# Dirty joke in the Three Stooges? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [March 17, 2009, 3:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dirty-joke-in-the-three-stooges/489756 "2009-03-17T15:06:05Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 19\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![muldoonthief](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muldoonthief/32/3188_2.png) [@muldoonthief](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/muldoonthief)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2009, 3:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dirty-joke-in-the-three-stooges/489756/1 "2009-03-17T15:06:05Z")
I was watching the Three Stooges over the weekend, specifically the short [Pest Man Wins](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0043917/). It’s a forgettable Shempisode, with pie fight footage actually lifted straight from a much older film. Anyway, at one point the party hostess announces to her guests “My friend Mr. Philander is an accomplished pianist!” Do you think the writers slipped one past the studio censors, or was the name/description combo purely coincidence? I’ve never heard anything even approaching a dirty joke in the Stooges before. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2009, 3:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dirty-joke-in-the-three-stooges/489756/2 "2009-03-17T15:37:16Z")
It’s unlikely. There were no studio censors back then – there was the Hayes Office, and they let nothing get by. And in a Three Stooges short, if there were any run-in with the Hayes Office, the studio would immediately cave, since it wasn’t worth fighting over. There’d be no reason to sneak it through and the studio would not have been happy about any reshooting (the shorts by then were done cheap). Did Mr. Philander actually play the piano in the short? ---
**Author:** ![muldoonthief](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muldoonthief/32/3188_2.png) [@muldoonthief](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/muldoonthief)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2009, 3:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dirty-joke-in-the-three-stooges/489756/3 "2009-03-17T15:45:07Z")
> [@RealityChuck](#): > > It’s unlikely. There were no studio censors back then – there was the Hayes Office, and they let nothing get by. And in a Three Stooges short, if there were any run-in with the Hayes Office, the studio would immediately cave, since it wasn’t worth fighting over. There’d be no reason to sneak it through and the studio would not have been happy about any reshooting (the shorts by then were done cheap). > > Did Mr. Philander actually play the piano in the short? Yes, he does. Of course, the piano is filled with pussy. ---
**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2009, 3:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dirty-joke-in-the-three-stooges/489756/4 "2009-03-17T15:53:30Z")
The Stooges were never flat-out obscene, but they occasionally tried to slip a naughty, PG-13 joke past the censors, and occasionally they succeeded. One of their old shorts took place in Egypt, where they were leading an archaeological dig for the tomb of the ancient king Rutentuten. On the map of Egypt, there was a listing for the “Giva Dam.” No, not a penis joke, but still, they were obviously trying to sneak in a joke using words they wouldn’t have been allowed to say out loud. ---
**Author:** ![muldoonthief](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muldoonthief/32/3188_2.png) [@muldoonthief](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/muldoonthief)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2009, 3:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dirty-joke-in-the-three-stooges/489756/5 "2009-03-17T15:56:37Z")
Hey, I just found the episode on youtube. The scene begins [here,](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S6xnGDv2ZFA) about 8:50 in, and continues [here](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EKfLSr1qegE&feature=related). ---
**Author:** ![Exapno\_Mapcase](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/exapno_mapcase/32/1051_2.png) [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2009, 4:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dirty-joke-in-the-three-stooges/489756/6 "2009-03-17T16:12:01Z")
Philander can have a double meaning, but it was also a not uncommon name in American history. Philander C. Knox (1853-1921), American lawyer and politician Philander Chase (1775-1852), Episcopal Church bishop, educator, and pioneer of the United States western frontier Philander Claxton (1862-1957), American journalist Philander Stephens (1788-1861), Jacksonian member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Pennsylvania Philander Smith College, founded in 1877 Philander Barclay, U.S. photographer, b. 1878 ---
