1963 film by Norman Maurer
The Three Stooges Go Around the World in a Daze is the fifth feature film made by The Three Stooges after their 1959 resurgence in popularity. By this time, the trio consisted of Moe Howard, Larry Fine, and Joe DeRita (dubbed "Curly Joe"). Directed by Howard's son-in-law Norman Maurer, the film was loosely based on the Jules Verne classic Around the World in Eighty Days.
Plot
Phileas Fogg III (Jay Sheffield), great-grandson of the original Phileas Fogg, accepts a bet to duplicate his great-grandfather's famous trip around the world in response to a challenge made by Randolph Stuart III, the descendant of the original Fogg's nemesis. Unbeknownst to anyone, however, "Stuart" is the infamous con man Vicker Cavendish (Peter Forster) who made the bet in order to cover up his robbing the bank of England by framing Fogg for the crime.
With him in this plot is his weaselly Cockney co-conspirator Filch (Walter Burke). This makes for a dangerous journey for Fogg and his servants (the Stooges) and Amelia Carter (Joan Freeman), whom they rescue from thugs during a train ride. On the way, they also: try to steal a cream pie from the galley of a Turkey-bound British cargo ship (and poke the cook in his fat behind with a gaff in the process); watch an elaborate Indian dance at a maharajah's palace, where blind-as-a-bat Curly Joe also regales the maharajah and the viceroy with knife throwing—until his disguise falls off; get captured in China by the Chinese Army, and survive Communist brainwashing in Shanghai with their interrogators turning into Chinese Stooge clones (Moe tells the Chinese general, "No brainee to washee!"). The disgusted Chinese set them adrift in a small boat; use Curly Joe's music-provoked strength to cadge food, clothes, and a trip to San Francisco from the manager of the monstrous sumo Itchy Kitchy (Iau Kea) after a demonstration in a park in Tokyo; stow away in a moving van, supposedly headed for New York. Of course, they are caught, and arrested in Canada by the British inspector (the Stooges and Amelia fake British accents so the inspector will arrest them too).
Back in London, they cross paths again with the two conspirators, again disguised as police—and armed. Of course, the Stooges win out, and, as with the original Phileas Fogg, his descendant miscalculated by one day and still has a chance. Curly Joe gets behind the wheel of the Bobbies' paddy wagon and speeds across London, and young Fogg wins the bet—crashing into the Reformer's Club with two seconds to spare.
Production notes
The Three Stooges brought back their famous "Maharaja" routine here for the third time, which was originally showcased in Time Out for Rhythm (1941), and later reused in their 1946 short subject Three Little Pirates. The Pop Goes the Weasel bit from Punch Drunks (1934) also makes an appearance in the film.
Regarding eye pokes, IMDB reports:
Moe says "we don't do that anymore", after one of the Stooge lookalikes 'eye pokes' one of the other lookalikes. This comes from an agreement Moe Howard and Larry Fine made with Joe DeRita at the beginning of the full length movie series. The agreement was that the eye poke would not be used by the group any longer due to the resurgence of the popularity of the comedy trio, especially with kids seeing the shorts during afternoon children's programming. DeRita was concerned that kids would imitate the eye poke, and not do it correctly, thus causing real damage to the eyes. Moe and Larry agreed with DeRita, and the eye poke was retired from the act, making this scene a rarity in the later Stooge years.
