LOS ANGELES, CA, USA The Stooges family patriarch Moe Howard is being held without bail on a felony charge of cruelty to a child and is not expected to be released until after his arraignment following the Labor Day holiday.
Howard was arrested by outraged members of the Los Angeles Police Department who were providing security at his son Michael Howard's funeral today.
A statement issued by the LAPD reported that as Shemp Howard held an inconsolable Michael Howard Jr., known affectionately as the "Wet Blanket," the seven year old began to sob loudly and cry out for his deceased father, whereupon an enraged Moe Howard approached his brother and said, "Whoop, whoop, whoop, if you don't shut that brat up, I will shut him up for you." Authorities say the elder Howard then grabbed the "Wet Blanket" and slapped him several times and then poked him in the eye with both fingers while screaming "Nyuck, nyuck, nyuck!" The police report also says that after hitting the "Wet Blanket" at least four times, Moe Howard said: "See, I told you I would shut 'im up."
Little Michael Jr. began screaming and Moe Howard was arrested. Police say an examination showed the "Wet Blanket's" face was slightly red from the assault.
Although the LAPD seized footage of the incident from cinematographers who were recording the funeral as part of a Stooges expose, Katherine Howard maintains that the incident never took place and it is a conspiracy by the LAPD to make her husband Moe look "Bad".
