Spooks! (1953)

The stooges are private detectives hired to find a missing girl. The boys disguise as pie salesmen and end up wandering around a mad scientist's mansion, trying to find the girl. The boys ... See full summary »

Director:

Jules White

Writer:

Felix Adler (story)

Stars:

Shemp Howard, Larry Fine, Moe Howard

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Shemp Howard	...	Shemp / Bat with Shemp's Head (as Shemp)
Larry Fine	...	Larry (as Larry)
Moe Howard	...	Moe (as Moe)
Philip Van Zandt	...	Dr. Jeckyl
Tom Kennedy	...	Mr. Hyde
Norma Randall	...	Mary 'Bea' Bopper

Storyline

The stooges are private detectives hired to find a missing girl. The boys disguise as pie salesmen and end up wandering around a mad scientist's mansion, trying to find the girl. The boys confront a gorilla and various other bad guys, before rescuing the girl.

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Plot Keywords:

gorilla | slapstick | the three stooges | 3 dimensional | flamethrower | 

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Genres:

Comedy | Short

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

15 June 1953 (USA)

Also Known As:

Tails of Horror

Company Credits

Production Co:

Columbia Pictures Corporation

Technical Specs

Runtime:

16 min

Sound Mix:

Stereo Mono (RCA Sound System)

Color:

Black and White (Sepiatone)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Originally released in 3D

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Goofs

When Dr. Jeckyll comes after Shemp and Bea Bopper with the hypodermic, he isn't wearing his glasses. But in the 3-D effect shot of the needle, he is. In the next shot, the glasses are gone again.

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Quotes

Mary Bopper: Oh no, Doctor Jekyll!
Shemp Howard: Doctor Jekyll? We must Hyde!

User Reviews

Private Stooges

Moe, Larry, and Shemp have decided to take up detective work and they get their first client when a man reports that his daughter has been abducted.

With the highly original disguise of people giving away free pies as a promotion in the neighborhood, the boys start knocking on doors hoping to locate the missing young lady, Norma Randall. A few well chosen screams give the idea that something is amiss at one location.

Spooks is a combination of the Bela Lugosi/Ritz Brothers film The Gorilla and Abbott&Costello Meet Frankenstein. A couple of scientists Philip Van Zandt and Tom Kennedy are working on transferring the woman's brain into their body. Why they would want to do that to a pretty young thing like Randall shows how mad these scientists are. She's not happy and the gorilla is real resistant to the idea.

Don't forget about those pies, saved for the climax. Spooks is ripped off from those other classics, yet the Stooges bring their own unique brand of burlesque humor. It's even in 3-D.