**Author:** ![cochrane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cochrane/32/10441_2.png) [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2009, 6:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dirty-joke-in-the-three-stooges/489756/7 "2009-03-17T18:37:11Z")
> [@astorian](#): > > The Stooges were never flat-out obscene, but they occasionally tried to slip a naughty, PG-13 joke past the censors, and occasionally they succeeded. > > One of their old shorts took place in Egypt, where they were leading an archaeological dig for the tomb of the ancient king Rutentuten. > > On the map of Egypt, there was a listing for the “Giva Dam.” > > No, not a penis joke, but still, they were obviously trying to sneak in a joke using words they wouldn’t have been allowed to say out loud. There are other examples where filmmakers tried to slip risque things into their films. The animators at Warner Brothers made a short clip of [Porky Pig cursing](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AgBABP2sg2k), complete with Mel Blanc’s vocal characterization, which they circulated solely within the studio for their own amusement. It never made it to the general viewing public, at least not until the internet made such things widely available. And in one instance which did make it to public view, but seems to have gone unremarked on, the first [Popeye cartoon](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9UjM9UI40jk) seems to have a topless Betty Boop as a carnival dancer. Although she’s wearing a lei, there seems to be nothing else hiding her natural endowments. This can be seen starting about 4:30 into the short. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2009, 6:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dirty-joke-in-the-three-stooges/489756/8 "2009-03-17T18:48:42Z")
Moe Howard admits in his autobiography that, in the waning days of their pre-television fame, the Stooges actually worked some “blue” material into their live act. He gives the impression that he didn’t like doing it. Shortly thereafter, TV syndication of their shorts to kid’s TV rescued them from show business limbo, and they were able to get away from that (had to, in fact – they were playing almost exclusively to kids now). His eluctance might be his old-age shaded recollection of his attitudes, and he might be charitably misremembering an earlier mischievousness (after all, writers and performers of all sorts have stories of skirting the censors’ eyes), but the single data point we have says otherwise. ---
**Author:** ![Walloon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/fbc32d/32.png) [@Walloon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Walloon)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2009, 7:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dirty-joke-in-the-three-stooges/489756/9 "2009-03-17T19:51:13Z")
**Exapno Mapcase** , you gave examples of people with the first name of “Philander”, but none as a surname. I find only three “Philander” households in the 1930 U.S. Census. Sounds to me that they slipped one by the Hayes Office. ---
**Author:** ![Exapno\_Mapcase](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/exapno_mapcase/32/1051_2.png) [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2009, 9:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dirty-joke-in-the-three-stooges/489756/10 "2009-03-17T21:12:28Z")
> [@Walloon](#): > > **Exapno Mapcase** , you gave examples of people with the first name of “Philander”, but none as a surname. I find only three “Philander” households in the 1930 U.S. Census. > > Sounds to me that they slipped one by the Hayes Office. Likely. I just threw that out as a data point. Just about every writer in every book about 1930s Hollywood seemed to spend of all his\* time trying to slip something past the censors. But because Philander was also a real name in the news it’s also possible someone just needed a name and chose that one. There’s no way to know for sure. \*The ratio of male writers to female writers soared after silent films ended. And almost all the stories are about male writers. The female writers could be just as raunchy, though. ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2009, 9:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dirty-joke-in-the-three-stooges/489756/11 "2009-03-17T21:24:30Z")
> [@RealityChuck](#): > > Did Mr. Philander actually play the piano in the short? With that name, he should be playing the organ. ---
**Author:** ![dropzone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dropzone/32/7515_2.png) [@dropzone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dropzone)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2009, 10:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dirty-joke-in-the-three-stooges/489756/12 "2009-03-17T22:15:20Z")
How about Curly’s “If at first you don’t succeed, keep sucking until you do succeed?” ---
**Author:** ![mobo85](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b19c9b/32.png) [@mobo85](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mobo85)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2009, 3:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dirty-joke-in-the-three-stooges/489756/13 "2009-03-18T03:09:47Z")
> [@cochrane](#): > > There are other examples where filmmakers tried to slip risque things into their films. The animators at Warner Brothers made a short clip of [Porky Pig cursing](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AgBABP2sg2k), complete with Mel Blanc’s vocal characterization, which they circulated solely within the studio for their own amusement. It never made it to the general viewing public, at least not until the internet made such things widely available. This was made for a blooper reel at the Warner studio which featured actors flubbing their lines and swearing. The Porky clip is actually a running gag throughout the blooper reel in question, “Breakdowns of 1939,” cutting occasionally to Porky hitting his thumb and saying “Son of a b-b-b-b-b…” It’s only towards the end of the reel when he finishes his statement: “Son of a b-b-b-b-b-b-BB gun! Hah, thought I was gonna say son of a b-b-b-bitch, didn’t you?” It should be noted, however, that the Warners animators did attempt to sneak things past the censors in the shorts themselves. In the Bob Clampett short _Baby Bottleneck_, there is a scene in which a baby alligator attempts to suckle at a mother pig’s teat. The mother pig appears to be ready to say something to the alligator, but then the film abruptly cuts to the next scene. According to Clampett himself, the pig was originally supposed to say, “Ah, ah, ah! Don’t touch that dial!” (a line from a popular radio show) but the censors wouldn’t allow it. ---
