False Alarms

Early movie comedians, from Charlie Chaplin to the Little Rascals, played roles as firemen. The Three Stooges were no exception. In the trio's 17th episode, August 1936 "False Alarms" our heroes are firefighters who cause mayhem inside and outside the firehouse.

Del Lord resumed directing the Stooges after Black White relinquished the chair after a few shorts. Lord favored filming outside, a departure from White's more interior studio settings. Moe and Curly's father, Solomon, who made a spot appearance in the Stooges previous film, makes his cameo at about the 15 minute mark standing on the sidewalk towards the right in a striped suit with a light-colored hat. Another exterior scene contains the three unwinding a couple of fire hoses to clean them. Trouble was as they lay out the hoses, they fail to recognize the street car tracks. When the train slices the hoses in three, Curly picks up each piece separately and gives them girl names, Marie, Yvonne, Annette. Those names were part of Canada's Dionne quintuplets, born a year before "False Alarms," and were the first quints to have survived infancy, all living to be adults. Contemporary viewers would have been familiar with those names Curly used.

"False Alarms" also contains a rare Larry and Moe sequence without Curly, who was busy wooing three ladies. When Moe tries to squeeze Larry down a sink pipe to retrieve a room key, they end up breaking down a door of a closet, causing a seamless chain of events where the two slide down the fire pole. Larry lands on his head, compacting his head deep into his torso. Moe reaches inside Larry's fireman's uniform and grabs him by the hair to straighten him out. Many Stooges' experts claim Moe and Larry should have been just a duo after Shemp's death in the mid-1950s, instead of filling in the third role with Curly lookalikes.

Once again the Stooges are firemen. While this isn't the first time they've been in these roles, this isn't one of the best due to a plot and jokes that just don't seem to have a lot of energy or zip. Fortunately, while this is a problem, the mindless violence that many enjoy in their films is present--with some of the most painful-looking gags I've seen. Larry really has a tough time of it and I don't know how they did the one scene with Moe holding him by the hair as he dangled on the fire pole--could this have been real? Also, although it may offend some, I liked where Curly and the lady at the end of the film slap each other around--especially since in the 1930s you almost never saw a guy slap a lady--unless he's a Stooge! Overall, it's an amiable time-passer and not a lot more. Fans of the team will no doubt love it, while others will probably find it all a tad tiresome.

Larry, Curly, and Moe are incompetent firemen. The Captain is furious that they missed the fire. He gives them their last chance but the boys keep screwing up. Curly sneaks out to visit his girlfriend. She has two friends who need boyfriends. Curly makes a false alarm to bring in his firemen friends.

Incompetent, idiotic, and selfish is the best of the ugly Stooges. This is one of the best ugly Stooges. One still roots for them despite themselves. I love Curly fighting the girl although he could lose worst. When he slaps her, he should act like he hurts his hand. I also love that this is one story and not disjointed. This is loads of fun.

Sleeping on the job, aye? Moe, Larry and Curly manage to get jobs as firemen, but they're lazy. Then again, between fires there's not much to do, right? Their boss, Captain Ashe(?), played by rough & tough Stanley Blystone, gives them one more chance -- and you know what means. TOTAL CHAOS. I agree with the last reviewer, this is a take-off on many other films and cartoons that make firemen look bad (really bad), or with hose malfunctions, which is common in real life. The Stooges take it to the next level.

A terrific comedy that also finds Curly with a gal pal, Maisie (played by Beatrice Curtis). Never mind the fires, Maisie wants Curly to find her "plump" pal Minnie (June Gittelson) a date? That's where Moe and Larry come in? Gittelson was a staple in the Stooge comedies, always trying to latch onto a guy, any guy. She was best paired with Curly, for obvious reasons.

Director Del Lord keeps this rolling, and that's the secret, non-stop action, including the Stooges wrecking the captain's new car. Surprisingly, the film must have had a higher budget to be able to wreck a new car, or at least a car that looked new? By the way if you're thinking Our Gang/Little Rascals, you are right. The kids also played goofy firemen (HOOK AND LADDER, 1932) and may have inspired this film.

Always on Columbia dvd, generally released by decades, 30s, 40s, 50s episodes or theme boxes. Thanks always to METV for running these oldies every Saturday, making our weekend.

In this short the stooges are firefighters that always get into trouble and are never on time when the alarm rings. There are some funny moments in here like when Moe locks himself and Larry in a room so they won't leave work early and go to a house where Curly and some girls are and Moe drops the key down the sink and there trying to get it, also Curly says some good stuff ex: woman: Curly sit down take a load off your feet. Curly: its not my feet that hurt. A funny short.