Crime on Their Hands
Encyclopedia
Crime on Their Hands is the 112th 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.
). With dreams of becoming genuine reporters, the trio head for Squid McGuffy's cafe asking for the whereabouts of Dapper. They manage to convince everyone at the restaurant that they are actually police.
While searching several rooms above the cafe, the Stooges stumble on Dapper's moll (Christine McIntyre
), who hastily hides the Punjab diamond in a candy dish. The boys refuse to leave, suspecting Dapper will eventually show his face. While killing time, Shemp starts to flirt with the moll, and manages to swallow the ice along with some mints from the candy dish. The gal nearly has a nervous breakdown but quickly discovers the Stooges are nothing more than reporters. She calls in Dapper and his henchman Muscles (Cy Schindell
) and frantically try to pry the diamond out of frazzled Shemp.
After all else fails, Dapper decides to cut him open. Moe and Larry are locked in a closet by Muscles while Shemp is tied down on a close by desk-turned-operating table. As luck would have it, there happen to be a bag of tools in the closet, which Moe and Larry use to saw their way out of the closet, and right into a gorilla's cage on the other side of the wall. The gorilla knocks Moe, Larry, Dapper, and Muscles cold. The beast, however, befriends Shemp, and helps him cough up the diamond. As a revived Moe and Larry retrieve the diamond, the police arrive and the the news paper chief, then they stumble upon Shemp and his "buddy," the gorilla.
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 janitors at a newspaper who stumble on a hot story about the priceless Punjab diamond being stolen by a crook named Dapper (Kenneth MacDonaldKenneth MacDonald (American actor)
Kenneth MacDonald was an American film actor. Born in Portland, Indiana, MacDonald made more than 220 film and television appearances between 1931 and 1970.-Career:...
). With dreams of becoming genuine reporters, the trio head for Squid McGuffy's cafe asking for the whereabouts of Dapper. They manage to convince everyone at the restaurant that they are actually police.
While searching several rooms above the cafe, the Stooges stumble on Dapper's moll (Christine McIntyre
Christine McIntyre
Christine Cecilia McIntyre was an actress who appeared in many movies in the 1930s and 1940s but is mainly known as the beautiful blonde actress who appeared in many Three Stooges shorts produced by Columbia Pictures....
), who hastily hides the Punjab diamond in a candy dish. The boys refuse to leave, suspecting Dapper will eventually show his face. While killing time, Shemp starts to flirt with the moll, and manages to swallow the ice along with some mints from the candy dish. The gal nearly has a nervous breakdown but quickly discovers the Stooges are nothing more than reporters. She calls in Dapper and his henchman Muscles (Cy Schindell
Cy Schindell
Seymour "Cy" Schindell was an American actor who appeared in 37 Three Stooges short subjects, mostly as a heavy.-Career:...
) and frantically try to pry the diamond out of frazzled Shemp.
After all else fails, Dapper decides to cut him open. Moe and Larry are locked in a closet by Muscles while Shemp is tied down on a close by desk-turned-operating table. As luck would have it, there happen to be a bag of tools in the closet, which Moe and Larry use to saw their way out of the closet, and right into a gorilla's cage on the other side of the wall. The gorilla knocks Moe, Larry, Dapper, and Muscles cold. The beast, however, befriends Shemp, and helps him cough up the diamond. As a revived Moe and Larry retrieve the diamond, the police arrive and the the news paper chief, then they stumble upon Shemp and his "buddy," the gorilla.