Sock-a-Bye Baby

Sock-a-Bye Baby is a 1942 short subject directed by Jules White starring American slapstick comedy team The Three Stooges (Moe Howard, Larry Fine and Curly Howard). It is the 66th entry in the series released by Columbia Pictures starring the comedians, who released 190 shorts for the studio between 1934 and 1959.

Plot
The Stooges are awaken in the middle of the night to find themselves unexpectedly confronted with the responsibility of caring for an abandoned infant left on their doorstep. Accompanying this infant is a poignant letter from the distressed mother, elucidating the circumstances of the abandonment and beseeching the Stooges' compassion for the child, identified as baby Jimmy.

Moved by compassion and a sense of paternal duty, the Stooges undertake the task of nurturing the infant, providing sustenance and tender care in their makeshift role as surrogate fathers. However, their nascent familial bonds are soon tested when Larry discovers a newspaper article detailing a recent child kidnapping, prompting speculation that Jimmy may indeed be the abducted child and the letter merely a ruse.

Amidst the unfolding drama, the mother and two motorcycle police officers arrive to reclaim the infant, revealing the true identity of the child's parents. In a frenetic sequence of events, the Stooges, unaware that Jimmy has stealthily accompanied them, hastily vacate their premises with the infant in tow. Pursued by the vigilant police officers on motorcycles, the Stooges navigate a series of escapades before the child is safely reunited with his parents.

Production notes
Filming for Sock-a-Bye Baby commenced between April 28 and May 1, 1942. The film title is a parody of the lullaby "Rock-a-bye Baby," a motif influenced by the similarly named Popeye cartoon Sock-a-Bye, Baby (1934) produced by Fleischer Studios, a precedent dating back eight years. Footage was reused in the 1960 compilation feature film Stop! Look! and Laugh!

Sock-a-Bye Baby deviates from conventional comedic tropes with its inclusion of explicit racial humor, a rarity within the Stooges' repertoire. Specifically, a scene involving Curly singing a song with derogatory references to Japanese individuals reflects the prevailing jingoistic sentiments prevalent in the media during World War II, a period characterized by heightened nationalistic fervor and xenophobic attitudes.

Sock-a-Bye Baby also features a memorable musical interlude wherein Curly, engaged in the preparation of Jimmy's meal, serenades the audience with an a cappella rendition of a whimsical song, envisioning himself as a Brazilian coffee bean: "I was a boy in Brazil and I grew on a tree. / When they shook the tree then I fell down. / Then they put me in a bag / and they fastened on a tag / and they shipped me off to New York town."