Hmmm... this might work...
Code:
<IfModule mod_rewrite.c>
RewriteEngine on
RewriteRule ^article/([0-9]*)/([0-9]*)/([A-Za-z_0-9\)\(\-]*)$ article?1=$1&2=$2&3=$3 [L]
</IfModule>
if the file is actually called article.php then make the second article, article.php instead.