Beer Barrel Polecats
Beer Barrel Polecats is a 1946 short subject directed by Jules White starring American slapstick comedy team The Three Stooges. It is the 88th entry in the series released by Columbia Pictures starring the comedians, who released 190 shorts for the studio between 1934 and 1959.
Plot
In their quest for beer during Prohibition, the Stooges resort to brewing their own concoction, using a recipe called "Panther Pilsner Beer". Confusion over which of them were responsible for adding yeast to the mixture leads to a comical explosion.Despite eventual success, their venture takes a legal turn when Curly inadvertently sells a bottle to an undercover detective at an inflated price, resulting in their incarceration. In prison, the Stooges initiate an escape plan, unintentionally incapacitating the warden in the process.
While serving time on the rock pile, they encounter a fellow inmate and an old acquaintance, Percy Pomeroy, with whom they collaborate on a prison break. The attempt fails, leading to their transfer to solitary confinement.
Decades later, the elderly trio is finally released as senior citizens. Curly expresses his desire for a tall bottle of beer upon freedom, prompting Moe and Larry to intervene by attacking Curly and convincing the warden to return him to jail, thereby avoiding further complications.
Production notes
The title Beer Barrel Polecats is a pun of the song "Beer Barrel Polka". The idea of producing and selling their own beer during Prohibition was borrowed from Laurel and Hardy's 1931 film, Pardon Us.When the Stooges drop their iron balls chained to their legs, the NBC Chimes are heard, a gag recycled from the team's 1937 short Back to the Woods.
A colorized version of this film was released in 2007 as part of the DVD collection "Hapless Half-Wits."
This short also marks the final appearance of the late Eddie Laughton, who died in 1952, the same year Curly, Duke York, and Dick Curtis all died.