Production Information
Title: Muscle Up A Little Closer
Studio: Columbia
Short Number: 176
Release Date: February 28, 1957
Running Time: 16:83
“This is a man’s job.” “Where will we find one?” [bonk!]
(Moe & Larry)
Muscle Up A Little Closer Short Take
Moe, Larry, and Joe discover that Joe’s fiancee’s ring has been stolen. The Stooges suspect it is Elmo, a muscular bully who works at their plant. The Stooges come face to face with him in the company gym, but when they try to make him give the ring back by physical force, the plan backfires and Moe and Larry are knocked senseless. But Joe’s girl is tougher!
Cast & Crew
| Directed by | Jules White |
|---|---|
| Produced by | Jules White |
| Written by | Felix Adler |
| Starring | Moe Howard Larry Fine Joe Besser Maxine Gates Ruth Godfrey Harriette Tarler Matt Murphy |
| Cinematography | Irving Lippman |
| Edited by | Harold White |
Muscle Up A Little Closer Trivia
- This is the first short where Moe and Larry abandon their typical Stooge haircuts.
- Source: MUSCLE UP A LITTLE CLOSER (1957)
- Added by MR77100 on 2009-04-27 01:20:22
- Status: Confirmed
- An unfilmed/deleted scene was discovered in Jules White’s final shooting script, and was transcribed in The Three Stooges Journal # 117 (Spring 2006).
Production Notes
Filmed on June 27–29, 1956, Muscle Up a Little Closer was the first film to feature Moe and Larry’s more “gentlemanly” haircuts, first suggested by Joe Besser. However, these had to be used sparingly, as most of the shorts with Besser were remakes of earlier films, and new footage had to be matched with old.
The title of the film parodies the Otto Harbach/Karl Hoschna 1908 song “Cuddle up a Little Closer, Lovey Mine“.
