Joe Besser was born on August 12, 1907 in St. Louis, Missouri. Short, chubby, balding, childish character actor who began his career on the vaudeville circuit before breaking into films in the early 1930s. He was a frequent foil of 'Bud Abbott' . Joe Besser died at age 80 of heart failure on March 1, 1988 in North Hollywood, California.
The only member of The Three Stooges team who was more successful in his solo career than he was with the Stooges.
When Columbia shut down its shorts department, The Three Stooges were forced to take the act on the road, and Besser was invited to go. However, he refused because he had to be home to take care of his sick wife. He was not fired as the legend has it.
After Shemp Howard died, Moe Howard and Larry Fine wanted to continue as "The Two Stooges." Four shorts remained to be filmed. The Stooges made them, all remakes with stock footage and with new scenes that included a fake Shemp (Joe Palma ). The Stooges then became three again with the addition of Besser as the third Stooge. Initially, because Besser was afraid of being hurt, Larry offered to take the slaps for him. As the making of the films progressed, and Besser became more comfortable with the team and its shtick, he took his share of slaps, eye-pokes, nose tweaks and pies in the face as his predecessors. So did Larry.
He began his career in show business as a song plugger for a St. Louis-based music company, and later became a comedy assistant to the great magician Howard Thurston.
Was the only member of The Three Stooges to use his actual birth name in the act. All of the other Stooges, and even Ted Healy , used stage or Americanized names.
Biography in: "Whos Who in Comedy" by Ronald S. Smith, pg. 51. New York: Facts on File, 1992. ISBN 0816023387
His favorite comedians were Jack Benny , Bud Abbott and Lou Costello , and Ann Miller is his choice for actress.
Parents are Morris and Fanny Besser; had seven older sisters and an older brother: Manny Besser.
Born and raised in the Midwest, he was the only Stooge not hailing from the Northeastern United States.
Following his death, he was interred at Forest Lawn Memorial Park Cemetery in Glendale, California.
Never saw any of The Three Stooges shorts he was in.
