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Larry the Stooge in the Middle
Now back in print, this heavily illustrated, richly anecdotal memoir takes a fond look back at Larry, the wild-haired funnyman who helped make the Three Stooges the most popular slapstick comedy team of all time.
- GenresNonfictionBiography
220 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2001
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
May 15, 2019
Larry Fineberg, known as Larry of the Three Stooges, is an iconic figure in motion picture history. For those who grew up in the television era, the stooges were a TV staple, a group who you were warned never to imitate. While all of the stooges have their niche; Moe was the businessman, Curly was the ladies man, and Shemp was the character actor; Larry is often ignored as filler. Here, Moe Fineberg, Larry's brother, attempts to shed light on the most ignored stooge.
The typeface changes periodically throughout for no apparent reason, and one of the pages is flipped around, so reading gets confusing at one point. This shoddy composition reflects its mediocre status.
Although the book is written by Larry's brother, it is written like the author is trying to imitate a professional biographer. Therefore, there is very little sentiment or personal stories. True, this is mostly about the Stooges' careers on a whole and not about their films, but it reads almost like a children's book would, where the minor details are left out and we are given only the big picture.
Also, it begins discussing only Larry's life, but the middle seems more like a Three Stooges biography than a book about Larry. There is a point where Moe beings discussing directors who believe that Larry was the most important stooge, but this is never discussed in depth and leaves the reader with many questions.
The true treasure here are all of the personal photographs. There are rare, early photos of the group, many without their signature haircuts. Toward the end, we see Larry in old age after his multiple strokes, appearing as an ordinary man. This is a unique way to view the stooge with the fuzzy hair and makes him seem all the more human.
The typeface changes periodically throughout for no apparent reason, and one of the pages is flipped around, so reading gets confusing at one point. This shoddy composition reflects its mediocre status.
Although the book is written by Larry's brother, it is written like the author is trying to imitate a professional biographer. Therefore, there is very little sentiment or personal stories. True, this is mostly about the Stooges' careers on a whole and not about their films, but it reads almost like a children's book would, where the minor details are left out and we are given only the big picture.
Also, it begins discussing only Larry's life, but the middle seems more like a Three Stooges biography than a book about Larry. There is a point where Moe beings discussing directors who believe that Larry was the most important stooge, but this is never discussed in depth and leaves the reader with many questions.
The true treasure here are all of the personal photographs. There are rare, early photos of the group, many without their signature haircuts. Toward the end, we see Larry in old age after his multiple strokes, appearing as an ordinary man. This is a unique way to view the stooge with the fuzzy hair and makes him seem all the more human.
December 24, 2025
Larry’s life story told by his brother Morris. Maybe a little too lovingly told by this family member. Overall, it is entertaining, at times interesting and boring at other times. It does contain many photographs. I couldn’t really give it three stars though as I had to browse my way to the end.
October 18, 2023
this book made me cry more than it should’ve, i looked insane on the subway
February 7, 2021
This is probably one of the most detailed books about them that I have read. This was written by Larry's brother and it is Larry's life told from his eyes. When I read about them I am more looking for the personal stories behind them. This has more of that compared to most. This is still dedicated to Larry's rise in Vaudville and the meeting of the Stooges. For any fan I def recommend it.
July 6, 2023
It may be the contrast with Larry's autobiography, "Stroke of Luck," dictated after his stroke to a disturbingly narcissistic fan and officially the Worst Book Ever Published, or it may be the fact that I was lightheaded after finishing the 611-page "Israel's Exodus in Transdisciplinary Perspective: Text, Archaeology, Culture, and Geoscience," but this struck me as the best of the Stooge bios/memoirs - including Moe's "I Stooged to Conquer" and Joan Howard Maurer's "Curly: An Illustrated Biography of the Superstooge."
Feinberg (ignore Goodreads' "Fineberg") writes breezily and well - or maybe it's his co-author/ghostwriter, G.P. Skratz, who according to a San Francisco-based literary website is a performance poet and video artist who taught poetry at the Naropa Institute "at the invitation of Allen Ginsberg." I assume Skratz is responsible for the excerpt from Jack Kerouac's "Visions of Cody" that concludes the book - a free-form meditation on the Three Stooges that demonstrates the breadth of their fan base but did nothing to make me want to read more Kerouac.
"I Stooged to Conquer" is probably the best-known Stooges bio, and Maurer's TMI-filled "Curly" lifts the lid on Horwitz family drama, but Larry's brother, who spent a lot of time with the trio in their early days, is the one who best captures what it was like to be a working Stooge, from the days with Ted Healy (who comes off better here than in most accounts) to their national touring and Broadway appearances during the Columbia years. On a personal level, Moe may have been depressive, Curly lost himself in wine and women, and Shemp was a bundle of phobias - subjects not dwelled on here - but Larry was apparently a cheerful, easygoing sort who achieved his childhood goal in life, to be an entertainer, married the woman of his dreams and delighted family and friends with his sociabiity. It's a bit of a shock to learn that one of them was so happy.
The book passes over most of their work on the Columbia lot after 1934, and omits entirely the story that, after the final break from Healy, Larry rushed out and signed the act to Fox while Moe arranged a contract with Harry Cohn, a situation that had to be unraveled by lawyers. Did it really happen that way? Speculating on the course of history had the Stooges been employed by Darryl Zanuck and not the most hated man in Hollywood will have to be left for another author.
