Three Little Pirates

Three Little Pirates (1946)

Guaranteed to start a riot!

The stooges are castaways from a garbage scow who land on Dead Man's Island where everyone is living in olden times. To escape from the governor, they disguise Curly as a Maharaja and win permission to journey to their own country to fetch presents. The governor is fooled, but the boys run into more trouble in the den of Black Louie the pirate where Curly is forced into a knife throwing contest with Larry as the target. Things look bad until a mis-thrown knife cuts the rope that holds the chandelier and it crashes down on Black Louie's men. With the pirates defeated, Moe decides to take over as ruler of the island.

Date of release
1946-12-05
TMDB
7.2 / 10 (12)
Runtime
18m
Genres
Comedy
Director
Edward Bernds

Casting

Interesting facts

Three Little Pirates is a 1946 short subject directed by Edward Bernds starring American slapstick comedy team The Three Stooges. It is the 96th entry in the series released by Columbia Pictures starring the comedians, who released 190 shorts for the studio between 1934 and 1959.

Production notes

This is the 12th of 16 Stooge shorts with the word "three" in the title.

The Stooges had previously performed the "Maharaja" routine in Time Out for Rhythm (1941). They would resurrect the routine with Joe DeRita as the third stooge on The Steve Allen Show (1959) and in the theatrical feature The Three Stooges Go Around the World in a Daze (1963). Moe Howard also later performed a variation of the routine, with Mike Douglas and Soupy Sales, in November 1973 television appearance on The Mike Douglas Show.

Canarsie, Bay Meadows, Flatbush, and the isles of Coney and Long are references to New York-based localities where brothers Moe, Curly, and Shemp Howard spent their childhood. It is all the more appropriate, as the Stooges are sailors shipwrecked off of a New York City garbage scow.

Three Little Pirates was produced during April 15–18, 1946, a period marked by Curly Howard's health struggles following a series of minor strokes. Prior films like Three Loan Wolves and G.I. Wanna Home had notably shifted focus away from Curly, with Moe and Larry assuming more prominent roles due to Curly's impaired speech and slower timing.

Despite his ailments, Curly was on his game and delivered a top performance in Three Little Pirates. Notably, he flawlessly executed the memorable "Maharaja" routine alongside Moe. Additionally, Curly showcased his talent for physical comedy, as seen when he briefly reclines on a chair in one scene.

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