Squareheads of the Round Table is the 106th short subject

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 between 1934 and 1959.

Plot

The Stooges are troubadour

Troubadour

A troubadour was a composer and performer of Old Occitan lyric poetry during the High Middle Ages . Since the word "troubadour" is etymologically masculine, a female troubadour is usually called a trobairitz....

s in medieval times. The villainous Black Prince has designs on marriage to Elaine, the princess. She however is in love with Cedric, the blacksmith. The Stooges try to intervene for Cedric by serenading Elaine; the music is the sextet from Donizetti's opera "Lucia di Lammermoor". They are captured by the king’s guards and condemned to be beheaded. Elaine sends them tools baked in a loaf of bread and they escape the dungeon

Dungeon

A dungeon is a room or cell in which prisoners are held, especially underground. Dungeons are generally associated with medieval castles, though their association with torture probably belongs more to the Renaissance period...

.

While running from the guards, Moe overhears the Black Prince plotting with a co-conspirator to murder the king. The Stooges save the day by causing a diversion by dancing in armor to Stephen Foster

Stephen Foster

Stephen Collins Foster , known as the "father of American music", was the pre-eminent songwriter in the United States of the 19th century...

’s "Old Folks at Home

Old Folks at Home

"Old Folks at Home" is a minstrel song written by Stephen Foster in 1851. It was intended to be performed by the New York blackface troupe Christy's Minstrels. E. P. Christy, the troupe's leader, appears on early printings of the sheet music as the song's creator...

", thus allowing Elaine to free Cedric. Finally, the king realizes the plot and jails the Black Prince and his fellow plotter. Elaine is allowed to marry Cedric, and they all live happily ever after.

Quotes

• Larry: "Why does the prince want Cedric's head for? Ain't he got one of his own?"
• Shemp: "Ya dope, two heads are better than one!"

• King: "My daughter marry a ‘smith?!"
• Shemp: "Take it easy, King; millions of women marry Smiths every year!"

Special effect notes

• When the King is climbing down the trellis, and it starts giving out, a wire can be seen tied to the trellis.
• When the Stooges throw fruits at the trumpets, the film is looped back, and the trumpets appear alternately clean and dirty from the fruit hits.

Production

• Squareheads of the Round Table was remade
  Remake
  A remake is a piece of media based primarily on an earlier work of the same medium.-Film:The term "remake" is generally used in reference to a movie which uses an earlier movie as the main source material, rather than in reference to a second, later movie based on the same source...
  
   in 1954 as Knutzy Knights
  Knutzy Knights
  Knutzy Knights is the 156th 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.-Plot:...
  
  , using ample stock footage
  Stock footage
  Stock footage, and similarly, archive footage, library pictures and file footage are film or video footage that may or may not be custom shot for use in a specific film or television program. Stock footage is of beneficial use to filmmakers as it is sometimes less expensive than shooting new...
  
  .
• Like Fiddlers Three
  Fiddlers Three (1948 film)
  Fiddlers Three is the 107th 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. It is a partial remake of Restless Knights.-Plot:...
  
  and The Hot Scots
  The Hot Scots
  The Hot Scots is the 108th 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.-Plot:...
  
  , Squareheads of the Round Table was filmed on the existing set of the feature film The Bandit of Sherwood Forest.