Shemp Howard – A Stooge Remembered

When people think of Samuel “Shemp Howard” Horwitz, most is negative. Both hardcore and casual Three Stooges fans see him as an unsuccessful replacement for his youngest brother Curly. There’s many reasons for this, and I’ve covered them, but they’re worth going over again. Another reason is the “Joe Besser era” shorts are rarely aired, with good reason. In doing my review of The Three Stooges – The Ultimate Collection box set, I wrote a special piece when I reached the end of Curly’s run. I’ve now reached the end of Shemp’s and would like to do the same. Curly is “everyone’s favorite Stooge,” and I would say Shemp is “the misunderstood Stooge.” He’s the most underappreciated.

Shemp is the original Stooge. He’s the oldest of the Howard brothers. Born Samuel Horwitz on March 11, 1895 in Manhattan, he got the name Shemp by accident. In his mother’s thick Litvak accent, Samuel sounded very much like Shemp. The name stuck, and it’s perfect. Shemp Howard was an odd-looking man, so it made sense for him to have an odd name.

People think of Shemp replacing Curly, but Curly replaced him first. The original Three Stooges were Moe Howard, Shemp Howard, and Larry Fine. They weren’t even called the Three Stooges. The trio played second to a man named Ted Healy on the vaudeville circuit. The act was “Ted Healy and His Stooges.” Healy played the Moe role in being the leader and handing out the punishment. Shemp never got along with Healy and left the act after many disagreements to pursue a solo career. A publicity stunt bestowed him the title of “The Ugliest Man in Hollywood.” He played up to it. Shemp appeared in both shorts and features and even starred in shorts of his own.

In 1947 Shemp rejoined Moe and Larry as the third Stooge. It was to be a short-term gig until Curly recovered from his major stroke. Curly never recovered, and Shemp’s Stooge run included 73 shorts and appearing in the 1951 film Gold Raiders. He suffered a mild stroke in 1952, but made a successful recovery within weeks. On November 22, 1955 Shemp attended a boxing match at Hollywood Legion Stadium. On the cab ride home he lit a cigar and slumped into friend Al Wilson’s lap burning him. Wilson thought it was a joke as Shemp was laughing. A sudden heart attack ended the life of Shemp Howard at the age of 60.

From the many remakes, use of recycled footage, and the infamous “Fake Shemp,” he gets the heat. None of those things were Shemp’s fault or decisions, yet he’s the one singled out for blame. Those were decisions of producer, director, and Columbia shorts department head Jules White. In the early 1950s the short subject was going out of style. The new medium of television with programs called sitcoms were making them obsolete. White decided to remake old shorts using a majority of recycled footage as a cost-cutting measure. Yes, the more memorable and classic shorts come from the “Curly era.” There’s plenty of overlooked “Shemp era” shorts. Using the “Fake Shemp” fulfilled contract requirements.

I’ve always been a Shemp fan, and I can’t be the only one to appreciate his work. He deserves a closer look and more admiration from Stooge fans. There’s many bad “Curly era” shorts. They get glossed over or ignored. Anyone who wants to dismiss Shemp and his time with the Stooges needs to watch the “Joe Besser era.” That dear friends, is the lone black eye of Stooge shorts.

Copyright © Drew Martin 2016