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| G'morning.... |
| 2007-10-24 |
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| Posted by:Fred |
| #16 Glad to see people note the shallowness of most modern sit-com players. Jerkwits like Seinfeld have all the depth of a comic book. Currently, Robin Williams is one of the few truly heavy-weight comedians in terms of wide-ranging material, dialect and facial expression. Much like his idol, Jonathan Winters, Williams has a true rubber face. I would trace the multi-talented aspect of old school comedians back to the vaudevillian influences on early Hollywood. In the days of touring ensembles, the more different talents you had (i.e., singing, dancing, prestidigitation, acrobatics and so forth), the more opportunities you got to appear on stage. At the close of each act, especially good performances were rewarded by people pitching pennies up onto the stage. The player was allowed to harvest this bounty and it could make quite a difference in their overall income. Moreso when you consider the buying power of a penny in those days. My favorite part of the Skelton show was "Two Seagulls sitting on a wire, one named Gertrude and one named Heathcliff". "Oh, Heathcliff, laying these eggs is such a pain!" "Come on downtown with me and you can watch the mayor lay a cornerstone." Or: "Gosh, Gertrude, the beach sure is crowded today." "Yeah, Heathcliff, takes all the sport out of it." Or: "Did you see the mayor's limousine?" "Yeah, I spotted it!" As to "The Great One", he was a giant amongst performers, even of his own time. Gleason was an accomplished musical composer and arranger. "The Honeymooners" served as the template for "The Flintstones" which is now paid homage by "The Simpsons", one of the finest television shows in all history. If you ever want to see something that goes beyond strange, rent yourself a copy of "Skidoo". Utterly bereft of plot, it remains the "Plan 9 From Outer Space" of Otto Preminger's career. The cast reads like a laundry list of Hollywood's acting elite: Jackie Gleason, Mickey Rooney, Carol Channing, Groucho Marx as "God", Frankie Avalon, Peter Lawford, Burgess Meredith and Slim Pickens. Truly one of the most off-the-wall films of all time. |
| Posted by: Zenster 2007-10-24 15:28 |
| #15 http://youtube.com/watch?v=4_IWyTMRtd4 |
| Posted by: Besoeker 2007-10-24 15:06 |
| #14 Besoeker: My favorite part of the Skelton show was "Two Seagulls sitting on a wire, one named Gertrude and one named Heathcliff". When Red would stick his hands in his armpits and make like he had wings. And Gleason's "Poor Soul" will stand the test of time as one of the greatest mime characters ever created. The other thing about those great comedians - they were all American Patriots. Maybe that's why you can't understand Hollywood and TV anymore - they hate us. |
| Posted by: Jack is Back! 2007-10-24 14:25 |
| #13 Skelton must of had a dozen or so characters he could call on as did Gleason. Amen and Amen to that. My personal favorite was Gleason as Joe the bartender and Frank Fontain as Crazy Googenham. I cannot cross over the I-50 Skelton bridge near Vincennes, IN (Red's hometown) without thinking of Red and his closing... "and may God Bless." |
| Posted by: Besoeker 2007-10-24 13:36 |
| #12 Fred, et.al. Something weird is happening. After I make comments then hold down the backspace arrow to return to "Rantburg" the first listing is for "Investor Minute Archived Broadcasts". Any idea what that is about? |
| Posted by: Jack is Back! 2007-10-24 12:29 |
| #11 When you compare the Gleasons, Balls, Skeltons, Bennys and Berles to today's sit-com stars there is no comparison. Skelton must of had a dozen or so characters he could call on as did Gleason. What you get today are people who expect you to understand how hip and topical their humor is when in fact its pretty sophmoric and outdated. |
| Posted by: Jack is Back! 2007-10-24 12:27 |
| #10 The whininess was the character, not Miss Ball's. In film she was marvelous -- approachably beautiful, incredibly funny. Offscreen as well, from what I've heard, and always a lady of strong character (the other kind). |
| Posted by: trailing wife 2007-10-24 08:38 |
| #9 I remember seeing Lucille as a young actress in a Three Stooges episode "Three Little Pigkins". She was definately a knock out. But I found her at that age, a little too much on the thin side for my liking. She was quoted later in life to have said "The only thing I learned from The Three Stooges was how to duck!" Photo of a young Lucille at Three Stooges.com |
| Posted by: Delphi 2007-10-24 08:28 |
| #8 John: true, according to a Lucille Ball biography my wife has. Live long and prosper, Lucy. |
| Posted by: Mike 2007-10-24 08:25 |
| #7 Not my cup of tea - too whiny. Ooh, Rickey! |
| Posted by: Spot 2007-10-24 07:42 |
| #6 Her first movie gig was in "Room Service" with the Marx Brothers. |
| Posted by: Deacon Blues 2007-10-24 07:28 |
| #5 IIRC there would have been no Star Trek without the intervention of Lucille Ball. |
| Posted by: john frum 2007-10-24 07:01 |
| #4 Looks like it was installed crosswise Maybe it would help if you pulled on it a bit . . . . >:-} |
| Posted by: gorb 2007-10-24 06:56 |
| #3 More to the point, she owned the whole studio. I Love Lucy was the prototype for all situation comedies. Lucille Ball invented the technique of filming a stage play with multiple cameras in front of a live audience. |
| Posted by: Mike 2007-10-24 06:12 |
| #2 Like her or not, Lucille Ball deserves profound recognition when it comes to Hollywood's pantheon. In an age of Milton Berle, Dean Martin, Red Skelton, Jackie Gleason and a slough of other male comedic performers, Lucy had her own prime time network show. No small achievement for a woman in that era and even now for that matter. Much as I might not enjoy her particular blend of slapstick and melodrama, she still warrants a huge measure of applause for her singular achievments. |
| Posted by: Zenster 2007-10-24 01:40 |
| #1 Lucy was such a babe before she got a rep for being funny. Strange hairdo, though. Looks like it was installed crosswise. |
| Posted by: SteveS 2007-10-24 00:20 |