Feinberg (ignore Goodreads' "Fineberg") writes breezily and well - or maybe it's his co-author/ghostwriter, G.P. Skratz, who according to a San Francisco-based literary website is a performance poet and video artist who taught poetry at the Naropa Institute "at the invitation of Allen Ginsberg." I assume Skratz is responsible for the excerpt from Jack Kerouac's "Visions of Cody" that concludes the book - a free-form meditation on the Three Stooges that demonstrates the breadth of their fan base but did nothing to make me want to read more Kerouac.
"I Stooged to Conquer" is probably the best-known Stooges bio, and Maurer's TMI-filled "Curly" lifts the lid on Horwitz family drama, but Larry's brother, who spent a lot of time with the trio in their early days, is the one who best captures what it was like to be a working Stooge, from the days with Ted Healy (who comes off better here than in most accounts) to their national touring and Broadway appearances during the Columbia years. On a personal level, Moe may have been depressive, Curly lost himself in wine and women, and Shemp was a bundle of phobias - subjects not dwelled on here - but Larry was apparently a cheerful, easygoing sort who achieved his childhood goal in life, to be an entertainer, married the woman of his dreams and delighted family and friends with his sociabiity. It's a bit of a shock to learn that one of them was so happy.
The book passes over most of their work on the Columbia lot after 1934, and omits entirely the story that, after the final break from Healy, Larry rushed out and signed the act to Fox while Moe arranged a contract with Harry Cohn, a situation that had to be unraveled by lawyers. Did it really happen that way? Speculating on the course of history had the Stooges been employed by Darryl Zanuck and not the most hated man in Hollywood will have to be left for another author.
August 12, 2025
Fun and interesting but skips many years and details.
September 1, 2013
Morris Feinberg (not "Fineberg") was the "little" brother - younger but taller than his brother Louis, who came to be known as Larry Fine. Larry was undeniably the best musician of the original members of the Three Stooges, including the Horwitz brothers who came to be known as Moe Howard, Curly Howard and Shemp Howard. He was proficient on violin and piano. He was not an especially disciplined performer, but that was no disadvantage when ad libs were an asset, as they often could be on the vaudeville stage, or in the movie studio when the shooting script turned out to be less interesting that what the camera saw.
This book contains more background material on Larry's life than Moe's autobiography or Curly's biography, and is less fraught with errors and inaccuracies than Larry's earlier biography, "Stroke of Luck", now out of print and commanding grotesquely inflated prices, for all its flaws. This book corrects many of that earlier work's shortcomings, and is available at much more sensible prices.
There are many black and white photos, and more than a few excerpts from the Stooges' performances and films, but its charm derives partly from the family feel that "little" brother Moe was able to bring to the story of Larry's life and fortunes. No one else could have told that story with quite such personal authority, or such intimate warmth.
This book contains more background material on Larry's life than Moe's autobiography or Curly's biography, and is less fraught with errors and inaccuracies than Larry's earlier biography, "Stroke of Luck", now out of print and commanding grotesquely inflated prices, for all its flaws. This book corrects many of that earlier work's shortcomings, and is available at much more sensible prices.
There are many black and white photos, and more than a few excerpts from the Stooges' performances and films, but its charm derives partly from the family feel that "little" brother Moe was able to bring to the story of Larry's life and fortunes. No one else could have told that story with quite such personal authority, or such intimate warmth.
January 17, 2015
Very readable biography of the second stooge, Larry Fine, born Louis Feinberg. It's written by his brother Moe (not that Moe--Morris Feinberg) who obviously not only loved his brother but loved getting a chance to live vicariously through him. Larry often brought his brother along to meet movie stars or come backstage.
There's nothing really deep or surprising here--no philosophical thoughts on the nature of comedy or scandals. Larry had a good life and seemed to know it. If he had a dark side, his brother isn't analyzing it for us. Having read biographies of all 3 Stooges now, it's funny that Curly was clearly the one with the demons, such as they were.
There's nothing really deep or surprising here--no philosophical thoughts on the nature of comedy or scandals. Larry had a good life and seemed to know it. If he had a dark side, his brother isn't analyzing it for us. Having read biographies of all 3 Stooges now, it's funny that Curly was clearly the one with the demons, such as they were.
June 14, 2016
Fun, quick read bio of the most underrated of the Three Stooges, Larry, as seen through the eyes of his young brother, Morris. Chock-full of great family photos (some never seen before) and publicity shots, this slim volume traces not only Larry's successful career in early vaudeville (didja know he really was an accomplished musician/violinist?) but the meteoric rise of America's beloved comedy team both on stage and screen.
In the 1890s, a fortune teller told Larry's mother that someday she'd "give birth to a son known the world over"....how wonderful that she did, and how more wonderful that his brother saw fit to write this book!
In the 1890s, a fortune teller told Larry's mother that someday she'd "give birth to a son known the world over"....how wonderful that she did, and how more wonderful that his brother saw fit to write this book!
December 13, 2008
Written by his brother (coincidentally also nicknamed "Moe"), this biography was interesting and informative. Larry Feinberg was a talent in his own right; before joining with the Howard Brothers and becoming the legendary "Three Stooges". A childhood burn accident results in his taking up the violin as a form of therapy for an injured arm. This view into the last days of vaudeville and the transition into early movie comedies is worthy of note. Enjoyable read for any "Stooges" fan.
April 13, 2011
As a fan of the 3 Stooges, I was eager to learn more about them. Written by Larry's brother, we get to find out how Larry came into learning how to play the violin at an early age because of a tragic accident. With interesting side stories, inside stories, and wonderful pictures, this book is a treasure for any fan of old-time humor and showbusiness. A great book for any 3 Stooges fan to read so they can discover some of the great unknown treasures that we learn in the book.
April 18, 2012
Written by Larry's younger brother. Gives many insights into his personal life and career development. A must read for any Stooge fan.
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews