Soitenly! #04 – Half-wits holiday (1946)

Previously: Introduction and Episode guide – Chapter #1 – Chapter #2 – Chapter #3 

By the late 1930’s, Curly was by far the most popular member of the “Three Stooges” with his childish behaviour and his great comedic sense. Many times, directors would simply let the camera roll to see what Curly came up with. Jules White, in particular, would leave gaps in the Stooge scripts where Curly could improvise for several minutes.

His brother Moe would recall: “If we were going through a scene and he'd forget his words for a moment, you know. Rather than stand, get pale and stop, you never knew what he was going to do. On one occasion he'd get down to the floor and spin around like a top until he remembered what he had to say.”

Once the cameras stopped shooting, though, a very insecure, introverted and sad individual would emerge. Curly was very self conscious about having to shave his head, and thought that it made him look unappealing. During World War II, the Stooges’ filming schedule allowed them to make personal appearances, so they would entertain the troops. The intense work schedule took its toll on Curly; he never drank while performing in film or on stage, as Moe would not allow it. But once he found himself away from his ‘'brother-father” Curly would go to the nearest nightclub, drink heavily, eat and party all the time, and as a consequence his health started to deteriorate.

Moe and a rough looking Curly in a promotional shot for “Three loan wolves” with Beverly Warren and Harold Brauer. Brauer is one of two actors who worked with all four formations of the Stooges (the other being Emil Sitka)

By 1944, Curly's energy began to wane. Films like Idle Roomers and Booby Dupes present a Curly whose voice was deeper and his actions slower. After the filming of Idiots Deluxe, Curly finally took his brother Moe’s advice and checked himself into a hospital, where he was diagnosed with extreme hypertension, a retinal haemorrhage and obesity. It is believed that Curly suffered the first in a series of mild strokes at this time. Moe asked Columbia Studios President Harry Cohn to allow Curly some time off upon discharge to recover, but Cohn would not halt the production of his profitable Stooge shorts, and flatly declined Moe's request.

Curly started to struggle a lot while on the set. Moe urged Curly (known for being a ‘total pushover’ with girls) to find himself a wife, hoping it would convince his brother to finally settle down and allow his health to somewhat improve. After only two weeks of going out, Curly married Marion Buxbaum on October 17, 1945 (those from Argentina will probably recognize this day as one of the most important –for good or bad- of our recent history); the union lasted approximately three months, after which the couple ended up separating in what became a bitter divorce proceeding, conveniently exploited in the local media. It was after this divorce that Curly's health began a rapid and devastating decline.

By early 1946, Curly's fragile health had taken a sharp nosedive. His voice had become twice as coarse as before, and he had increasing difficulty remembering even the simplest dialogue. The quality of his performances seriously declined, as his strength and energy plummeted. He had lost a considerable amount of weight and lines had creased his baby face.

Shooting A bird in the head proved to be a headache for debuting director Ed Bernds. He was thrilled that he was being given a shot at directing, but was horrified when he realized that Curly was in such bad shape. Shorts like this one, Three loan wolves and especially Monkey businessmen are painful to watch, as Curly was in such bad shape that his brother Moe Howard had to help him with his lines, and that’s even seen on film at times.

As Bernds would recall: “It was strange the way Curly went up and down. In the order I shot the pictures, not in the order they were released, he was down for A Bird in the Head and The Three Troubledoers, he was up for Micro-Phonies, way down for Monkey Businessmen, and then up again, for the last time, in Three Little Pirates. In Monkey Businessmen, he (Curly) was at his worst. Moe coached him the way one would a child, getting him to repeat each line after him. We had to shoot Curly repeating one line at a time."

Almost unable to perform anymore, Curly’s appearances would be short and very limited both physically and in terms of acting. Directors White and Bernds went around this by shifting the lead role towards Moe and especially Larry, who until that point had been playing a character that was basically the ‘reactor’ to all the craziness that Moe and Curly were engaged in. Ed Bernds, however, was lucky enough to capture the ailing Stooge on an "up" day when filming Three Little Pirates. Curly seemed better and there had been some hope that his illness was finally under control. "I guess I should be thankful that Curly was in one of his 'up' periods," Bernds said later. "In Three Little Pirates, he was terrific. It was the last flash of the old Curly”.

