| Beer Barrel Polecats | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Directed by | Jules White |
| Written by | Gilbert Pratt |
| Produced by | Jules White |
| Starring | Moe Howard Larry Fine Curly Howard Vernon Dent Robert Williams Eddie Laughton Joe Palma |
| Cinematography | George F. Kelley |
| Edited by | Charles Hochberg |
| Distributed by | Columbia Pictures |
Release date |
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Running time | 17:33 |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
Beer Barrel Polecats is a 1946short subject directed byJules White starring Americanslapstick comedy teamThe Three Stooges (Moe Howard,Larry Fine andCurly Howard). It is the 88th entry in the series released byColumbia Pictures starring the comedians, who released 190 shorts for the studio between 1934 and 1959.
In their quest for beer during Prohibition, the Stooges resort to brewing their own concoction, using a recipe called "Panther Pilsner Beer" (an allusion to the popular slang term for bad alcohol "Panther Piss"). Confusion over which of them were responsible for adding yeast to the mixture leads to a comical explosion.
Despite eventual success, their venture takes a legal turn when Curly inadvertently sells a bottle to an undercover detective at an inflated price, resulting in their incarceration. In prison, the Stooges initiate an escape plan, unintentionally incapacitating the warden in the process.
While serving time on the rock pile, they encounter a fellow inmate and an old acquaintance, Percy Pomeroy, with whom they collaborate on a prison break. The attempt fails, leading to their transfer to solitary confinement.
Decades later, the elderly trio is finally released as senior citizens. Curly expresses his desire for a tall bottle of beer upon freedom, prompting Moe and Larry to intervene by attacking Curly and convincing the warden to return him to jail, thereby avoiding further complications.
The titleBeer Barrel Polecats is a pun of the song "Beer Barrel Polka". The idea of producing and selling their own beer duringProhibition was borrowed fromLaurel and Hardy's 1931 film,Pardon Us.[1]
When the Stooges drop their iron balls chained to their legs, theNBC Chimes are heard, a gag recycled from the team's 1937 shortBack to the Woods.[1]
Acolorized version of this film was released in 2007 as part of the DVD collection "Hapless Half-Wits."[2]
This short also marks the final appearance of the lateEddie Laughton, who died in 1952, the same year Curly,Duke York, andDick Curtis all died.
Beer Barrel Polecats was filmed over two days on April 25–26, 1945, several months afterCurly Howard suffered a minorstroke.[3] His resulting performances were marred by slurred speech and slower timing.DVD Talk critic Stuart Galbraith IV noted that Curly looked "notably thinner (Curly, Moe, and Larry are about the same weight in this) and inexpressive throughout, his face almost like a mask."[4] Curly's illness prevented him from maintaining the vitality for the duration of the normal 4-5 day filming schedule. To compensate for his unavailability, directorJules White utilized footage fromIn the Sweet Pie and Pie andSo Long Mr. Chumps, which featured a healthier and heavier Curly.[1] However, according to threestooges.net, a possible lawsuit by comedian Harold Lloyd resulted in a hastily reworked script; this prompted the use of older footage in the film, and was not related to Curly's illness.[3]
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The Three Stooges filmography (1934–1946) | |
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