Production Information
Title: Income Tax Sappy
Studio: Columbia
Short Number: 153
Release Date: February 4, 1954
Running Time: 16:28
“That’s 11 dependents! Who are they?” “My ex-wife and 10 bartenders.”
(Larry & Shemp)
Short Take
Moe, Larry, and Shemp decide that they are natural born tax experts and decide to start a business that helps other people cheat on their income tax. Their scheme doesn’t last long when it turns out that one of their customers is an undercover agent for the income tax department!
The Boys are set to do their income taxes, which are due the next day. As they do, Moe mentions on how easy it is for people to cheat on their tax returns and not get caught, so the three of them get the idea to create their own fake deductions to ensure a hefty refund, and throughout their endeavors, Larry and Shemp come up with an idea to come up with creative deductions for other peoples’ tax returns and charging them for it. Moe finds this idea grand, and the three of them become “tax experts.”
Not long afterward, The Stooges are enjoying a life of luxury, having made lots of money from profits and their own tax returns. On one particular day, they host a dinner party for one of their clients, a German man who obsessively strokes his beard, but as the meal commences, strange happenings and the boys’ own incompetence anger their guest. He then removes his beard (which Larry had accidentally cut off), exposes himself as a sleeper agent for the IRS, and calls in his fellow agents to arrest the Stooges for tax fraud. With nothing left to lose, the boys make a mad dash away and attempt to fight off the agents, but end up being busted and sent away in handcuffs.
Cast & Crew
| Directed by | Jules White |
|---|---|
| Produced by | Jules White |
| Written by | Felix Adler |
| Starring | Moe Howard Larry Fine Shemp Howard Benny Rubin Margie Liszt Nanette Bordeaux Vernon Dent Joe Palma |
| Cinematography | Ray Cory |
| Edited by | Edwin Bryant |
Income Tax Sappy Trivia
Coming soon