History YMMV / TheThreestooges

* FunnyAneurysmMoment: In ''Movie Maniacs'' Curly jokes about how "if at first you don't succeed, keep on sucking until you do succeed." Par for the course at the time given his usual wordplay, but takes on a new meaning in the 21st century given certain high-profile sex scandals involving Hollywood actors and directors.

** Overlapping with HarsherInHindsight, depending on your viewpoint; Playing to an empty stadium was just another joke in ''Film/ThreeLittlePigskins'', before becoming a global reality in wake of the UsefulNotes/COVID19Pandemic.

* StockParodyJokes: Basically what Senfield says on the main page. "Three funny looking guys who like punching each other." Nothing but wacky slapstick.

* UncannyValley: For those who grew up watching these shorts for years in black and white, actually viewing the colorized versions looks eerily surreal.

** For 21st century audiences familiar with recent high-profile scandals, this can also be a FunnyAneurysmMoment, as the line was in regard to breaking into the film industry.

** FunnyAneurysmMoment: In ''Movie Maniacs'' Curly jokes about how "if at first you don't succeed, keep on sucking until you do succeed." Par for the course at the time given his usual wordplay, but takes on a new meaning in the 21st century given certain high-profile sex scandals involving Hollywood actors and directors.

** Also serves as HarsherInHindsight in the 21st century, given the line was said in regard to ''breaking into the film industry''...

* FunnyAneurysmMoment:
** ''Bedlam in Paradise'', where Shemp has a nightmare that he dies and comes back as a ghost, was released just a few months before Shemp died in real life. Even more upsetting is that this was a re-release of their earlier film, ''Heavenly Daze'' with some new scenes added in; ''Daze'' starts out with Shemp already in Heaven, but ''Bedlam'' includes a scene that actually shows his character's death.
** Worse in that regard was ''For Crimin’ Out Loud'', which was hit with this before ''release''. Simply put, this was a posthumous Shemp film, and the last with original footage of Shemp, and the “Remind me to kill you later” gag variation, where the usual response is “I’ll make a note of it”, has Shemp say, “I won’t have time later.”
** Remember the Stooges' blatant disregard of gun safety in the shorts? In reality, Curly Howard accidentally shot himself in the ankle at age 13 while toying with a rifle. The injury was never properly treated and caused him pain for the rest of his life. In some shorts where his bare legs are shown, one calf is noticeably thinner than the other.

** In ''The Yoke's on Me,'' the plot centers on Japanese-Americans hiding on the Stooges' farm after escaping from a nearby internment camp. The short ends with Curly throwing a grenade at them and exploding (pretty much the only reason it can't be said with certainty that they were killed is that they weren't shown flying in heaven playing harps, which ''always'' happens when someone dies in a Stooges short). Quite possibly the most controversial Stooges short ever, this has only recently resurfaced on television after being out of circulation for decades.

* NeverLiveItDown: Joe Besser got a bad rep with fans of the series for being contractually forbidden to be comically hit in his Three Stooges shorts, leading him to be perceived as an ImmuneToSlapstick third wheel in the films. In reality, Besser did take part in a fair bit of slapstick abuse (especially in his later shorts), it was merely the comedic slaps and bonks from Moe he tended to shirk from, and even then there were exceptions or clever variations to get around this, [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mc1tgVM_N08 as evidenced here]].

** On the other hand, Joe Besser is universally hated, largely due to Besser's contractual stipulation that Moe couldn't hit him; this was like a kiss of death for any shorts featuring him since annoyingly clownish characters are tolerable only so long as their annoyance is appropriately punished. Indeed, Joe Besser rather than Shemp personifies this more, as Shemp tends to be more popular than not. Even though Besser did relent somewhat on the "don't hit" thing in his later shorts, many fans find his trademark "whining sissy-boy" shtick to be more grating than funny, and one that doesn't really gel with the Stooges' act.

** In ''The Yoke's on Me,'' the plot centers on "Japs" (read: Japanese) [=POWs=] hiding on the Stooges' farm after escaping from a nearby camp. The short ends with Curly throwing a grenade at them and exploding (pretty much the only reason it can't be said with certainty that they were killed is that they weren't shown flying in heaven playing harps, which ''always'' happens when someone dies in a Stooges short). Quite possibly the most controversial Stooges short ever, this has only recently resurfaced on television after being out of circulation for decades.

* Applicability: The Stooges could be seen as working class heroes. The Stooges are often short on cash and take on menial jobs to get by. They often clash with the upper class. Seeing as how their shorts became popular during the Great Depression, the allegory is pretty obvious. Could also have a bit of a ValuesResonance, considering the wealth gap has grown from those days and there's more inequality in the world than ever before.

** Invoked when Shemp called himself "The Ugliest Man in Hollywood" as part of a publicity stunt.

* SeinfeldIsUnfunny: For the most part averted. Sure, the humor may seem primitive compared to more contemporary comedy (sitcoms and the like), but the Stooges still have a classic, timeless appeal that has endured in the shape of a long, loyal fanbase. Even newcomers find the simplicity of the Stooges' comedy refreshing compared to more pretentious modern comedy shows.

*** Tended to be a RunningGag, as anyone doing this could distract the boys. It could also be from singing.

** When Curly was forced to retire, producer-director Jules White attempted to recruit Joe De Rita to take his place. Joe refused, however, because he believed that being associated with a low-class act like the Stooges would kill his career. Yes, this is the same man who would later happily accept a chance to become "Curly-Joe".

* {{Anvilicious}}:''I'll Never Heil Again'', which is about ThoseWackyNazis, has the {{Anvilicious}} "The characters in this picture are all fictitious. [[UsefulNotes/AdolfHitler Anyone resembling them]] is better off dead." [[SarcasmMode Subtle.]]

* SomeAnvilsNeedToBeDropped: ''I'll Never Heil Again'', which is about ThoseWackyNazis, has the {{Anvilicious}} "The characters in this picture are all fictitious. [[UsefulNotes/AdolfHitler Anyone resembling them]] is better off dead." [[SarcasmMode Subtle.]] But when it's the ''Nazis'' one's talking about... Especially since that film's predecessor, ''Film/YouNaztySpy'', was the first film to openly mock Hitler, beating ''Film/TheGreatDictator'' by nine months.