Emil Sitka ~

The Fourth Stooge

        "The most important actor in most Stooges films, besides the Stooges themselves, was the sharp-nosed, wide-eyed Emil Sitka... His presence was such a mainstay of the operation that many thought of him as an undeclared 'fourth Stooge.'"

                                       -Moe Feinberg, Larry Fine's brother

                                         Larry The Stooge In the Middle


 

EMIL SITKA FAN CLUB MISSION STATEMENT:

To communicate with friends and fans of Emil Sitka, share information about his life and career, preserve the cultural heritage of the Hollywood productions in which he participated, and promote his legacy as The Fourth Stooge.


EmilSitka.com is an on-line informational resource serving the mission of the Emil Sitka Fan Club.


EMIL'S FILM #11

SLAPPILY MARRIED

Released Nov. 7, 1946

Producer - Hugh McCollum
Director - Edward Bernds

CAST

Joe De Rita
Christine McIntyre
Dorothy Granger
Jean Donahue
Florence Auer
Symona Boniface
Emil Sitka


Listed  below are some related items available on Amazon
The DVD set below has not only all the Stooges shorts but also the two-reelers of Shemp Howard, Joe Besser and Joe DeRita! It's a fantastic set of Stooge material AND it's the first release of Columbia Pictures' non-Stooge shorts since, well, a very long time. AND it includes SLAPPILY MARRIED (1946)!


(#10) <-- | --> (#12)

EmilSitka.com / Films / #11

SLAPPILY MARRIED
(1946)


Emil Sitka's List of Movies

NO.:
DATE:
PICTURE:
STUDIO:
DAILY SALARY:
STAR:
DIRECTOR:
ROLE:
TYPE:
PROD. NO.:
11
Aug. 15, 1946
SLAPPILY MARRIED
Columbia
$ 50.00
Joe DeRita
Ed Bernds
lawyer
befuddled
4080


Films of Emil Sitka: SLAPPILY MARRIED (1946)
by Saxon E. Sitka

          Long before he joined The Three Stooges in 1958, Joe De Rita had a career as a solo act, and he starred in four Columbia short subjects. SLAPPILY MARRIED was his first one. About a month after this job, Emil worked again with De Rita in GOOD BAD EGG, De Rita's second, and then about a year later he got the call for JITTER BUGHOUSE, De Rita's last Columbia short.
          Although Emil had already worked with Christine McIntyre in several films, this was his first scene with her. He was just beginning to know her, and he even misspells her name in the following diary excerpt from Thursday, August 15, 1946:

          Well here I am again - out at Columbia ranch in Burbank, playing another bit role. This time I'm a lawyer with one speech, a brief-case, hat and spectacles and it's in a comedy short, whose star is Joe De Rita.
          I rehearse once, make a suggestion, get my position marked - and presto, I'm ready! The cue comes, I speak to Christine Mackintosh and fumble on the word "divorce." But the second "take" sees me deliver my speech, react to her reply, put my hat on with a "good-night" and exit - right out of the picture.
          I'm through, my work is ended. I get $50 for this, and go home!
          At the abandoned dressing room I bump into Chester Morris. Upon my compliment (& genuine it is) he beamed with appreciation. I shook his hand and earnestly told him I admired his work over the years.
          I missed my bus, and so I hitch-hiked home - feeling like a movie actor. I was soaked to the skin with sweat, but happy. I picked up my script for my next role.

          Chester Morris was a fairly well-known movie star in 1946, having appeared in almost 80 films throughout the twenties, thirties, and forties. Morris worked mostly in action and mystery movies, and he had an on-going starring role in the "Boston Blackie" series of features, which spanned over a dozen episodes between 1940 and 1950. Emil met him here but never had occasion to work with him.

The End

Copyright, Saxon Emil Sitka. All rights reserved.
Reproduction of any portion of this article in any form is prohibited.




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SLAPPILY MARRIED (1946)



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