THE THREE STOOGES IN "HOLD THAT LION"
Larry, Moe and Shemp find a familiar looking stranger snoring in their train car.
The original Three Stooges consisted of brothers Moe and Shemp Howard and Larry Fine. Shemp left the trio in the early 1930s to pursue a solo career, and was replaced by the youngest Howard brother, Curly.
Curly was a mainstay of the Stooges, and considered by many fans to be their favorite Stooge, for 14 years. However, in late 1946 he suffered a stroke and could no longer work. Shemp returned to the trio, but on the condition that it was temporary until Curly was well enough to return.
Hold That Lion was only the third Three Stooges short produced since Shemp's return. Curly, noticeably thinner and with his hair grown back, happened to visit the studio while the film was being shot. The director, Jules White, suggested Curly's cameo as a snoring train passenger who, initially, has his face covered with his hat. It's only when the hat is removed that the Stooges - and the audience - get a big surprise!
This also marked the last time Curly Howard was ever seen on screen. His health continued to deteriorate, leaving him unable to return to the Stooges. That changed Shemp's temporary gig into a full-time job.
Curly returned once more for a cameo in the 1949 short Malice in the Palace. Unfortunately, however, his bit was edited out and never shown.
Curly as the chef in "Malice in the Palace." He is considerably thinner than in his heyday, and has grown back the handlebar mustache that he sported before becoming a Stooge.
Curly continued to fade until he passed away in January, 1952. Shemp himself stayed with the Stooges until his own death in 1955.
