


==References==
==References==
Line 48: Line 42:
==External links==
==External links==
* {{IMDb title|0030139}}
* {{IMDb title|0030139}}
* {{Amg movie|142660}}

{{ThreeStooges}}


{{The Three Stooges}}
{{Stooges Filmography (1934–1946)}}
{{Authority control}}
[[Category:1938 films]]
[[Category:1938 films]]
[[Category:1930s comedy films]]
[[Category:1938 comedy films]]
[[Category:American films]]
[[Category:American black-and-white films]]
⚫
[[Category:Black-and-white films]]
⚫
[[Category:English-language films]]
[[Category:Films directed by Charley Chase]]
[[Category:Films directed by Charley Chase]]
[[Category:The Three Stooges films]]
[[Category:The Three Stooges films]]
[[Category:Firefighting films]]
[[Category:Films about firefighting]]
[[Category:Columbia Pictures short films]]

[[Category:American slapstick comedy films]]
[[pt:Flat Foot Stooges]]
⚫
[[Category:1930s English-language films]]
⚫
[[Category:1930s American films]]

Latest revision as of 21:36, 21 December 2024

Flat Foot Stooges
Directed byCharley Chase
Written byCharley Chase
Produced byCharley Chase
Hugh McCollum
StarringMoe Howard
Larry Fine
Curly Howard
Dick Curtis
Lola Jensen
Chester Conklin
Heinie Conklin
Al Thompson
CinematographyLucien Ballard
Edited byArt Seid
Distributed byColumbia Pictures
Release date
  • December 5, 1938 (1938-12-05) (U.S.)
Running time
15:25
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

Flat Foot Stooges is a 1938 short subject directed by Charley Chase starring American slapstick comedy team The Three Stooges (Moe Howard, Larry Fine and Curly Howard). It is the 35th entry in the series released by Columbia Pictures starring the comedians, who released 190 shorts for the studio between 1934 and 1959.

Plot

[edit]

The trio are firemen at Engine Company No. 1, a venerable institution reliant on horse-drawn fire engines. A conflict emerges when a dubious salesman, Mr. Reardon, attempts to persuade Fire Chief Kelly of the obsolescence of horse-powered engines, only to face rejection. Undeterred, Reardon resorts to nefarious means, sabotaging the firehouse through arson.

During his clandestine act, Reardon inadvertently triggers a chain of events culminating in an accidental explosion. The presence of a leaking can of gunpowder, coupled with the unwitting intervention of a duck, catalyzes the conflagration that engulfs the station. As chaos unfolds, the chief's daughter becomes embroiled in the turmoil, sustaining unconsciousness in the ensuing melee.

Amidst this chaos, the Stooges, having unwittingly diverted the firehorses to a Turkish bath, are ill-prepared to respond to the fire alarm. Their belated realization of the blaze's origin within their own station prompts a frantic race against time. Despite their initial missteps, the trio manages to mobilize, arriving in the nick of time to rescue the chief's daughter from the inferno, thus averting a catastrophic outcome.

Production notes

[edit]

Filmed on October 25–28, 1938,[1] the title Flat Foot Stooges is a pun on the 1938 jazz song "Flat Foot Floogie (with a Floy Floy)".[2]

A rarity among Stooge shorts, the boys are shown reciting dialogue incorrectly on several occasions, a result of director Charley Chase's rushed directing style. Chase rarely stopped for retakes in an effort to finish a film ahead of schedule.[2]

When Larry slides down the fire pole and is accidentally punched by Moe, he calls himself a "victim of circumstance". This marks the first time a Stooge other than Curly says the line.

Upon realizing they are heading in the wrong direction, Curly quips "Hey, we're doing the Corrigan!", a reference to aviator Douglas "Wrong Way" Corrigan. Corrigan had recently returned from a transcontinental flight from Floyd Bennett Field in Brooklyn, New York to Long Beach, California. Instead of returning to New York, he bypassed it, and headed to Ireland.[2]

Flat Foot Stooges marks the first usage of "Three Blind Mice" as the Stooges' title theme. However, this was not put to permanent use until We Want Our Mummy.

References

[edit]
  1. ^ Pauley, Jim (2012). The Three Stooges Hollywood Filming Locations. Solana Beach, California: Santa Monica Press, LLC. p. 106. ISBN 9781595800701.
  2. ^ a b c Solomon, Jon. (2002) The Complete Three Stooges: The Official Filmography and Three Stooges Companion, p. 129; Comedy III Productions, Inc., ISBN 0-9711868-0-4
[edit]
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