How High is Up? is a 1940 short subject directed by Del Lord starring American slapstick comedy team The Three Stooges (Moe Howard, Larry Fine and Curly Howard). It is the 48th entry in the series released by Columbia Pictures starring the comedians, who released 190 shorts for the studio between 1934 and 1959.

How High Is Up?
Directed byDel Lord
Written byElwood Ullman
Produced byDel Lord
Hugh McCollum
StarringMoe Howard
Larry Fine
Curly Howard
Vernon Dent
Cy Schindell
Duke York
Bert Young
Bruce Bennett
Edmund Cobb
CinematographyAllen G. Siegler
Edited byArt Seid
Distributed byColumbia Pictures
Release date
  • July 26, 1940 (1940-07-26) (U.S.)
Running time
16:26
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

Plot

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The Stooges engage in mendicant activities at a construction site, initially attracting business by puncturing holes in the lunch boxes of workers and offering to repair the damage. However, their deceit is soon uncovered, leading to a pursuit onto the site where they blend into a crowd of job seekers. Despite their lack of experience, they are assigned to work on the precarious 97th floor, with Curly's acrophobia presenting a significant challenge.

During their riveting duties, Larry multitasks by heating sausages for his companions, leading to inadvertent confusion between rivets and food items. Despite their best efforts, the trio's incompetence leads to a structural collapse when the head foreman, Mr. Blake, inadvertently leans against a beam. Angered by the mishap, Mr. Blake and his team pursue and subsequently dismiss the Stooges from the construction site.

The Stooges quickly deploy parachutes from the building, landing safely in their wagon below, which is fortuitously covered by the chute tarp.

Cast

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Credited

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Uncredited

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Production notes

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Filming for How High is Up? was completed May 7–11, 1940.[1] The aerial shots of the scene, straight down from the building the Stooges are working on, are from the then newly built Empire State Building in New York City.[2]

The sweater removal scene is considered one of the finest examples of the Stooges' tendencies to use unorthodox methods to get the simplest job done. Since Moe and Larry cannot pull the sweater off of Curly, they figure the only way to do so is through the use of tools, such as mallets, chisels, and eventually a pair of scissors.[2] Larry can be seen breaking character and laughing, particularly when Curly yells, "Don't mind me, don't mind me!!"[2]

References

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  1. ^ Pauley, Jim (2012). The Three Stooges Hollywood Filming Locations. Solana Beach, California: Santa Monica Press, LLC. p. 147. ISBN 9781595800701.
  2. ^ a b c Solomon, Jon (2002). The Complete Three Stooges: The Official Filmography and Three Stooges Companion. Glendale, California: Comedy III Productions, Inc. pp. 174–175. ISBN 0-9711868-0-4.
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