**Author:** ![Markxxx](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/5daacb/32.png) [@Markxxx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Markxxx)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2009, 5:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dirty-joke-in-the-three-stooges/489756/14 "2009-03-19T17:31:39Z")
I disagree they used to let things slide by all time, IF and it was a big IF you could prove it otherwise. I saw an old Blondie movie where Penny Singleton (Blondie) holds two cantelopes up to her chest and says “MELLONS” for no reason. I am convinced that was put in on purpose. Mae West, who was censored for being direct, made a career out of innuendo. I love old time radio most of the time they are good at covering, but “Burns and Allen” were masters of getting around it. Especially since Gracie was so scatterbrained it looked innocent enough. Like George would say George) You like tired Gracie) I was at the Coconut Grove all last night Geroge) Too danced out? Gracie) I am not, my figure looks fine. (You have to say it fast “too danced out” becomes “too damn stout” There was another time when an innocent joke of Gracie’s revolves around her saying something and she says “Then he lost his pants as I went down on him.” Then George all panic stricken says “No, Gracie it’s not suspenders, NOT pants.” And she still doesn’t get it. And then George says “You trying to kill radio, it’s suspenders NOT pants.” Pants made it sound like oral sex, but suspenders made the joke totally different. In the old days, they would always try to get minor things past the censors, using “innocent” words. ---
**Author:** ![TWDuke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e495f1/32.png) [@TWDuke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TWDuke)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2009, 6:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dirty-joke-in-the-three-stooges/489756/15 "2009-03-19T18:11:57Z")
I’m surprised **Markxxx** didn’t mention Groucho. Mrs. Rittenhouse: He is the only white man who covered every acre… Spaulding: I think I’ll try and make her… Guests: Hooray, hooray, hooray! Mrs. Teasdale: As chairwoman of the reception committee, I welcome you with open arms. Firefly: Is that so? How late do you stay open? Mrs. Potter: You must leave my room. We must have regard for certain conventions. Hammer: One guy isn’t enough, she’s gotta have a convention. Professor Wagstaff: I was gonna get a flat bottom but the girl at the boat house didn’t have one. ---
**Author:** ![LurkMeister](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/3da27b/32.png) [@LurkMeister](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LurkMeister)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2009, 8:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dirty-joke-in-the-three-stooges/489756/16 "2009-03-19T20:08:52Z")
Not to mention Rufus T Firefly from _Duck Soup_: Remember, you’re fighting for this woman’s honor, which is probably more than she ever did. ---
**Author:** ![Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e47c2d/32.png) [@Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biffy_the_Elephant_Shrew)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2009, 8:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dirty-joke-in-the-three-stooges/489756/17 "2009-03-19T20:21:49Z")
> [@mobo85](#): > > It should be noted, however, that the Warners animators did attempt to sneak things past the censors in the shorts themselves. Watching those old WB cartoons on DVD, I was surprised to notice how often any scene that takes place inside a house will have a tiny nude painting hanging in the background. Never spotted that as a kid. ---
**Author:** ![kitemaker\_chuck](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/a88e4f/32.png) [@kitemaker\_chuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kitemaker_chuck)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2009, 8:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dirty-joke-in-the-three-stooges/489756/18 "2009-03-19T20:29:28Z")
> [@muldoonthief](#): > > I was watching the Three Stooges over the weekend, specifically the short [Pest Man Wins](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0043917/). It’s a forgettable Shempisode, with pie fight footage actually lifted straight from a much older film. Anyway, at one point the party hostess announces to her guests “My friend Mr. Philander is an accomplished pianist!” Do you think the writers slipped one past the studio censors, or was the name/description combo purely coincidence? I’ve never heard anything even approaching a dirty joke in the Stooges before. They were just “a victim of soy-com-stances”!!! ---
**Author:** ![Lust4Life](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ecc23a/32.png) [@Lust4Life](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lust4Life)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2009, 1:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dirty-joke-in-the-three-stooges/489756/19 "2009-03-21T13:55:32Z")
In The Whos “My Generation” the singer rails against the older generation and then sings …Why dont you all Fuh Fuh Fuh Fuh Fuh Fuh Fuh Fuh Ade away . Which is not what most people thought that he was going to say.