Fish Hooky (1933)

Matthew 'Stymie' Beard: Stymie

Photos 

Quotes 

• Mickey Daniels : Have you ever heard anything about a reform school?

  Dickie : Yeah, I've heard about it. What's it like?

  Mickey Daniels : Oh, it's terrible. A great big heavy iron ball around each ankle, and all stoop-shouldered from carrying a great big heavy sledgehammer.

  Stymie : What's the sludgehammer for?

  Mickey Daniels : They use it on the rockpile. They break great big rocks into little bitsy ones.

  Dickie : Well, why don't they run away?

  Mickey Daniels : Oh, they can't. Too many guards. And there's a big river runs all the way around it. And it's just chuck full of crocodiles.

  [he mimes a crocodile's jaws opening and closing] 

  Wheezer : How 'bout Sunday?

  Mickey Daniels : Well, they give 'em a treat on Sunday. They feed 'em spinach instead of bread and water.

  Spanky : How 'bout Christmas?

  Mickey Daniels : Oh, they're swell to 'em on Christmas. Everybody gets a brand new sledgehammer.

• Joe : Hi, punks. Goin' to school, huh?

  The Gang : Yeah.

  Farina : Why don't you play fish hooky, and come fishin' with us?

  Joe : Yeah, boys. They're sure bitin'.

  Stymie : [in a mock prayer]  Get thee behind me, Satan, and don't push!

  Dickie : I'd like to play hooky, but I'm afraid.

  Joe : We'll write you some excuses.

  Farina : We used to pull that on Miss Crabtree. She never knowed.

  Dickie : What do you think, Stymie?

  Stymie : Well, if you had pneumonia, it might be all right.

  Joe : I can't spell that. I'll give you a bad cold.