1. Emil Sitka was an American actor who appeared in hundreds of movies, short films, and television shows, and who is best known for his numerous appearances with The Three Stooges.
18 Facts About Emil Sitka
1. 2.
Emil Sitka was the unofficial "last Stooge", since he was tapped to be the new middle Stooge when Larry Fine suffered a stroke in 1970.
3.
Emil Sitka is one of only two actors to have worked with all six Stooges on film in the various incarnations of the group.
4.
Emil Sitka was the oldest of five children, born of Slovak immigrant parents.
5.
Emil Sitka's siblings were placed in foster homes, but Sitka went to live in a church in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania with a Catholic priest for the next few years.
6.
Emil Sitka stayed there until the great St Patrick's Day Pittsburgh Flood of 1936, after which he departed to pursue his dream of acting in Hollywood, California.
7.
Emil Sitka found inexpensive lodging in a small acting theater, doing handiwork to pay his rent, and gradually acting in small parts in the theater.
8.
Since the theater did not pay, Emil Sitka always kept a job as a civil engineer to pay the bills as well as support his acting career at night.
9.
In 1946, Emil Sitka was leading his own acting troupe when he was spotted by a talent scout for Columbia Pictures.
10.
Emil Sitka went on to appear in dozens of Three Stooges short films, as well as most of their feature films, and the live action segments for The New Three Stooges 1965 cartoon series.
11.
Plans were in the works for Emil Sitka to replace him as the Middle Stooge in early 1970 when Moe's grandson was working on a movie that called for having the Three Stooges in it.
12.
The project was called off after financing fell through, with Emil Sitka resuming his previous activities.
13.
Emil Sitka continued his acting career, more out of love for acting than the need for money, appearing in films as late as 1992.
14.
Additionally, Emil Sitka appeared as a contestant on Let's Make a Deal in 1985, bringing along a drawing of silent film star Ben Turpin, which host Monty Hall remarked on when choosing him.
15.
Emil Sitka married his long-time girlfriend Edith Weber in the 1970s; they were married until her death in 1981.
16.
Emil Sitka had seven children by his first marriage: two daughters and five sons.
17.
Emil Sitka died on January 16,1998, in Camarillo, California, less than a month after his 83rd birthday.
18.
Emil Sitka is interred next to his wife Edith at Conejo Mountain Memorial Park in Camarillo.