Dunked in the Deep

1949 film by Jules White

November 3, 1949 (1949-11-03) (U.S.)

Running time

16:46CountryUnited StatesLanguageEnglish

Dunked in the Deep is a 1949 short subject directed by Jules White starring American slapstick comedy team The Three Stooges (Moe Howard, Larry Fine and Shemp Howard). It is the 119th entry in the series released by Columbia Pictures starring the comedians, who released 190 shorts for the studio between 1934 and 1959.

Plot

The Stooges are deceived into clandestinely boarding a vessel by their neighbor, Mr. Borscht, who is revealed to be an antagonist aligned with a fictional nation resembling the Soviet Union. Adrift at sea aboard a freighter and subsisting on salami, they uncover Borscht's illicit activities involving the concealment of stolen microfilm within watermelons. Following a tumultuous pursuit, the trio apprehend Borscht and retrieve the pilfered microfilm.

Cast

Moe Howard as Moe and Voice on Radio
Larry Fine as Larry
Shemp Howard as Shemp
Gene Roth as Borscht

Production notes

Dunked in the Deep was reworked in 1956 as Commotion on the Ocean, using ample stock footage.^[1]

The voice heard on the radio broadcast is Moe; Shemp Howard accidentally cut his hand on the lock when he rushes to the door in an effort to open it.^[1]

Hiding microfilm in watermelons is an allusion to an actual event from the previous year. In 1948, Time managing editor Whittaker Chambers, a former Communist spy-turned government informer, accused Alger Hiss of being a member of the Communist Party and a spy for the Soviet Union. In presenting evidence against Hiss, Chambers produced the "Pumpkin Papers": five rolls of microfilm of State Department documents, which Chambers had concealed in a hollowed-out pumpkin on his Maryland farm.^[2]

Dunked in the Deep was filmed March 29-April 1, 1949 and was actually the 126th Stooge short filmed even though it was released as the 119th. The first seven Stooge shorts released the following year in 1950 had already been completed before Dunked in the Deep began production.^[1]

References

^ ^a ^b ^c Solomon, Jon (2002). The Complete Three Stooges: The Official Filmography and Three Stooges Companion. Comedy III Productions, Inc. ISBN 0-9711868-0-4.
^ Chambers, Whittaker (1952). Witness. Random House. pp. 751–755. ISBN 0-89526-571-0.