Palma is seen one final time, making a mad dash for the open window, and supplying his own yell before making the final jump. A few lines of dialogue appear - "Whoa, Moe, Larry! Moe, help!" - by dubbing Shemp's voice from the soundtracks of Fuelin' Around and Blunder Boys. Larry then concludes the conversation by saying "I've got it, I've got it!" Moe inquires with "What?" Larry replies, "a terrific headache!" Later, Palma is seen from the back being chased in circles by the palace guard. The first time occurs in the restaurant when Moe declares that the trio must do something to help their sweethearts. įor Rumpus in the Harem, Palma is seen from the back several times. Even though the last four shorts were remakes of earlier Shemp efforts, Palma's services were needed to film new scenes in order to link existing stock footage. "Fake Shemp"Īs Shemp Howard had already died, for these last four films ( Rumpus in the Harem, Hot Stuff, Scheming Schemers and Commotion on the Ocean), Columbia utilized supporting actor Joe Palma to be Shemp's double. It was the first of four shorts filmed in the wake of Shemp Howard's November 1955 death using earlier footage and a stand-in: all new footage was shot on January 10, 1956. Rumpus in the Harem is a remake of 1949's Malice in the Palace, using ample stock footage. They then manage to acquire the diamond and make a quick exit, but not before dealing with a burly guard. The Stooges arrive at the Emir of Shmow's palace, all three dressed as Santa Claus. The Stooges then attempt to retrieve the diamond themselves, as there is a $50,000 reward at stake. The two plotters start wailing and are thrown out of the restaurant. These two thieves are attempting to rob the tomb of Rootentooten, which contains a priceless diamond, but they discover that the Emir of Schmow ( Johnny Kascier) has already gotten his hands on the diamond. In the interim, they discover a plan that their hungry customers are hatching. Lewis), the Stooges try to think of a way to raise the needed cash. While attempting to prepare a meal for customers Hassan Ben Sober ( Vernon Dent) and the Gin of Rummy ( George J. One morning, Moe and Larry are awakened by their crying sweethearts, who are in need of money to pay off a bad debt. Therefore, I usually rely on the stock footage of the restaurant scenes in order to obtain the laughs from this film.The Stooges play the proprietors of the Cafe Casbah Bah, a Middle Eastern restaurant. The new footage of "Rumpus in the Harem" is what brings this short down to a low grade, and I cannot watch it without being distracted by the fact that Joe Palma fills in for the deceased Shemp. On the other hand, the stock footage from "Malice in the Palace," particularly the classic scene of Larry chasing a cat and dog in the restaurant, is perhaps the only highlight of this remake. The chase footage during this scene, with Shemp's voice dubbed in as Joe Palma runs around in circles fleeing the guard, is okay but not enough to save the picture. As for the new footage of this short, a few scenes are quite overdone, as in the opening scene with the Stooges' girlfriends sobbing profusely over the prospect of being sold to a slave owner, and in one of the closing scenes with the two harem girls beating up Moe and Larry. As one Stooge author pointed out, Moe Howard had a lot of courage to keep the act going after watching the deaths of his brothers Curly and Shemp. It is also the first of four Three Stooges shorts applying the disrespectful practice of utilizing Joe Palma as a double for Shemp Howard in the new footage, since poor Shemp had suddenly died shortly before filming. "Rumpus in the Harem" is a remake, with ample stock footage, of the classic "Malice in the Palace" (1949).
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