# Curly or Shemp? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [February 18, 2014, 1:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/curly-or-shemp/681576 "2014-02-18T01:26:30Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Melchior](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e5b9ba/32.png) [@Melchior](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Melchior)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2014, 1:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/curly-or-shemp/681576/1 "2014-02-18T01:26:30Z")
Curly or Shemp? ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2014, 1:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/curly-or-shemp/681576/2 "2014-02-18T01:27:27Z")
Let me be the first to say… Curly. ---
**Author:** ![bobot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bobot/32/21622_2.png) [@bobot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bobot)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2014, 1:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/curly-or-shemp/681576/3 "2014-02-18T01:28:23Z")
Seconded ---
**Author:** ![johnpost](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f17d59/32.png) [@johnpost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/johnpost)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2014, 1:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/curly-or-shemp/681576/4 "2014-02-18T01:34:59Z")
Curly soitenly. ---
**Author:** ![That\_Don\_Guy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/that_don_guy/32/538_2.png) [@That\_Don\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/That_Don_Guy)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2014, 1:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/curly-or-shemp/681576/5 "2014-02-18T01:43:31Z")
Curly, if you mean with Moe and Larry. Shemp, if you mean with Bud and Lou. (Both Shemp and Joe have worked with Abbott and Costello - Shemp in the movies, and Joe on their TV series.) ---
**Author:** ![Melchior](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e5b9ba/32.png) [@Melchior](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Melchior)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2014, 1:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/curly-or-shemp/681576/6 "2014-02-18T01:45:19Z")
When I was a kid, Curly. As an adult, Shemp. ---
**Author:** ![Leaffan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leaffan/32/299_2.png) [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2014, 1:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/curly-or-shemp/681576/7 "2014-02-18T01:48:03Z")
Curly. Ah whoop, whoop, whoop, whoop, whoop! N’yuk, N’yuk, N’yuk, N’yuk. ---
**Author:** ![rsat3acr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/a3d4f5/32.png) [@rsat3acr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rsat3acr)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2014, 1:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/curly-or-shemp/681576/8 "2014-02-18T01:48:55Z")
Curly! ---
**Author:** ![Napier](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ce73a5/32.png) [@Napier](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Napier)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2014, 1:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/curly-or-shemp/681576/9 "2014-02-18T01:50:35Z")
Yeah, this is a tough one, as they both had their charms. I think Shemp is the ultimate stooge, though. Curly isn’t enough of a loser. Shemp is as close to zero as it gets without becoming unlikeable. ---
**Author:** ![TreacherousCretin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/treacherouscretin/32/476_2.png) [@TreacherousCretin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TreacherousCretin)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2014, 1:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/curly-or-shemp/681576/10 "2014-02-18T01:50:38Z")
Curly. No contest. ---
**Author:** ![Melchior](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e5b9ba/32.png) [@Melchior](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Melchior)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2014, 1:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/curly-or-shemp/681576/11 "2014-02-18T01:54:47Z")
> [@TreacherousCretin](#): > > Curly. No contest. They were different, and Shemp was much older at the time he took Curly’s place (and he was 8 years older than Curly to begin with). Curly was in bad shape in the 1940s. You can see it in his last films. ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2014, 2:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/curly-or-shemp/681576/12 "2014-02-18T02:00:07Z")
I liked Shemp better. Curly was fine too but given a choice I’d rather watch one of the shorts with Shemp. I have the stooges box set with all the shorts. I’ve only watched a few so far. Next time I’m home sick will be a good time to put the dvd in the machine. ---
**Author:** ![Melchior](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e5b9ba/32.png) [@Melchior](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Melchior)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2014, 2:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/curly-or-shemp/681576/13 "2014-02-18T02:05:24Z")
> [@aceplace57](#): > > I liked Shemp better. Curly was fine too but given a choice I’d rather watch one of the shorts with Shemp. > > I have the stooges box set with all the shorts. I’ve only watched a few so far. Next time I’m home sick will be a good time to put the dvd in the machine. The story lines were fresher in Curly’s films. Columbia cut back and recycled plots and story lines after about 1945. ---
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2014, 2:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/curly-or-shemp/681576/14 "2014-02-18T02:47:30Z")
Curly. Don’t get me wrong, Shemp had his good points. But Curly was a Divine Fool. ---
**Author:** ![Roundabout](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/dec6dc/32.png) [@Roundabout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Roundabout)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2014, 3:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/curly-or-shemp/681576/15 "2014-02-18T03:40:53Z")
Curly. ---
**Author:** ![bup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/6bbea6/32.png) [@bup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bup)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2014, 3:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/curly-or-shemp/681576/16 "2014-02-18T03:47:27Z")
Joe Besser. No, seriously, I think I like Shemp a little bit better. More range. And ‘heebebebebebebe’ is just as funny as ‘nyuk nyuk nyuk’ in my book. ---
**Author:** ![DChord568](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/439d5e/32.png) [@DChord568](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DChord568)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2014, 3:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/curly-or-shemp/681576/17 "2014-02-18T03:47:49Z")
As with music or anything else, there’s no compelling reason to make it a contest. Curly was no doubt the more inventive of the two, but the best of the Shemp shorts are a lot of fun in their own way. As someone noted, Curly was definitely in serious decline in his last few shorts, and Shemp brought a new energy to the series in the first few years of his. ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2014, 3:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/curly-or-shemp/681576/18 "2014-02-18T03:50:26Z")
I’m more of a Shemp man myself, although Curly will always have a special place in my heart too. I knew someone who interviewed Shemp back in the day. He said Shemp had an encyclopedic knowledge of comedy and the technical aspects of his craft. ---
**Author:** ![jabiru](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/bbce88/32.png) [@jabiru](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jabiru)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2014, 4:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/curly-or-shemp/681576/19 "2014-02-18T04:16:47Z")
Curly, without a doubt. ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2014, 4:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/curly-or-shemp/681576/20 "2014-02-18T04:36:47Z")
> [@jabiru](#): > > Curly, without a doubt. Yep. Beware false Stooges. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/curly-or-shemp/681576.md?page=2)