Three Missing Links (1938)

Director:

Jules White

Writer:

Searle Kramer (story)

Release Date:

29 July 1938 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Short

Plot:

The stooges are janitors working in a movie studio. After wrecking the bosses office, they get jobs as actors in an African movie...

Plot Keywords:

Gorilla | Janitor | Africa | Beautiful Woman | Actress

Cast

Curly Howard	...	Curly (as Curly)
Larry Fine	...	Larry (as Larry)
Moe Howard	...	Moe (as Moe)
Monte Collins	...	Herbert - Director
Jane Hamilton	...	Mirabel Mirabel
Ray Corrigan	...	The Gorilla (as Naba)
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
John Lester Johnson	...	Dr. Ba Loni Sulami (uncredited)
James C. Morton	...	B.O. Botswaddle (uncredited)

Directed by
Jules White

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
Searle Kramer		story and screenplay

Produced by
Jules White	....	associate producer

Cinematography by
Henry Freulich

Film Editing by
Charles Nelson

Music Department
Louis Silvers	....	composer: stock music (uncredited)

Production Companies

• Columbia Pictures Corporation

Distributors

• Columbia Pictures (1938) (USA) (theatrical)
• Screen Gems (1958) (USA) (TV) (syndication)
• Columbia TriStar Home Video (2004) (USA) (DVD)
• Image Entertainment (????) (USA) (video) (laserdisc)
• RCA/Columbia Pictures Home Video (????) (USA) (video) (laserdisc)

Runtime:

18 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Victor High Fidelity Sound System)

Company:

Columbia Pictures Corporation

Goofs:

Boom mic visible: Just after Curly throws mud at Moe's face, who then hurls it to Larry, against the tent behind them, you can see the shadow of the boom mic, (something hard to spot in the many Stooges films).

Quotes:

[Larry thinks that a real gorilla behind him is Curly in a costume]
Larry: Cut it out, ya puddinhead!
Curly: I'm not me!

Movie Connections:

Featured in Lethal Weapon 2 (1989)

Is It Curly Or The Gorilla? Hard To Tell

The Stooges go from totally-inept janitors to actors working for the "Super Terrific Productions" movie company, under the leadership of "B.O. Botswaddle." That occurs when the latter takes a good look at our guys and proclaims, "We've found our missing links."

They look just like the Neanderthals Botswaddle is looking for to shoot his next motion picture. The Stooges are too dumb to realize they've just been insulted. They are just happy to become actors.

The real fun happens when the film crew arrives in Africa. We get tons, literally, of gags signs to puns to outrageous physical stuff. (i.e. The Stooges see a sign on a hut that reads, "Dr. Ba Loni Sulami, Medicine Man, Hours 2-5 Or By Appointment.")

The best gags, IMO, come, when a real ape appears and gets confused with Curly the ape role. Both look identical and mayhem ensues and nobody knows if it's Curly or the real gorilla.

Jane Hamilton looked hot as the film-within-in-a-film female star "Mirabel Mirabel."