Moe Howard, properly known as Moses Horwitz, was the fourth eldest of five Horwitz brothers. Having grown up in a poor, working class part of Brooklyn, New York, he fought he way to school, fought at school, and fought his way home from school. The fighting was frequently caused by other kids teasing him because of his hair. Moe recalled "From the time I was able to go to school or, in fact, walk, my mother used my head - hair, rather that is - to make these cigar curls, which I had hanging down on my head from the time I was four years of age until I was eleven." One of Moe’s friends ideas was to cut all of it off. They went to his house and got his mom’s scissors and cut away. The result was a hair cut similar to the upside-down-soup-bowl hair cut he wore throughout most of his career as a Stooge.

As immigrants, Moe’s parents’ wish was that he would become a well-educated lawyer or doctor. At an early age, Moe started to show interest in the show business, and his parents’ dream quickly diminished. Moe’s brother Babe, who later became known as Curly, tagged along with Moe’s interest in show business. By no means was Moe considered stupid or a slow learner, what he lacked was dedication to schoolwork and attendance. Moe attended several different schools, and was thrown out of them just as fast as he could get into another one. He went to Erasmus Hall High School for two months and was asked to leave because he was considered a disturbing influence. "Fridays, we’d have written tests, and I was quite bright and finished tests much earlier than the others, and during the scratching of the other children’s pens, I would release and Indian war whoop the likes of which no school had ever heard," Moe wrote. "I’d spend half of my school days in cloak rooms, under a teacher’s desk, and in the principal’s office. My grades were excellent, my deportment was atrocious." ¹ Moe’s slacking personality shocked many people considering he went on to be the leader of The Three Stooges. Moe was the one who kept track of finances, tours, and payment.

Moe was finally aimed toward the theater by his sixth thru eighth grade teachers. Moe said "My attendance record was more atrocious than my deportment." Moe spent many of his days playing hooky in the seats at the live theater. Although Shemp and Curly became the more well-known comedians based on their outrageous personalities, Moe was considered to be the most skilled actor of the family. Moe left his family household at the age of fifteen, and quit school at the same time. He got himself to the banks of the Mississippi River, and forced his way into the theater company on the Sunflower, a showboat.  After Moe spent a couple of years on the boat, Moe left his routines on the ship to reunite with his brothers Shemp and Babe.  The three brothers worked on the Coney Island boardwalk, where they met Charles Ernest Lee Nash, who would later lead them to Ted Healy, the  man responsible for their first real acting jobs.  With Healy by their side, they were on their way to a successful career.  Although with Healy, the boys were treated like employees.  Healy would get paid $1,000 for one weeks work, and he would give Moe and Shemp $100 each.  Moe and Shemp did not like Healy.  Moe especially hated him.  Moe did not like how hard Healy would hit them onstage, and he also did not like their lack of pay.  In 1925, Healy and his Stooges went to a performance where they met future "middle Stooge" Larry Fine.  They first saw him doing a Russian dance in tails and high hat while playing a fiddle. 

After they left Healy and started to make their famous shorts in 1934, Moe became the leader of the group.  Keeping track of finances, and shows, Moe led them to the memorable figures they are today. 

Shortly after leaving Healy, Moe married Helen Schonberger, a cousin of Harry Houdini.  In the same year, Shemp married his wife Gertrude.  Moe temporarily left acting around the time his daughter was born.  During that time, he only missed out on one movie called A Night In Spain. 

In 1934 they came out with Woman Haters, their first short.  The boys continued to make their shorts with Curly until Curly had his series of strokes which eventually led to his death.  With the loss of Curly, Shemp returned to take his place.    

As the "leader" of the Stooges, Moe made it his job to keep The Boys in line. Since violence was the key to their comedy, Moe found a way to punish them without really hurting them. Ed Bernds, their director said, "Moe had a knack of really slapping, but not hurting. It was a trick of not having your fingers stiff but it would still be a crisp slap." ² They sound effects crew accomplished the slapping sound with a simple slapstick. If the slap required a windup, then they inserted a windlike sound effect right before the smack.

Moe was very committed to his work and didn't like taking time off. After Columbia dropped the Stooges in the 1950's, Moe was out of work. Ed Bernds said, "Moe wasn't down; he was a millionaire. But he really wanted to work; he really wanted to act." ³ He would take small parts in feature films simply to be on camera.

A little-known fact about Moe is that Moe enjoyed gardening and making hooked rugs! Everyone knew he hated begin late for appointments.

Moe lost a battle with cancer in 1975, just weeks before his 50th wedding anniversary.