User Reviews

It is probably agreed by a lot of Three Stooges fans that "Triple Crossed," their next to last short before Columbia Pictures closed down its shorts department, is not one of their best. Featuring Joe Besser as the third Stooge, the story is a reworking of an earlier Stooge short with Shemp titled "He Cooked His Goose" (1952), with ample stock footage from that short as well. (In a couple of brief instances, the mixing of old and new footage is sloppy, as Shemp's face can clearly be seen behind the janitor's door and his voice can clearly be heard when Moe shoots his pistol up a chimney.) I think the biggest complaint about "Triple Crossed" is that, like "He Cooked His Goose" and several other Stooge shorts, the Stooges are separate characters and not a team. I imagine the only reason for this was to freshen things up, and certainly Larry has quite a chance to do some heel-clicking as the real star/con man of the picture.

Despite the film's poor reputation, it still manages to get in a few laughs, as for example the scene in the scheming Larry's pet shop when he and Joe tear the collars off their suit jackets and Joe then discovers a live frog in a sandwich that Larry offers him. Plus, it is rather touching how Moe's heart softens towards Joe at the end of the short when both Joe and his girlfriend Millie (Angela Stevens) inform Moe that Larry has been the philanderer all along.

Again, "Triple Crossed" may not be one of the best of the 190 Three Stooges shorts at Columbia, but watch it again and find a few laughs.