They Stooge to Conga
Encyclopedia
They Stooge to Conga is the 67th 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.
). They manage to ruin most of the house while working on the wiring and then subdue the spies and sink an enemy submarine by remote control.
, with a wooden pillar landing on his neck (this was not intentional, as the pillar was real wood). Curly gets his share of abuse, via electrocution, falling off a telephone pole, severe nose twisting and getting singed via an acetylene torch.
As a result, this short was at one time not shown on regular television. Interestingly, though Columbia short subject head/director Jules White
was known for the usage of excessive violence in his films, They Stooge To Conga was directed by Del Lord
. "We had trouble pulling Moe all the way through the wall," White later recalled. "Since Moe was a full grown man, we weakened the wall and the wood inside and then replastered the wall. Although Moe did suffer an injury while doing the stunt anyway."
and Hideki Tōjō
, respectively), he supposedly knocks over a lamp. Closer examination reveals that the lamp was attached to a string and pulled by the prop man too soon, as Curly never actually comes in contact with the lamp. Interestingly, the lamp is sitting upright on the table in the next shot.
Short subject
A short film is any film not long enough to be considered a feature film. No consensus exists as to where that boundary is drawn: the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences defines a short film as "an original motion picture that has a running time of 40 minutes or less, including all...
starring American slapstick
Slapstick
Slapstick is a type of comedy involving exaggerated violence and activities which may exceed the boundaries of common sense.- Origins :The phrase comes from the batacchio or bataccio — called the 'slap stick' in English — a club-like object composed of two wooden slats used in Commedia dell'arte...
comedy team the Three Stooges
Three Stooges
The Three Stooges were an American vaudeville and comedy act of the early to mid–20th century best known for their numerous short subject films. Their hallmark was physical farce and extreme slapstick. In films, the Stooges were commonly known by their first names: "Moe, Larry, and Curly" and "Moe,...
. The trio made a total of 190 shorts for Columbia Pictures
Columbia Pictures
Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc. is an American film production and distribution company. Columbia Pictures now forms part of the Columbia TriStar Motion Picture Group, owned by Sony Pictures Entertainment, a subsidiary of the Japanese conglomerate Sony. It is one of the leading film companies...
between 1934 and 1959.
Plot
The Stooges are repairmen fixing the doorbell in a large house which is the secret headquarters of some Nazi spies, headed by the ruthless Hans (Vernon DentVernon Dent
Vernon Bruce Dent was a comic actor who appeared in over 400 films in his career. He co-starred in many short films for Columbia Pictures, frequently as the foil to the Three Stooges.-Early career:...
). They manage to ruin most of the house while working on the wiring and then subdue the spies and sink an enemy submarine by remote control.
Violent peak
They Stooge to Conga has been consistently ranked as the most violent Stooge film of the team's career. In its brief 15½ minutes, Moe manages to get a climbing spike thrust into his ear, scalp, and eye. Plus, he is lucky enough to be pulled through drywallDrywall
Drywall, also known as plasterboard, wallboard or gypsum board is a panel made of gypsum plaster pressed between two thick sheets of paper...
, with a wooden pillar landing on his neck (this was not intentional, as the pillar was real wood). Curly gets his share of abuse, via electrocution, falling off a telephone pole, severe nose twisting and getting singed via an acetylene torch.
Oxy-fuel welding and cutting
Oxy-fuel welding and oxy-fuel cutting are processes that use fuel gases and oxygen to weld and cut metals, respectively. French engineers Edmond Fouché and Charles Picard became the first to develop oxygen-acetylene welding in 1903...
As a result, this short was at one time not shown on regular television. Interestingly, though Columbia short subject head/director Jules White
Jules White
Jules White born Julius Weiss was a film director and producer best known for his short-subject comedies starring the Three Stooges.-Early years:...
was known for the usage of excessive violence in his films, They Stooge To Conga was directed by Del Lord
Del Lord
Del Lord was a Canadian film director and actor best known as a director of Three Stooges films.-Career:Delmer Lord was born in the small town of Grimsby, Ontario, Canada...
. "We had trouble pulling Moe all the way through the wall," White later recalled. "Since Moe was a full grown man, we weakened the wall and the wood inside and then replastered the wall. Although Moe did suffer an injury while doing the stunt anyway."
Notable violent gags
- When the trio first enter the house, Moe and Larry try to enter the house simultaneously. They are wedged in the doorway, and get thrusted out when Curly comes up from behind with the point of an anvilAnvilAn anvil is a basic tool, a block with a hard surface on which another object is struck. The inertia of the anvil allows the energy of the striking tool to be transferred to the work piece. In most cases the anvil is used as a forging tool...
as a gouge. - When Moe is pulled through the wall by Larry and Curly, an actual 2x4 made of solid wood crashed onto Moe's neck.
- When Moe twists Curly's nose with a tool, he uses a grinding wheel to file it back into shape.
- As Moe and Larry assist Curly up a telephone pole, Curly accidentally impales Moe in his scalp, eye and ear with a climbing spike on the bottom of his shoe.
- When Curly gets zapped via several telephone pole wires, he loses his grip and falls to the sidewalk, landing on Moe and Larry below.
- While Curly is "charged like a battery," Moe places a light bulb in Curly's ear, which lights up. To short him out, Larry places a screwdriver in Curly's opposite ear, bursting the light bulb.
- As Curly is sliding on electrical wires, he gets a shock, which pushes him through an open window.
- As the Nazi spies' cook (Dudley DickersonDudley DickersonDudley Dickerson was an African American film actor. Born in Oklahoma, he appeared in nearly 160 films between 1932 and 1952, and is best remembered for his roles in several Three Stooges films.-Career:...
) is talking on the phone, the phone explodes in his face due to Curly's manipulating the electrical wires. The startled cook then backs away from the phone, right into an open waffle iron. The iron closes on the cook's buttocksButtocksThe buttocks are two rounded portions of the anatomy, located on the posterior of the pelvic region of apes and humans, and many other bipeds or quadrupeds, and comprise a layer of fat superimposed on the gluteus maximus and gluteus medius muscles. Physiologically, the buttocks enable weight to...
, leading the cook to think he is being attacked by someone. - When Moe takes a hammer, he hits Larry from behind, then thrusts it into Curly's mouth. Curly, in turn, bonks Moe with his own hammer 20 times in rapid succession.
- When Curly is halfway up the telephone pole, Moe burns him with a flame to get him all the way up.
- When Curly is pulling a wire out of a wall, he pulls out a ringing phone. He answers it, says "This line is busy" and throws it away, hitting Moe in the head. Moe throws it back in retaliation, hitting Curly in the head, satisfying Moe and startling Curly.
Goofs
When Curly inadventently hits Moe and Larry (who are disguised as Adolf HitlerAdolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler was an Austrian-born German politician and the leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party , commonly referred to as the Nazi Party). He was Chancellor of Germany from 1933 to 1945, and head of state from 1934 to 1945...
and Hideki Tōjō
Hideki Tōjō
Hideki Tōjō was a general of the Imperial Japanese Army , the leader of the Taisei Yokusankai, and the 40th Prime Minister of Japan during most of World War II, from 17 October 1941 to 22 July 1944...
, respectively), he supposedly knocks over a lamp. Closer examination reveals that the lamp was attached to a string and pulled by the prop man too soon, as Curly never actually comes in contact with the lamp. Interestingly, the lamp is sitting upright on the table in the next shot.