''Jail Birds of Paradise'' is a 1934

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc., also known as Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures and abbreviated as MGM, is an American film, television production, distribution and media company owned by Amazon through MGM Holdings, founded on April 17, 1924 ...

short starring

Dorothy Appleby Dorothy Appleby (January 6, 1906 – August 9, 1990) was an American film actress. She appeared in over 50 films between 1931 and 1943. Career Appleby gained early acting experience as an understudy and a chorus member in plays in New Yor ...

plus brothers Moe and

Curly Howard Jerome Lester Horwitz (; October 22, 1903 – January 18, 1952), known professionally as Curly Howard, was an American actor and comedian. He was best known as a member of the American comedy team the Three Stooges, which also featured his elder ...

(of

Three Stooges The Three Stooges were an American vaudeville and comedy team active from 1922 until 1970, best remembered for their 190 short subject films by Columbia Pictures. Their hallmark styles were physical farce and slapstick. Six Stooges appeare ...

fame). The film was written and directed by

Al Boasberg Al Boasberg (December 5, 1891 – June 18, 1937) was an American comedy writer in vaudeville, radio, and film, as well as being a film director. Biography Boasberg was born in Buffalo, New York in a Jewish family. He is credited with helpin ...

, and filmed in

Technicolor Technicolor is a series of Color motion picture film, color motion picture processes, the first version dating back to 1916, and followed by improved versions over several decades. Definitive Technicolor movies using three black and white films ...

. The film was released on March 10, 1934.''Jail Birds of Paradise''
in

Internet Movie Database IMDb (an abbreviation of Internet Movie Database) is an online database of information related to films, television series, home videos, video games, and streaming content online – including cast, production crew and personal biographies, ...

Synopsis

When the Warden of Paradise Prison is absent for three months, his daughter Miss Deering (

) decides to turn the prison into the 'Paradise', a luxurious hotel complete with all the amenities, and she sets the prison guards to run the 'hotel' for her. As Miss Deering and her secretary tour the prison there are a series of sight gags that involve various prisoners; among them, registering at Paradise's front desk, are Joe Pantz (

Moe Howard Moses Harry Horwitz (June 19, 1897 – May 4, 1975), known professionally as Moe Howard, was an American actor and comedian. He is best known as the leader of The Three Stooges, the farce comedy team who starred in motion pictures and television ...

), an axe murderer who has transferred from Leavenworth.''Jail Birds of Paradise'' on 'The Three Stooges Online Filmography'
/ref> During a show held in the Prison Auditorium that evening with dinner and music, Moe enters with

, who is wearing a

toupée A toupée ( ) is a hairpiece or partial wig of natural or synthetic hair worn to cover partial baldness or for theatrical purposes. While toupées and hairpieces are typically associated with male wearers, some women also use hairpieces to len ...

, and the two work a hair tonic scheme among the other prisoners; this scene was later reworked for

Larry Fine Louis Feinberg (October 5, 1902 – January 24, 1975), known professionally as Larry Fine, was an American actor, comedian, and musician. He is best known as a member of the comedy act the Three Stooges. Early life Fine was born to a Russian Je ...

and

Joe DeRita Joseph Wardell (July 12, 1909 – July 3, 1993), known professionally as Joe DeRita, was an American actor and comedian, who is best known for his stint as a member of The Three Stooges in the persona of Curly Joe DeRita. Early life DeRita wa ...

in their 1961 feature, ''

Snow White and the Three Stooges ''Snow White and the Three Stooges'' is a 1961 American comedy, fantasy film. It is the second feature film to star the Three Stooges after their 1959 resurgence in popularity. By this time, the trio consisted of Moe Howard, Larry Fine, and "Cu ...

''. The evening ends with gunshots and a vase-throwing

melee A melee ( or , French: mêlée ) or pell-mell is disorganized hand-to-hand combat in battles fought at abnormally close range with little central control once it starts. In military aviation, a melee has been defined as " air battle in which ...

among the prisoners. The Dodge Twins appear in a number called "The Lock Step", which had been shot in color early in 1930 at the then brand new

MGM Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc., also known as Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures and abbreviated as MGM, is an American film, television production, distribution and media company owned by Amazon through MGM Holdings, founded on April 17, 1924 a ...

extra high sound Stage Six for ''

The March of Time ''The March of Time'' is an American newsreel series sponsored by Time Inc. and shown in movie theaters from 1935 to 1951. It was based on a radio news series broadcast from 1931 to 1945. The "voice" of both series was Westbrook Van Voorhis. ...

'', an MGM musical which was never finished or released. This sequence was recycled in ''Jail Birds of Paradise''.

Cast

as Miss Deering, Prison Warder *

Heinie Conklin Heinie Conklin (born Charles John Conklin; July 16, 1880July 30, 1959) was an American actor and comedian whose career began in the silent film era. Early years Conklin was born Charles John Conklin on July 16, 1880, in San Francisco, Califo ...

as Prisoner *Beth Dodge as Bell Hop (as Dodge Twins) *Betty Dodge as Bell Hop (as Dodge Twins) *

Harrison Greene Harrison Greene (January 18, 1884 – September 28, 1945) was an American film actor. He appeared in more than 230 films between 1931 and 1945. The son of a jeweler, Greene was born in Portland, Oregon, but grew up in California. He was a d ...

as Prisoner *

as Prisoner (as Jerry Howard) *

as Joe Pantz *M-G-M Dancing Girls as Themselves * Frank Moran as Convict *

Jack Pennick Ronald Jack Pennick (December 7, 1895 – August 16, 1964) was an American film actor. After working as a gold miner as a young man, serving as a US Marine, he would go on to appear in more than 140 films between 1926 and 1962. Pennick was ...

as Redface (convict) *

Shirley Ross Shirley Ross (born Bernice Maude Gaunt, January 7, 1913 – March 9, 1975) was an American actress and singer, notable for her duet with Bob Hope, " Thanks for the Memory" from ''The Big Broadcast of 1938''. She appeared in 25 feature films be ...

as Herself *

Leo White Leo White (November 10, 1882 – September 20, 1948), Leo Weiss, was a German-born British-American film and stage actor who appeared as a character actor in many Charlie Chaplin films. Biography Born in Germany, White grew up in England where ...

as Tailor *Austin J. Young as Dancer

Preservation status

This film is now considered a

lost film A lost film is a feature Feature may refer to: Computing * Feature (CAD), could be a hole, pocket, or notch * Feature (computer vision), could be an edge, corner or blob * Feature (software design) is an intentional distinguishing char ...

, with no studio, collector prints or negatives known to exist. According to some sources the only known copy was destroyed in the

1965 MGM vault fire On August 10, 1965, a fire erupted in Vault 7, a storage facility, at the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer studio (MGM) backlot (now Sony Pictures Studios) in Culver City, California. It was caused by an electrical short explosively igniting stored nitrate f ...

References

External links

*
''Jailbirds of Paradise'' on 'The Three Stooges Online Filmography'
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jail Birds of Paradise 1934 films Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer short films The Three Stooges films 1934 musical comedy films Lost American films American musical comedy films American prison comedy films 1934 lost films Lost comedy films 1930s English-language films 1930s American films

Synopsis

Cast

Preservation status

See also

References

External links