Ask Jeffrey Scott if it’s possible to revive The Three Stooges and he can answer in a word: Soitenly!
Furthermore, if you question Scott’s evaluation of the ageless appeal of America’s most famous trio of knuckleheads, he’s likely to respond the way his famous grandfather, Moe Howard, did: “Oh, a wise guy!” followed by the poke-in-the-eye, the roundhouse head conk, or the triple slap.
Scott is the driving force behind a Stooge revival group that has a five-year contract at the new MGM Grand Hotel in Las Vegas. The group also has contracted for a series of television commercials to be aired throughout the country.
“People love the Stooges,” said Paul Lepelletier, director of the ads, which are customized for local markets. “There’s probably not a week that goes by that you don’t hear or see a reference to them. Jeffrey’s group has the same humor, gets the same laughter I felt when I was a kid watching them on TV. They’re playing to packed houses (at the MGM Grand).”
Scott, who lives in Los Angeles, revives the role of his grandfather, Moses Horwitz, better known as Moe.
“Off the set, he was just a normal grandfather. He’d throw pies at me, I’d hit him in the head with a wrench,” Scott says with a laugh. “Actually he was a very conservative, regular grandfather. The most he would do is tell off-color jokes at dinner. When I comb my hair down, I look just like him, and I can get the mannerisms down.”
Robert Caso plays the role of the wild-haired Larry Fine. Patrick Thomas plays Curly, who was Moe’s real-life brother, reviving the well-recognized Curly shuffle, Curly face-wipe, the audible clanking of the molars, the rolling of his fingers under his chin, the floor spin and the wave of his hand up and down in front of Moe’s face.
Neither are related to the Horwitz or Fine families, but both are drawing rave reviews for their similarities to the original men.
“Patrick probably has Curly down better, has the mannerisms down right, and knows more about Curly than anyone I know,” said Harry Ross, owner of Soitenly Stooges Inc. in Highland Park.
Ross verifies the resurgence of interest in the Stooges by citing a 40 percent annual growth in his business, both nationally through mail-order, and locally through the walk-in business at his store. “Any market that had the Stooges on in the late 1950s and early ’60s on a daily basis, as we did here with WGN, is a strong market,” Ross said. “The average fan is in his mid-30s, but we have them as young as 2 and into their 70s. We get some of the old-timers who recall seeing them live on the vaudeville circuit.”
That original group started with another Horwitz brother, Shemp (the family nickname for Sam; Curly’s birth name was Jerome). Curly stepped into the vaudeville group when Shemp gave up the act, and 60 years ago, they released “Woman Haters,” their first Columbia two-reel film as The Three Stooges with Larry, Curly and Moe.
They were widely popular for their live act and their film-shorts career until Curly suffered a stroke; he died in 1952. It was the sale of their short films to television in 1958 that marked their second great surge in popularity.
The Three Stooges also made feature films, including 1965’s “The Outlaws IS Coming,” directed by Moe’s son-in-law Norman Maurer. There was also a part in the film for Norman’s son, 11-year-old Jeffrey (he has since changed his last name to Scott).
“It was fun to be on the set with the Stooges,” Scott recalls. “It was their last feature film, Adam West was the star, and there were all kinds of crazy stunts.
“My grandfather treated me very professionally, gave me tips, and we’d discuss my acting career, which ended right after that.”
Larry Fine died in early 1975; Moe died of lung cancer in May of 1975.
“They weren’t just actors,” Scott says, “they were very well-coordinated comedians. To have all these things they did that were so off the wall, but are instantly recognizable as Stooges, is pretty amazing-the `nyuk, nyuk,’ the ‘woo, woo, woo,’ the `I’m a victim of soicumstance,’ Moe barking, `Why, I oughtta . . .’
“If I talk to someone who is a real Stooges fan, I’ll tell them who I am. It’s a thrill for me to say, `I’m Moe’s grandson.’ “
