Three Smart Saps

{{Short description|1942 American short film by Jules White}} {{Use mdy dates|date=April 2025}} {{Use American English|date=January 2025}} {{Infobox film | name = Three Smart Saps | image = Lobby42threesmartsaps.jpg | caption = | director = Jules White | producer = Del Lord Hugh McCollum | writer = Clyde Bruckman | starring = Moe Howard Larry Fine Curly Howard Bud Jamison Barbara Slater John Tyrrell | cinematography = Benjamin H. Kline | editing = Jerome Thoms | distributor = Columbia Pictures | released = {{Film date|1942|07|30|U.S.}} | runtime = {{duration|m=16|s=40}} | country = United States | language = English }} '''''Three Smart Saps''''' is a 1942 short subject directed by Jules White starring American slapstick comedy team The Three Stooges (Moe Howard, Larry Fine and Curly Howard). It is the 64th 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 find themselves entangled in a complex web of intrigue and familial obligation as they endeavor to liberate their prospective father-in-law from incarceration. Their predicament arises from the father's status as a prison warden, who has fallen victim to the machinations of the local mafia, resulting in his unjust confinement.

Undeterred by the formidable obstacles confronting them, the Stooges embark on a daring mission to infiltrate the confines of the prison, where they successfully locate and secure the release of their intended patriarch. In a display of resourcefulness, they employ clandestine photography to document the nefarious activities of the mafia, thereby securing evidence essential for their downfall.

Through their concerted efforts, justice prevails as the true perpetrators are apprehended, paving the way for the restoration of order within the prison establishment. The reinstatement of Stevens as warden symbolizes the triumph of righteousness over villainy, while concurrently ensuring the fulfillment of the Stooges' romantic aspirations as they unite with their beloveds in matrimony.

==Cast== *Moe Howard as Moe *Larry Fine as Larry *Curly Howard as Curly *Bud Jamison as Party Guest *Barbara Slater as Curly's Dancing Partner *John Tyrell as Warden Stevens

== Production notes == ''Three Smart Saps'' was filmed on April 7–10, 1942. This is the seventh of sixteen Stooge shorts with the word "three" in the title.<ref name=pauley>{{cite book | last = Pauley | first = Jim | title = The Three Stooges Hollywood Filming Locations | publisher = Santa Monica Press, LLC | year = 2012 | location = Solana Beach, California | pages = 280 | url = http://www.santamonicapress.com/index.php?page_name=threestooges&page_type=book&show=desc&hide0=excerpt&hide1=author&hide2=reviews&hide5=number5 | isbn = 9781595800701}}</ref> The film's title is a play on the 1936 musical comedy film ''Three Smart Girls.''<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.threestooges.net?episode.php?id=64|title=''Three Smart Saps''|publisher=The Three Stooges Online Filmography}}</ref>

The mobster party in prison is decorated with college-sports-style banners for Alcatraz, Joliet, Leavenworth and Sing Sing, all well-known prisons of the day.<ref name=solomon>{{cite book | last = Solomon | first = Jon | title = The Complete Three Stooges: The Official Filmography and Three Stooges Companion | publisher = Comedy III Productions, Inc | year = 2002 | location = Glendale, California | pages = 221–213 | isbn = 0-9711868-0-4}}</ref>

The sequence depicting Curly's suit unraveling at the seams while he dances is reminiscent of a routine employed in Harold Lloyd's 1925 film ''The Freshman''.<ref name="Okuda">{{cite book|last = Okuda|first = Ted|author-link = Ted Okuda|author2=Watz, Edward |title = The Columbia Comedy Shorts|publisher = McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers|year = 1986|pages = 63|isbn = 0-89950-181-8}}</ref> Although Clyde Bruckman, the writer associated with this comedic sequence, did not contribute to Lloyd's film, he is credited with potentially drawing inspiration from it for this particular gag.

==References== {{Reflist}}

== External links == * {{IMDb title|0035436}}

Category:1942 American films Category:1942 comedy films Category:1942 English-language films Category:1942 films Category:American black-and-white films Category:American slapstick comedy films Category:Columbia Pictures short films Category:Films directed by Jules White Category:The Three Stooges films