That comeback was short-lived, however. On May 6, 1946, and while filming Half-Wits Holiday, Curly suffered a massive stroke on the set. He had completed most of the film, except for the pie-fight scene, which occurred at the end of the film. Moe recalled that director Jules White called for Curly, but got no answer. Moe sought out his brother, finding him sitting with his head slumped over on his shoulder. Curly was crying profusely, but unable to speak and Moe knew instantly that his already ill brother had suffered a severe stroke. Curly was immediately driven to the local hospital, while White quietly scrambled to shoot the final scene around Curly's absence, something that would prove to be a blessing in disguise whenever the pie fight footage was needed. The Curly-less footage was recycled in Pest Man Wins, Scheming Schemers and Pies and Guys (the first two episodes with Shemp and the last with Joe as the ‘Third Stooge’).

 

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Para fines de los años 30’s, Curly ya era sin dudas el más popular de los “Tres Chiflados” con su comportamiento infantil y su gran sentido comédico. Muchas veces los directores dejarían la cámara andando para ver con qué nueva payasada se despachaba Curly. Jules White, en particular, dejaba espacios en blanco en los guiones de los Chiflados para que Curly improvisara por varios minutos.

Su hermano Moe recordaría: “A veces estábamos haciendo una escena y él se olvidaba su letra. En lugar de quedarse parado, ponerse pálido o parar, uno nunca sabía lo que Curly iba a hacer. Una vez, se tiró al piso y comenzó a dar vueltas como un trompo hasta que recordó lo que tenía que decir”.

Una vez que las cámaras dejaron de filmar, sin embargo, un individuo muy inseguro, introvertido y hasta triste emergía. Curly sentía mucha vergüenza por su aspecto; el sentía que el tener que afeitarse la cabeza le hacía lucir muy poco atractivo. Durante la Segunda Guerra Mundial, los limitados compromisos de filmación de los Chiflados les permitían hacer apariciones en vivo, por lo que dedicaron mucho tiempo a entretener a las tropas. Ese cronograma de trabajo tan intenso afectó a Curly; el nunca bebía mientras filmaba o actuaba en vivo, porque Moe no se lo permitía. Pero una vez que se encontraba fuera del alcance de su “hermano/padre”, Curly se iba al club nocturno más cercano, donde bebía copiosamente, comía y andaba de juerga todo el tiempo, por lo que su salud comenzó a deteriorarse.

 The Stooges rehearsing with long-time supporting actor Emil Sitka. 
“Half-wits holiday” was Sitka’s first short and Curly’s last.

Para 1944, la energía de Curly comenzó a desvanecerse. Cortos como Idle Roomers y Booby Dupes nos mostraban a un Curly cuya voz aparecía más grave y sus acciones, más lentas. Luego de filmar Idiots Deluxe, Curly finalmente le hizo caso a su hermano Moe y se admitió en un hospital, donde fue diagnosticado con hipertensión extrema, una hemorragia retinal y obesidad. Se cree que Curly sufrió el primero de una serie de derrames durante esta época. Moe le pidió al Presidente de Estudios Columbia, Harry Cohn que le diera algo de tiempo a Curly para recuperarse luego de su alta, pero Cohn no estaba dispuesto a poner la producción de sus redituables Chiflados en pausa, así que rechazó el pedido.

Curly comenzó a tener serios problemas en el set. Moe le urgió , a sabiendas de que Curly perdía la cabeza por las chicas, a que se buscara una esposa, con la esperanza de que finalmente sentara cabeza y comenzara a mejorar. Luego de sólo dos semanas de salir juntos, Curly se casó con Marion Buxbaum el 17 de Octubre de 1945 (una fecha que los argentinos reconocerán como una de las más importantes –para bien o mal– de nuestra historia reciente); esa unión duró apenas tres meses, luego de lo cual la pareja terminó separándose en lo que se convirtió en un amargo trance, convenientemente explotado por los medios. Fue luego de este divorcio que la salud de Curly comenzó a declinar de manera rápida y devastadora.

