Back from the Front

{{short description|1943 film by Jules White}} {{Use mdy dates|date=April 2025}} {{Use American English|date=January 2025}} {{Infobox film | name = Back from the Front | image = Backfromfrontlobby.jpg | caption = | director = [[Jules White]] | writer = [[Ewart Adamson]] [[Jack White (film producer)|Jack White]] | starring = [[Moe Howard]] [[Larry Fine]] [[Curly Howard]] [[Stanley Blystone]] [[Vernon Dent]] [[Bud Jamison]] [[Heinie Conklin]] [[Lew Davis]] [[George Gray (actor)|George Gray]] [[Jack Lipson|Jack "Tiny" Lipson]] [[Harry Semels]] [[Al Thompson]] [[Adele Mara]] [[Sally Cairns]] [[Ruth Skinner]] | cinematography = [[John Stumar]] | editing = [[Edwin H. Bryant]] | producer = Jules White | distributor = [[Columbia Pictures]] | released = {{Film date|1943|05|28|U.S.}} | runtime = {{duration|m=17|s=52}} | country = United States | language = English }} '''''Back from the Front''''' is a 1943 [[short film|short subject]] directed by [[Jules White]] starring American [[slapstick]] comedy team [[The Three Stooges]] ([[Moe Howard]], [[Larry Fine]] and [[Curly Howard]]). It is the 70th entry in the series released by [[Columbia Pictures]] starring the comedians, who released 190 shorts for the studio between 1934 and 1959.

==Plot== The Stooges embark on a patriotic endeavor, bidding farewell to their romantic partners and enlisting in the [[United States Merchant Marine|Merchant Marines]] to contribute to the [[World War II|war effort]]. While aboard ship, they engage in a brief altercation with Lieutenant Dungen (later revealed as a Nazi spy) before encountering a torpedo mistaken for a beached whale. Mistaking it for a threat, Moe commands its destruction, resulting in an unexpected explosion.

Lost at sea for an extended duration, the Stooges encounter the SS ''Schicklgruber'', where they clandestinely board the vessel. Amidst their time adrift, they undergo significant physical transformations, characterized by the growth of full beards. Encountering Lieutenant Dungen once more, they remain unrecognized due to their altered appearances. Realizing the presence of German sailors aboard, they engage in a covert operation to overpower the crew, ultimately assuming control of the ship by forcing the sailors overboard.

==Cast== ===Credited=== * [[Moe Howard]] as Moe * [[Larry Fine]] as Larry * [[Curly Howard]] as Curly

===Uncredited=== * [[Stanley Blystone]] as German Captain * [[Neal Burns]] as German Sailor * [[Sally Cairns]] as Tizzy * [[Heinie Conklin]] as German Sailor * [[Vernon Dent]] as Lt. Dungen * Hubert Diltz as German Sailor * [[Lew Davis]] as German Sailor * [[Kit Guard]] as Crewman * George Gray as German Sailor * [[Bud Jamison]] as German Petty Officer * [[Johnny Kascier]] as German Officer * [[Sam Lufkin]] as German Sailor * [[Jack "Tiny" Lipson]] as Heavyset German Sailor * [[Adele Mara]] as Dizzy * [[Ruth Skinner]] as Lizzy * [[Harry Semels]] as German Sentry * [[Al Thompson]] as German Sailor

==Production notes== ''Back from the Front'' was filmed over four days on July 24–28, 1942.<ref>[http://threestooges.net/filmography/episode/70 ''Back from the Front'' at threestooges.net]</ref> Notably, this film marked a significant innovation for the Stooge franchise, introducing a distinctive sound effect to accompany the eye poke gag. The incorporation of a "TWANG" sound effect synchronized with Moe's action of poking Lieutenant Dungen in the eyes distinguished this film from its predecessors.<ref name="Solomon"/>

Subsequent Stooge films experimented with different sound effects to enhance comedic moments. Throughout 1943 and 1944, varying degrees of success were achieved with alternative sound effects. For instance, in ''[[Higher Than a Kite]]'', a nose honk sound effect was utilized, albeit inappropriately. Similarly, in ''[[Crash Goes the Hash]]'', a xylophone sound effect was integrated into comedic sequences.<ref name="Solomon"/>

The film series found consistency in its use of specific sound effects post-1945. The sound of a ukulele or violin string being plucked became a staple, frequently employed to accentuate comedic moments.<ref name="Solomon"/>

Moe reprises his [[Adolf Hitler]] role from ''[[You Nazty Spy!]]'' and ''[[I'll Never Heil Again]]''. The end was satire, with Moe telling the [[Nazis]] to use their heads and shoot out their brains, to which [[Stanley Blystone]] replies, "But mein [[Führer]], we're Nazis. We have no brains."<ref name="Solomon">{{cite book| last = Solomon| first = Jon| author-link = Jon Solomon| title = The Complete Three Stooges: The Official Filmography and Three Stooges Companion| publisher = Comedy III Productions, Inc| year = 2000 | isbn = 0-9711868-0-4}}</ref> When the Hitler-disguised Moe sneezes and his [[toothbrush moustache]] flies off his face, he gets it back and refers to it as "my personality".

"Schicklgruber" is the surname Adolf Hitler's father, [[Alois Hitler]] carried for the first 40 years of his life, until he took the name Hitler (Hiedler) from his stepfather. While Adolf Hitler himself never carried the surname, the British made use of it for propaganda purposes since even to Germans, the name is laughable. The Stooges used it numerous times as the only name by which they would refer to Hitler.<ref name="Solomon"/>

==References== {{Reflist}}

==External links== * {{IMDb title|0035658}} * [http://threestooges.net/filmography/episode/70 ''Back from the Front'' at threestooges.net]

[[Category:1943 films]] [[Category:Columbia Pictures short films]] [[Category:The Three Stooges films]] [[Category:American black-and-white films]] [[Category:American war comedy films]] [[Category:Films about Adolf Hitler]] [[Category:American World War II films]] [[Category:Films directed by Jules White]] [[Category:1943 comedy films]] [[Category:1940s war comedy films]] [[Category:1943 English-language films]] [[Category:1943 American films]]