Sappy Bull Fighters is the one-hundred-ninetieth and final Columbia Pictures short subject to star the Three Stooges. Additionally, it was Joe Besser's final appearance with the team.
Plot[]
The Stooges are vaudeville entertainers who trek to Mexico to perform their burlesque bullfight, with Joe as the brave matador, and Moe and Larry dressed in a bull costume. Unfortunately, their gig is canceled when they arrive. According to the trio, the manager fired them after they refused to do 10 additional shows for free. With no money to return home, the Stooges are stranded. Feeling bad for them, attractive señorita Greta (Greta Thyssen) gets the boys a gig at the local bull ring. However, when she leaves Greta mistakenly takes the trio's suitcase instead of hers. When they go retrieve it, however, Joe becomes attracted to Greta and begins to kiss her, infuriating her insanely evil man-hating jealous husband José (George J. Lewis). The next day, the Stooges perform their act successfully at a bullring José recognizes the trio. In an act of revenge he pays the bullring attendant (Joe Palma) to release a live bull into the ring. Moe and Larry flee, but Joe is unaware of the switch. He eventually head-butts the wild animal, and is paraded out of the ring to the rousing cheers of "¡Ole, Americano!"
Cast[]
- Moe Howard as Moe
- Larry Fine as Larry
- Joe Besser as Joe
- Greta Thyssen, as Greta
- George J. Lewis, as José, Greta's jealous husband
- Joe Palma, as Bullring attendant / Spectator
- Harold Breen as Spectator
- Cy Schindell as Bullring attendant
- Danny the dog as Pepe
Notes[]
- Though filmed in autumn 1957, this film would not be released until nearly two years later. By that time, the Stooges were experiencing a rebirth in popularity, due to the release of their shorts on television. In essence, the June 1959 release of Sappy Bull Fighters actually competed with the enormously successful television revival.
- Sappy Bull Fighters is a remake of the Stooges short film What's the Matador? in 1942 which had originally featured Curly Howard as the third Stooge before Joe Besser. Some of the minimal footage from the original What's the Matador? is also used, including the far shots and the woo-woo-woos from Curly Howard with Joe riding the bull.
- The film also marked the final appearances of Joe Besser as a Stooge.
- Sappy Bull Fighters is also the shortest stooges film made, running only total of 15'26'
- This is also the shortest Three Stooges short to feature Joe Besser.