A principios de 1946, el estado tan frágil de Curly lo había precipitado cuesta abajo. Su voz era el doble de áspera que antes, y ya tenía muchísimas dificultades para recordar hasta el diálogo más simple. La calidad de sus performances declinó muchísimo, y su fortaleza y energía casi desaparecieron. Había perdido mucho peso, y su cara estaba demacrada y surcada de arrugas.

La filmación de A bird in the head fue un verdadero dolor de cabeza para el debutante director Ed Bernds. Entusiasmado por haber conseguido la chance de dirigir, se horrorizó al ver a Curly en semejante estado. Cortos como éste, Three loan wolves y sobre todo Monkey businessmen resultan dolorosos de mirar, porque Curly estaba en tan mal estado que su hermano lo tenía que ayudar con sus líneas, cosa que hasta se ve en pantalla a veces.

Bernds recordaría: “Era extraña la forma en que la salud de Curly subía y bajaba. En el orden en que yo filmé los cortos, que no fue el orden en que fueron estrenados, Curly estuvo muy mal en A Bird in the Head y The Three Troubledoers, mucho mejor en Micro-Phonies, muy mal en Monkey businessmen, y luego casi perfecto, por una última vez, en Three Little Pirates. En Monkey Businessmen, vi lo peor de Curly. Moe lo tenía que conducir como uno lo haría con un niño, haciendo que repitiera cada línea luego que el las decía. Tuvimos que filmar a Curly repitiendo una línea de texto por vez”.

Casi imposibilitado de actuar, las apariciones de Curly’s eran cortas y muy limitadas en lo físico y lo actoral. Los directores White y Bernds resolvían este problema pasando el rol de ‘chiflado líder’ hacia Moe y especialmente hacia Larry, que hasta ese punto había estado jugando un rol que era básicamente el de ‘reactor’ a la locura que Moe y Curly generaban. Ed Bernds, sin embargo, tuvo la suerte de encontrarse con el chiflado enfermo en un gran día cuando filmaron Three Little Pirates. Curly aparecía mucho mejor, y algunos comenzaron a esperanzarse con que finalmente su enfermedad estaba bajo control. "Creo que deberíamos agradecer que lo tuvimos a Curly en uno de sus mejores días," diría más tarde Bernds. "En Three Little Pirates, estuvo maravilloso. Fue el último flash del ‘viejo’ Curly”.

Ese retorno no duró mucho, lamentablemente. El 6 de Mayo de 1946, mientras filmaban Half-Wits Holiday, Curly sufrió un derrame cerebral masivo en pleno set. Había completado casi todo el fin, excepto la escena final de guerra de pasteles. Moe recordó que Jules White buscaba a Curly, sin encontrarlo. Moe lo halló sentado, con su cabeza gacha descanzando contra su hombro. Curly lloraba copiosamente, pero no podía hablar, por lo que Moe instantáneamente supo que su hermano había sufrido otro derrame. Curly fue inmediatamente llevado al hospital local, mientras White trataba de armar la escena final sin Curly, algo que luego terminó siendo un beneficio ya que pudieron reusarla cada vez que se necesitaba filmar una guerra de pasteles. Esas escenas sin curly fueron recicladas en Pest Man Wins, Scheming Schemers (ambos episodios con Shemp) y Pies and Guys (éste con Joe como el ‘Tercer Chiflado’).

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Sources:

• “A bird in the head” – Wikipedia
• “The three troubledoers” – Wikipedia
• “Monkey businessmen” – Wikipedia
• “Three loan wolves” – Wikipedia
• “Three little pirates” – Wikipedia
• “Half wits holiday” – Wikipedia 

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