Moe was the glue that held the Three Stooges together. Originally Moe, Larry, and Shemp were teamed with comic Ted Healy but Shemp left in 1932 and younger brother Jerome (Curly) took his place. Moe became their business manager when they began experiencing contractual problems with Ted Healy and by 1934 Moe Larry and Curly were on their own and made 99 short films until Curly suffered a dibilitating stroke in 1946 at which point Shemp was brought back into the act. Friend Joe Besser (a poor choice by all accounts) was brought in after Shemp's death in 1955 to fulfill the remaining two years left on their contract. Television introduced the Three Stooges to a new generation of fans and their new found popularity was enough to bring Moe and Larry out of retirement. In 1959 they brought in Curly Joe DeRita and for the the next six years they made feature films and did live appearances. Moe was married to the same woman (Helen) for over fifty years and as is often the case with long term marriages, she died within six months of Moe's passing. When he was first married in 1926 he left the act to try his hand at real estate but was a colossal failure and soon convinced his wife that he, along with his brothers and friend Larry Fine, were destined to be stooges. Moe Howard was a good man, a good actor for the part he played, and was as gentle and kind off screen as he was harsh and slap happy when the camera was rolling. He kept the stooges together through the deaths of Curly and Shemp and thanks to him, people will continue to laugh at the Three Stooges for many more generations to come.

Maybe a split-decision either way with Curly as the greatest actor of all time.