Actors - Emil Sitka

Home > Listing Index > Actors > Emil Sitka

	Actors - Emil Sitka

Emil Sitka (December 22, 1914 – January 16, 1998) veteran actor who appeared in hundreds of movies, short films, and television shows, is best know for his numerous appearances with the Three Stooges - nearly 40. He is the only individual to have worked with all of the Stooges on film, in the various incarnations of the group. And the one phrase he is remembered by comes from the Three Stooges short, "Brideless Groom," where he appears as the Justice of the Peace attempting to marry Shemp -- "Hold hands, you lovebirds."

Emil Sitka early years

Emil Sitka, whose numerous appearances with the Three Stooges earned him the nickname "the Fourth Stooge," was born in Johnstown, Pennsylvania, USA on December 22, 1914. He was the oldest of five children. His father, a coal miner, died of black lung disease when he was 12 years old, and his mother was hospitalized, unable to take care of the children. His siblings were placed in foster homes, but Emil came to live in a church in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania with a catholic priest for the next few years. At this time, he became an altar boy and made plans to enter the priesthood, and had his first acting opportunity in the church's annual Passion Play. At the age of 16, he and one of his brothers travelled across the U.S.A., riding the rails hobo-style, looking for work. After a year, they returned to Pittsburgh, where Emil found a job working in a factory. Emil stayed there until the Great (Pittsburgh) Flood of 1936, where he departed to pursue an acting dream in Hollywood, California.

Emil Sitka - early acting experience

Emil Sitka found inexpensive lodging in a small acting theater, doing handywork to pay his rent, and gradually acting in small parts in the theater. With time and experience, the parts became larger, and eventually Emil was directing plays as well. Since the theater didn't pay, Emil always kept a "day job" to pay the bills as well as his acting career at night. It was during this time that he met and married Donna Driscoll, and they began raising a family. By 1946, he had played dozens, if not hundreds of roles; this breadth of experience would help him in his later film career, playing everything from butler to lawyer to businessman to construction worker.

Emil Sitka in films

In 1946, Emil Sitka was leading his own acting troupe when he was spotted by a talent scount for Columbia Pictures. He was told to contact Jules White, director of many of the Three Stooges short films, to be cast in a short film that White was directing -- starring Vera Vague, not the Three Stooges. The short film, "Hiss and Yell," was nominated for an Academy Award. Several months and many films later, he was cast in his first Three Stooges film - "Half-Wits Holiday." At the time, he didn't even know who the Three Stooges were; that was about to change.

Emil Sitka's first Three Stooges film -- and Curly Howard's last

"Half-Wits Holiday" dealt with the idea of two professors betting on the outcome of turning the Three Stooges into gentlemen -- with predictable results. Emil Sitka played Sappington, the upper-crust butler, who was an excellent foil for the Three Stooges -- and the target of several pies as well. Sadly, Curly Howard suffered a stroke during filming, which is why he's not seen in the second half of this short film. Despite this bittersweet beginning, Emil Sitka went on to appear in dozens of Three Stooges short films, as well as most of their feature films and their live action segments before and after their cartoons. He worked in both short films and feature films with others as well, including Lucille Ball, Milton Berle, Red Skelton, Tony Curtis, George Peppard, Johnny Weismuller, Betty Grable, Robert Young, Eddy Arnold, Fred MacMurray, Mickey Rooney, Ray Milland, Tyrone Power, Broderick Crawford, Janet Leigh, Jack Lemmon, Gale Storm, Glenn Ford, the Bowery Boys, Brian Keith, Robert Culp, David Jansen, Alan Hale, Walter Brennan, Dan Blocker, Joey Bishop, Bob Denver, and many others. But he is best remembered for his association with the Three Stooges, and with one line in particular. He also was in the full length features in some of the Three Stooges movies.

Emil Sitka - "Hold hands, you lovebirds"

In the Three Stooges short, "Brideless Groom," Shemp must be married before 6:00 p.m. in order to inherit $500,000.00. After striking out, Shemp finally finds a girl willing to marry him, and they rush off to a justice of the peace - played by Emil Sitka. As Emil starts the ceremony, telling the couple to "hold hands, you lovebirds" the other girls that turned down Shemp's proposal burst in, having heard of the inheritance, and a free-for-all ensues, with poor Emil being struck again and again, attempting to start the ceremony, each time more disheveled and his "hold hands, you lovebirds" a little weaker -- it's a hilarious scene, and the one that Emil, despite his volume of work, has become best known for.

[ Visit the complete Wikipedia entry for Emil Sitka ]

This page is based on the copyrighted Wikipedia article Emil Sitka; it is used under the GNU Free Documentation License. You may redistribute it, verbatim or modified, providing that you comply with the terms of the GFDL.