Ted Healy (October 1, 1896 – December 21, 1937) was an American vaudeville performer, comedian, and actor. Though he is chiefly remembered as the creator of The Three Stooges—and the style of slapstick comedy that they later made famous—he had a successful stage and film career of his own, and was cited as a formative influence by many later comedy stars.
His son - John Jacob Nash but who changed his name to Theodore John Healy - who was born four days before Ted's untimely death, graduated from Annapolis in 1963.
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In the early 1930s, Healy was the highest paid comic in the country, making $30,000 per week. Despite the small fortune he got, he paid his Three Stooges, Moe Howard, Larry Fine and Shemp Howard and, after Shemp left, Curly Howard--$100 per week, split three ways.
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Attended high school at De La Salle Institute in Manhattan, New York City. He initially intended to follow his father's footsteps and pursue a career in business, but eventually decided on the stage.
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Biography in: "Who's Who in Comedy" by Ronald L. Smith, pg. 210-211. New York: Facts on File, 1992. ISBN 0816023387
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When Shemp Howard left the act, Moe Howard wanted his younger brother Jerome to take his place. However, Ted disliked Jerome and would not hire him. Some sources say Moe threatened to quit unless he hired Jerome. Whatever the reason, Ted finally agreed to hire him on the condition that he shaved his head, and went by the name of Curly. Healy figured that Jerome would not want to shave his head so he would not have to take him into the act, but Jerome did indeed agree to the terms, and thus became Curly Howard, the most popular of all The Three Stooges.
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Befriended and worked with Moe Howard years before their "stooge" act in a water comedy show that featured swimmer Annette Kellerman in 1912. The act dissolved after a tragic accident in which a young female swimmer misjudged a dive and broke her neck.
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Following his untimely death, he was interred at Calvary Cemetery in Los Angeles, California.
Actor
Title
Year
Status
Character
Love Is a Headache
1938
Jimmy Slattery
Hollywood Hotel
1937
Fuzzy
Varsity Show
1937
William Williams
Good Old Soak
1937
Al Simmons
Man of the People
1937
Joe 'The Glut' Dwyer
Mad Holiday
1936
Mert Morgan
The Longest Night
1936
Police Sergeant Magee
Sing, Baby, Sing
1936
Al Craven
San Francisco
1936
Mat
Speed
1936
Gadget
It's in the Air
1935
'Clip' McGurk
Here Comes the Band
1935
'Happy'
Mad Love
1935
Reagan
Murder in the Fleet
1935
Mac O'Neill
Reckless
1935
Smiley
The Casino Murder Case
1935
Police Sergeant Ernest Heath
The Winning Ticket
1935
Eddie Dugan
Forsaking All Others
1934
scenes deleted
The Band Plays On
1934
Joe O'Brien
Death on the Diamond
1934
O'Toole
Paris Interlude
1934
Jimmy
Operator 13
1934
Doctor Hitchcock
Hollywood Party
1934
Reporter (uncredited)
The Big Idea
1934
Short
Ted Healy, Scenario Company President
Lazy River
1934
William 'Gabby' Stone
Fugitive Lovers
1934
Hector Withington, Jr.
Myrt and Marge
1933
Mullins
Meet the Baron
1933
Head Janitor and His Stooges
Plane Nuts
1933
Short
Ted Healy
Bombshell
1933
Junior Burns
Stage Mother
1933
Ralph Martin
Hello Pop
1933
Short
Father
Beer and Pretzels
1933
Short
Ted Healy
Stop, Sadie, Stop
1933
Short
Ted
Nertsery Rhymes
1933
Short
Papa
A Night in Venice
1931
Soup to Nuts
1930
Ted 'Teddy'
Wise Guys Prefer Brunettes
1926
Short
Napolean Fizz
Soundtrack
Title
Year
Status
Character
A Ducking They Did Go
1939
Short writer: "You'll Never Know Just What Tears Are" - uncredited
Hollywood Hotel
1937
performer: "Let That Be a Lesson to You" 1937, "Sing, You Son of a Gun" 1937, "Sonny Boy" 1928 - uncredited
Varsity Show
1937
performer: "We're Working Our Way Through College" 1937 - uncredited
$19 Million
