Hoofs and Goofs

A terrible premise for a "comedy" two reeler: the Stooges sister has recently died. Not even "black humor" here as in the ending of "Laughing Gravy" when Laurel & Hardy's landlord takes a gun and claims that "this is more than I can stand", goes off camera and we hear a gun blast and L&H remove their bowlers and with bowed heads return to their room. That's funny. But to kill off someone that we haven't even met yet, I don't get it. And as a first short with Joe Besser, Moe and Larry should have just said something like, "thank you, don't call us, we'll call you. Next!" This WAS the beginning of the end of a great run for the Stooges or maybe more accurately put, an escalation towards the end. Things were only going to get worse from now on with this crybaby of a comedian. He may have been funny on his own or working with others but not at all with Moe & Larry and their brand of humor. There isn't even any clever writing or verbal one liners in this one. If a comedian is not going to rely on sight gags or say something funny, then what's left? Tragedy! This short is yet another example of Jules White's ineptness at directing humans and obviously preferring working with animals as he had started out in the days of early talkies. Tony the Wonder Horse, as horses go, doesn't even have a personality like say Roy Roger's Trigger. Thumbs down all around on this stinker. Avoid it like the plague!