1950s Movies

Have Rocket, Will Travel — 1959

In the 1950s, the Cold War between the U.S. the U.S.S.R. was on. Americans feared the Soviets would beat us in the development of spaceflight. It was considered to be a matter of national security and a symbol of technological and ideological superiority. Who better to help us in the race to space than The Three Stooges? Columbia Pictures released a feature film with the trio to ride the crest of their resurgence in popularity toward the end of the 1950s. Have Rocket, Will Travel starred Moe Howard, Larry Fine, and “Curly Joe” (Joe DeRita) as three janitors who just happen to blast off to Venus. In their travels, they meet up with a talking unicorn, a giant fire-breathing tarantula, and a life-destroying computer. They triumph in space and receive a hero’s welcome back on earth. Please click here for a clip that gives you a feel of the film.

The title parodies the name of the popular TV show “Have Gun – Will Travel,” which starred Richard Boone, and told stories of his quests as a gentleman gunfighter (that is, he preferred non-violence to guns).

Joe DeRita succeeded Curly Howard, Shemp Howard, and Joe Besser as the third Stooge. The Stooges had made many shorts during the 1940s and 1940s. However, many short films and cartoons made in earlier decades appeared on television in the 1950s. The baby boomers discovered The Three Stooges through TV and loved them.

For More — Golden Oldies Music And Classic TV

The Rec Room has daily featured doo wop, rock and roll, R&B, or rockabilly songs that were hits during the first era of rock and roll (that is, from about 1952 until the British invasion in 1964). After a song is featured, it then goes into the jukebox. You are welcome to listen to any of the 40 selections there. Thank you for stopping by The Daily Doo-Wop.