The leader of The Three Stooges, Moe Howard, died of lung cancer on May 4, 1975, at the age of 77. His death came just a few months after the passing of his longtime friend and fellow stooge, Larry Fine. Born Moses Harry Horwitz on June 19, 1897, in Bensonhurst, Brooklyn, Moe was the fourth of five sons born to Lithuanian Jewish immigrants Jenny and Solomon Horwitz. His brothers included Jack, Irving, and Samuel, who would later perform as Shemp, as well as Jerome, who would become famous as Curly.
Moe’s interest in acting developed early. He dropped out of Erasmus Hall High School in Flatbush, Brooklyn, after just two months to pursue a career in show business. He began running unpaid errands at the Vitagraph Studios in Brooklyn and was eventually rewarded with bit parts in films being produced there, until a fire in 1910 destroyed most of his early work. In the early 1920s, Moe joined a vaudeville comedy act built around Ted Healy and his stooges.
Over time, he was joined by his brother Shemp and later by Larry Fine. The four appeared in one feature film, “Soup to Nuts,” before Shemp left to pursue a solo career. Shemp was replaced by his and Moe’s younger brother, Jerome, who became known as Curly Howard, in 1932. Two years later, after appearing in several movies, the trio left Healy and signed with Columbia Pictures to appear in their own short-subject comedies, now billed as The Three Stooges.
From 1934 to 1946, Moe, Larry, and Curly starred in 190 short films and 20 feature films over the next two decades. One of their films, “Men in Black” from 1934, was nominated for an Academy Award. The short was a parody of the contemporary hospital drama “Men in White. ”
Standing just 5 feet 3 inches tall with his trademark bowl haircut, Moe was known for his quick wit, his ability to deliver a punchline, and his talent for physical comedy and slapstick routines.
He was a popular figure with audiences and helped make The Three Stooges one of the most successful comedy teams in history. Moe Howard retired from show business in 1970. In his later years, he frequently visited Larry Fine at the Motion Picture Country House, an industry retirement community in Woodland Hills, California, where Larry lived and used a wheelchair after a series of strokes. Larry Fine died on January 24, 1975, at the age of 72.
Only a few months later, Moe passed away following his battle with lung cancer. He was survived by his wife, Helen, and their two children, Joan and Paul. He was interred at Hillside Memorial Park in Culver City, Los Angeles.
