Tassels in the Air

Last updated
Tassels in the Air
TasselsTITLE.jpg
Directed by Charley Chase
Written by Al Giebler
Elwood Ullman
Produced byCharley Chase
Hugh McCollum
Starring Moe Howard
Larry Fine
Curly Howard
Vernon Dent
Symona Boniface
Bess Flowers
Bud Jamison
Victor Travers
Jean De Briac
Gertrude Astor
Cinematography Allen G. Siegler
Edited by Art Seid
Distributed by Columbia Pictures
Release date
  • April 1, 1938 (1938-04-01)(U.S.)
Running time
17:04
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

Tassels in the Air is a 1938 short subject directed by Charley Chase starring American slapstick comedy team The Three Stooges (Moe Howard, Larry Fine and Curly Howard). It is the 30th entry in the series released by Columbia Pictures starring the comedians, who released 190 shorts for the studio between 1934 and 1959.

Contents

Plot

The burgeoning aspirations of Nouveau riche housewife, Mrs. Smirch converge with the professional endeavors of the esteemed interior decorator, Omay. Eager to ascend the echelons of the local elite, Mrs. Smirch endeavors to enlist Omay's services to overhaul her residence, thereby ingratiating herself within esteemed social circles. Omay, in turn, accedes to her proposition.

Concurrently, the Stooges are engaged as painters tasked with refurbishing the edifice housing Omay's office. Assigned the responsibility of affixing temporary identifiers to office doors, their ineptitude precipitates a series of mishaps. Notably, Curly's idiosyncratic aversion to tassels serves as a catalyst for calamity, with his propensity for frenzied outbursts quelled solely by gentle chin tickling. Amidst this chaos, Mrs. Smirch encounters Moe, mistaking him for Omay due to a linguistic quirk, unwittingly instigates a chain of events that culminate in a case of mistaken identity. The genuine Omay is beyond incensed by the mislabeling of his office, relinquishes his tenancy, thus compounding the ensuing confusion. In a cascade of misfortune, the Stooges find themselves embroiled in a precarious situation, masquerading as Omay and his associates, with the intent of fulfilling the obligations initially ascribed to the esteemed decorator.

Subsequently, the Stooges, assuming their ersatz roles, commence work at the Smirch residence, their efforts coinciding with Mrs. Smirch's hosting of a soirée for her affluent acquaintances. However, the arrival of the genuine Omay precipitates a revelation of the trio's subterfuge, resulting in a public exposé of Mrs. Smirch's deception, thereby underscoring the folly of her misguided aspirations.

Production notes

Tassels in the Air was filmed on November 26–30, 1937. [1] The film's title is a play on the old expression, "Building castles in the air," i.e. dreaming of achieving the impossible. [2]

Curly goes crazy whenever he sees tassels. The cure is to tickle him under his chin with a paintbrush, a similar variety of plot device to those used earlier in Punch Drunks , Horses' Collars and Grips, Grunts and Groans . [3]

Many of the gags used in the table painting scene were originally used by Chase in his 1933 short Luncheon At Twelve. They would be reused by Moe, Larry and Shemp in their unsold television 1949 pilot Jerks of All Trades , which, coincidentally, also featured Symona Boniface. The gags would be recycled again the following year in A Snitch in Time . [2]

Related Research Articles

<i>Punch Drunks</i> 1934 film by Lou Breslow

Punch Drunks is a 1934 short subject directed by Lou Breslow starring American slapstick comedy team The Three Stooges. It is the second entry in the series released by Columbia Pictures starring the comedians, who released 190 short subjects for the studio between 1934 and 1959.

<i>Three Little Pigskins</i> 1934 short film by Ray McCarey

Three Little Pigskins is a 1934 short subject directed by Raymond McCarey and starring American slapstick comedy team The Three Stooges. It is the fourth entry in the series released by Columbia Pictures starring the comedians, who released 190 short films for the studio between 1934 and 1959.

<i>Horses Collars</i> 1935 film by Clyde Bruckman

Horses' Collars is a 1935 short subject directed by Clyde Bruckman and starring American slapstick comedy team The Three Stooges . It is the fifth entry in the series released by Columbia Pictures starring the comedians, who released 190 short films for the studio between 1934 and 1959.

<i>A Plumbing We Will Go</i> 1940 American short film by Del Lord

A Plumbing We Will Go is a 1940 short subject directed by Del Lord starring American slapstick comedy team The Three Stooges. It is the 46th entry in the series released by Columbia Pictures starring the comedians, who released 190 shorts for the studio between 1934 and 1959.

<i>Pop Goes the Easel</i> 1935 American short film by Del Lord

Pop Goes the Easel is a 1935 short subject directed by Del Lord starring American slapstick comedy team The Three Stooges. It is the seventh entry in the series released by Columbia Pictures starring the comedians, who released 190 shorts for the studio between 1934 and 1959.

<i>An Ache in Every Stake</i> 1941 American short film by Del Lord

An Ache in Every Stake is a 1941 short subject directed by Del Lord starring American slapstick comedy team The Three Stooges. It is the 57th entry in the series released by Columbia Pictures starring the comedians, who released 190 shorts for the studio between 1934 and 1959.

