Shemp Howard, in the late 1940s.

Samuel "Shemp" Howard / (Horwitz) (March 4, 1895 – November 22, 1955) was part of the Three Stooges comedy team. He was called "Shemp" because "Sam" came out that way in his mother's thick Eastern European Jewish accent. He was the older brother of Moe Howard and third stooge in the early years of the act, and again later, after his youngest brother Curly's stroke in 1946. Image File history File links Shempport. ... Image File history File links Shempport. ... March 4 is the 63rd day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (64th in leap years). ... 1895 (MDCCCXCV) was a common year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Thursday of the 12-day-slower Julian calendar). ... November 22 is the 326th day (327th on leap years) of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1955 (MCMLV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The Three Stooges were an American comedy act in the 20th century. ... The word Jew ( Hebrew: יהודי) is used in a wide number of ways, but generally refers to a follower of the Jewish faith, a child of a Jewish mother, or someone of Jewish descent with a connection to Jewish culture or ethnicity and often a combination of these attributes. ... Moe Howard, the leader of the venerable Three Stooges, as he appeared in the comedy teams first short for Columbia Pictures, Women Haters (1934). ... 1946 (MCMXLVI) was a common year starting on Tuesday. ...

Shemp, along with brothers Moe and Curly, was born in the Bensonhurst section of Brooklyn, New York. Moe Howard, the leader of the venerable Three Stooges, as he appeared in the comedy teams first short for Columbia Pictures, Women Haters (1934). ... This article or section contains information that has not been verified and thus might not be reliable. ... Bensonhurst Embrakement is a common walkplace in (Bensonhurst) A spectacular view of the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge (Brooklyn College) Snow melting on one of the streets in Bensonhurst Bensonhurst is a working class neighborhood located in the south-central part of New York City, USAs borough of Brooklyn. ... For other meanings, see Brooklyn (disambiguation). ...

Shemp played his somewhat homely appearance to comic effect, often allowing his hair to fall in disarray or mugging grotesquely on film. Notoriously phobic, his fears including dogs, airplanes, and automobiles. A phobia (from the Greek φόβος fear), is a strong, persistent fear of situations, objects, activities, or persons. ... Trinomial name Canis lupus familiaris (Linnaeus, 1758) The dog is a mammal in the order Carnivora. ... Fixed-wing aircraft is a term used to refer to what are more commonly known as aeroplanes in Commonwealth English (excluding Canada) or airplanes in North American English. ... Car redirects here. ...

The first major film he was in was Soup to Nuts (1930) as a bumbling fireman, the only film in which he plays one of Ted Healy's stooges. Shemp left Healy's act in 1932 to pursue a solo career in film. This turned out to be very successful, performing with such comic greats as Fatty Arbuckle, W.C. Fields, and the comedy team Abbott and Costello. He also attempted, unsuccessfully, to create his own group of "stooges." In 1947, he reluctantly replaced his brother Curly as the third stooge in the film shorts. Initially, Shemp rejoined the Stooges on a temporary basis until Curly recovered from a debilitating stroke. However, as Curly's condition worsened, it became apparent that Shemp's association with the Stooges would be permanent. Soup to nuts is an English figurative expression (or idiom) conveying the meaning of from beginning to end. It is derived from the description of a complete meal, whose courses range from firstly Soup, to lastly Nuts. ... 1930 (MCMXXX) is a common year starting on Wednesday. ... Ted Healy, the original straight man for the Three Stooges. ... 1932 (MCMXXXII) was a leap year starting on Friday (the link will take you to a full 1932 calendar). ... Roscoe Conkling Arbuckle (1887-1933) in 1919 Roscoe Conkling Arbuckle (March 24, 1887 – June 29, 1933) was an American silent film comedian. ... W. C. Fields (January 29, 1880 - December 25, 1946) was an American comedian and actor. ... Abbott and Costello (William (Bud) Abbott, 1897-1974); Louis Cristillo, 1906-1959), American comedy duo whose work in radio, film, and television made them one of the most popular and respected teams in comedy history. ... 1947 (MCMXLVII) was a common year starting on Wednesday (the link is to a full 1947 calendar). ...

Shemp is often compared to Curly, but his comedic stylings were also unique, and some fans even prefer his comic style over Curly's. He starred in seventy-seven Three Stooges shorts and appeared with Moe and Larry in the film Gold Raiders (1951). Shemp suffered a minor stroke in 1952, which appeared to have only a minor effect in some of his last films with the Stooges (largely remakes of earlier films that reused footage to save costs). Many fans point out that in his later remakes, or "cheapies", Shemp looks weak, pale and often disoriented. For other uses, see Stroke (disambiguation). ... 1952 (MCMLII) was a Leap year starting on Tuesday (link will take you to calendar). ...

For Crimin' Out Loud (1956) was the last film featuring new footage of Shemp (far right).

Shemp died of a massive heart attack while traveling in the back seat of a car returning home from watching a boxing match on November 22, 1955. Legend has it that Shemp was lighting a cigar, and then suddenly slumped over in his friend's lap. Several Three Stooges films were in production at the time of his death; in order to complete them, longtime Stooge supporting actor Joe Palma stood in for Shemp and was filmed mostly from the back. This form of cinematic trickery came to be known as "shemping". The term "fake shemp" has been adopted later in cinematography to refer to or credit someone who appears in a film under heavy make-up, filmed from the back, or perhaps only showing an arm or a foot. Image File history File links Crimin. ... Image File history File links Crimin. ... November 22 is the 326th day (327th on leap years) of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1955 (MCMLV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The term someone is credited with who appears in a film under heavy make-up, filmed from the back, or perhaps only showing an arm or a foot. ...

In a 2000 TV movie, Shemp was played by John Kassir. Johnny Kassir (born October 24, 1957 in Baltimore, Maryland) is an American actor, voice actor, and comedian who has been active in many facets of entertainment since 1984. ...

Further reading

• One Fine Stooge: A Frizzy Life in Pictures by Steve Cox and Jim Terry [1], (Cumberland House Publishing, 2006)

External links

• Shemp Howard at The Internet Movie Database
• Shemp Howard at The Internet Broadway Database
• http://www.shempcompany.com/