Description:
After Shemp Howard died in 1955, the Stooges replaced him with Joe Besser. Joe Besser was born in Saint Louis, Missouri on August 12, 1907 to Fannie and Morris Besser. His parents were Orthodox Jews and moved to the United States from Poland in 1895 where Morris worked as a baker.
By 1928 he was well on his way to being a solo comedian. While on tour he was introduced to Erna Dora Kretschmer (Erna Kay) whom he married on November 18, 1932. Erna Kay served as a choreographer on the 1929 Paramount film "The Coconuts," which featured the Marx Brothers. Around 1940, Joe took Columbia Pictures contractee Jimmy Little on
After Shemp Howard died in 1955, the Stooges replaced him with Joe Besser. Joe Besser was born in Saint Louis, Missouri on August 12, 1907 to Fannie and Morris Besser. His parents were Orthodox Jews and moved to the United States from Poland in 1895 where Morris worked as a baker.
By 1928 he was well on his way to being a solo comedian. While on tour he was introduced to Erna Dora Kretschmer (Erna Kay) whom he married on November 18, 1932. Erna Kay served as a choreographer on the 1929 Paramount film "The Coconuts," which featured the Marx Brothers. Around 1940, Joe took Columbia Pictures contractee Jimmy Little on tour as his straight man. Soon Joe became a headliner on the Orpheum, RKO, Paramount, and Loew's theater circuits. He also appeared on the Broadway stage.
Eventually Columbia Pictures signed Joe to an exclusive contract and cast him in features and Comedy two reelers. Slowly making his climb to stardom, radio comedians like Jack Benny, Fred Allen, Eddie Cantor, and Milton Berle were all clamoring to have him on their shows. Besser made frequent appearances on the Jack Benny Show, The Fred Allen Show, The Eddie Cantor Show, Tonight on Broadway, The Vaughan Monroe Show, and from 1945 to 1949 he played with Milton Berle on Let Yourself Go.
Besser made many comedy shorts for Columbia before joining The Three Stooges in 1956. Joe left the Stooges in 1958 and went on to star in feature films and had a successful television career. On March 1, 1988, Joe passed away in his North Hollywood home of heart failure. Fourteen months later, his wife Erna died on July 1, 1989.
Trivia:
He is said to have "ruined" The Three Stooges' comic timing by refusing to allow Moe Howard, the Stooge-in-Chief as it were, to slap him.
The only member of The Three Stooges team who was more successful in his solo career than he was with the Stooges.
When Columbia shut down its shorts department, The Three Stooges were forced to take the act on the road, and Besser was invited to go. However, he refused because he had to be home to take care of his sick wife. He was not fired as the legend has it.
After Shemp Howard died, Moe Howard and Larry Fine wanted to continue as the "Two Stooges", but their contract said there had to be THREE Stooges. Besser was hired to fill in the void. The trouble was that he didn't like to be hit, so Larry told him that he would take the hits for him.
He began his career in show business as a song plugger for a St. Louis-based music company, and later became a comedy assistant to the great magician Howard Thurston.
Was the only member of The Three Stooges to use his actual birth name in the act. All of the other Stooges, and even Ted Healy, used stage or Americanized names.
Biography in: "Who's Who in Comedy" by Ronald S. Smith, pg. 51. New York: Facts on File, 1992. ISBN 0816023387
His favorite comedians were Jack Benny, Bud Abbott and Lou Costello, and Ann Miller is his choice for actress.
Grandfather of Matt Besser.
Never saw any of the Three Stooges shorts he was in.
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Tags: Comedian (2), Three Stooges (2), Died 1988 (2), Born 1907 (2), 1950s (1), 1960s (1), 1970s (1), 1940s (1), American (1), Actor (1), Voice Talent (1), Childish (1), Died Aged 80 (1), Part Of Comedy Team (1), Butt Monkey (1)
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