<i>Termites of 1938</i> 1938 American short film by Del Lord

Termites of 1938 is a 1938 short subject directed by Del Lord starring American slapstick comedy team The Three Stooges. It is the 28th entry in the series released by Columbia Pictures starring the comedians, who released 190 shorts for the studio between 1934 and 1959.

<i>Slippery Silks</i> 1936 American short film by Preston Black

Slippery Silks is a 1936 short subject directed by Preston Black starring American slapstick comedy team The Three Stooges. It is the 19th entry in the series released by Columbia Pictures starring the comedians, who released 190 shorts for the studio between 1934 and 1959.

<i>Loco Boy Makes Good</i> 1942 American short film by Jules White

Loco Boy Makes Good is a 1942 short subject directed by Jules White starring American slapstick comedy team The Three Stooges. It is the 60th entry in the series released by Columbia Pictures starring the comedians, who released 190 shorts for the studio between 1934 and 1959.

<i>Dizzy Pilots</i> 1943 film by Jules White

Dizzy Pilots is a 1943 short subject directed by Jules White starring American slapstick comedy team The Three Stooges. It is the 74th entry in the series released by Columbia Pictures starring the comedians, who released 190 shorts for the studio between 1934 and 1959.

<i>Dutiful But Dumb</i> 1941 film by Del Lord

Dutiful But Dumb is a 1941 short subject directed by Del Lord starring American slapstick comedy team The Three Stooges. It is the 54th entry in the series released by Columbia Pictures starring the comedians, who released 190 shorts for the studio between 1934 and 1959.

<i>Micro-Phonies</i> 1945 film by Edward Bernds

Micro-Phonies is a 1945 short subject directed by Edward Bernds starring American slapstick comedy team The Three Stooges. It is the 87th entry in the series released by Columbia Pictures starring the comedians, who released 190 shorts for the studio between 1934 and 1959.

<i>Cactus Makes Perfect</i> 1942 American short film by Del Lord

Cactus Makes Perfect is a 1942 short subject directed by Del Lord starring American slapstick comedy team The Three Stooges. It is the 61st entry in the series released by Columbia Pictures starring the comedians, who released 190 shorts for the studio between 1934 and 1959.

<i>Three Little Sew and Sews</i> 1939 film by Del Lord

Three Little Sew and Sews is a 1939 short subject directed by Del Lord starring American slapstick comedy team The Three Stooges. It is the 36th entry in the series released by Columbia Pictures starring the comedians, who released 190 shorts for the studio between 1934 and 1959.

<i>Even as IOU</i> 1942 American short film by Del Lord

Even as IOU is a 1942 short subject directed by Del Lord starring American slapstick comedy team The Three Stooges. It is the 65th entry in the series released by Columbia Pictures starring the comedians, who released 190 shorts for the studio between 1934 and 1959.

<i>Three Smart Saps</i> 1942 American short film by Jules White

Three Smart Saps is a 1942 short subject directed by Jules White starring American slapstick comedy team The Three Stooges. It is the 64th entry in the series released by Columbia Pictures starring the comedians, who released 190 shorts for the studio between 1934 and 1959.

<i>A Gem of a Jam</i> 1943 film by Del Lord

A Gem of a Jam is a 1943 short subject directed by Del Lord starring American slapstick comedy team The Three Stooges. It is the 76th entry in the series released by Columbia Pictures starring the comedians, who released 190 shorts for the studio between 1934 and 1959.

<i>G.I. Wanna Home</i> 1946 film by Jules White

G.I. Wanna Home is a 1946 short subject directed by Jules White starring American slapstick comedy team The Three Stooges. It is the 94th entry in the series released by Columbia Pictures starring the comedians, who released 190 shorts for the studio between 1934 and 1959.

<i>The Three Stooges Scrapbook</i> 1960 unsold American television pilot starring the Three Stooges

Three Stooges Scrapbook is an unaired 1960 television pilot starring The Three Stooges. In the opening title and Hollywood trade ads, the show's title is spelled without "The," including a promotional photograph of the Stooges holding an oversized scrapbook. The pilot featured the slapstick trio getting evicted from a rooming house for cooking in their apartment, looking for a new place to live, finding refuge in the home of a mad inventor, and presenting an animated short called The Spain Mutiny that imagines the funnymen as part of Christopher Columbus’ crew.

<i>My Sister Eileen</i> (1942 film) 1942 film by Alexander Hall

My Sister Eileen is a 1942 American comedy film directed by Alexander Hall and starring Rosalind Russell, Brian Aherne and Janet Blair. The screenplay by Joseph A. Fields and Jerome Chodorov is based on their 1940 play of the same title, which was inspired by a series of autobiographical short stories by Ruth McKenney originally published in The New Yorker. The supporting cast features George Tobias, Allyn Joslyn, Grant Mitchell, Gordon Jones and, in a cameo appearance at the end, The Three Stooges.

References

  1. ↑ Pauley, Jim (2012). The Three Stooges Hollywood Filming Locations. Solana Beach, California: Santa Monica Press, LLC. p. 251. ISBN   9781595800701.
  2. 1 2 Solomon, Jon (2002). The Complete Three Stooges: The Official Filmography and Three Stooges Companion. Glendale, California: Comedy III Productions, Inc. p. 127. ISBN   0-9711868-0-4.
  3. ↑ Tassels in the Air at ThreeStooges.net
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.