IJBFC Chat and Happy Hours - July, 2020
(Name of message originator appears above the line)
Sunday,
July 5th
kathy_fuller_seeley 4:54
PM
Well,
I must be the first one here on Sunday July 5th. Howdy, anybody.
garth_johnson 4:54
PM
Greetings,
old friends, and welcome to our program, new friends. This is Jack Benny,
folks—Benny,
B like in Broke, E like in Ego, N like in Pneumonia and the other N,
line
in Double Pneumonia and Y line in Yolin. Anyway, to make a long story short,
this
is Jack Benny.
Rodrigo
Araya 4:55 PM
Have
you ever seen Thorgersen?
garth_johnson 4:55
PM
I
think that was a well scripted opening line
kathy_fuller_seeley 4:55
PM
Yolin,
indeed. I hear Mickey Mouse might be missing his tail..
4:56
I
wonder if Jack did that in vaudeville, would anybody live in a theater have
cared? I think that is a particularly RADIO kind of line.
Rodrigo
Araya 4:56 PM
I
was in Hollywood once. Ever saw "Hollywood Revue"?
garth_johnson 4:56
PM
I
wish I had it --- mouse problems for me right now -- have to get a wired one
this wireless is fubard
kathy_fuller_seeley 4:57
PM
My
best news is that I got all the rest of the John Crosby columns read, my
homework for yesterday is finished. I can watch Hamilton tonight!
garth_johnson 4:57
PM
Now
to try this wireless one from the spares box
kathy_fuller_seeley 4:58
PM
I
think Hollywood revue is fascintating. Joan Crawford dances like a horse, and
John Gilbert has an OK voice
Rodrigo
Araya 4:59 PM
Olsen's
uncle was advised by his doctor to avoid overwork, so he took a job as a
garbageman in Scotland!
kathy_fuller_seeley 4:59
PM
If
you mean the 1929 film. There is disappointingly SO LITTLE to see in Hollywood!
I first got there when I was a loser on the Jeopardy TV show. and Hollywood and
Vine is so nothing.
4:59
I
understand Olsen drives a Saxon.'
garth_johnson 4:59
PM
Haven't
seen Mr B's movies in awhile --- today watched Airport 1970
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:00
PM
is
that the one with Barbara Billingsley talking jive? Oh maybe that is Airplane
garth_johnson 5:00
PM
Surely
you can't get the two confused
Rodrigo
Araya 5:01 PM
Get
a grip on yourself, lady!
5:01
(SMACK!)
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:01
PM
I
watched some episodes of "Drunk History" in preparation for Hamilton.
And I wonder what "Drunk radio history" would be like..... Jack Benny
flew in on a flaming pie...
Neil
Ottenstein 5:01 PM
one
is the satire of the other
Rodrigo
Araya 5:01 PM
Cue
the long line with people wielding blunt objects.
5:01
Oh,
hello Neil.
garth_johnson 5:01
PM
Yes
- and don't call me Shirley
Neil
Ottenstein 5:01 PM
Hello
everyone
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:01
PM
Hello
Neil! How are you? What have you been up to, safely, on July 4th holiday
5:02
I
adore Airplane, we need more unabashed silliness
Neil
Ottenstein 5:02 PM
nothing
much. I did listen to a couple A Day in the Life of Dennis Day. He was
amusing as usual
garth_johnson 5:02
PM
Be
like Leslie --- don't go anywhere without your Whoopie Cushion
Laura
Leibowitz 5:03 PM
Hey
folks
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:03
PM
hello
Laura!!!!
Neil
Ottenstein 5:03 PM
Howdy
Laura
Laura
Leibowitz 5:03 PM
Good
crowd tonight!
garth_johnson 5:03
PM
Hey
Laura --- ask me the shape of the world
Laura
Leibowitz 5:03 PM
Garth,
what's the shape of the world? Lousy!
Rodrigo
Araya 5:03 PM
Hello,
Laura.
I
forgot to mention one of the reasons classic comedy is often forgotten: too
"mean spirited". Occasional political incorrectness aside, there is
not much pathos (or "forced drama two thirds into the movie").
Laura
Leibowitz 5:03 PM
Hey
Rodrigo!
garth_johnson 5:04
PM
Better
knowing there are people like you in it (to paraphrase a Marx)
Laura
Leibowitz 5:04 PM
Garth
-
5:04
Hi
Kathy!
Rodrigo
Araya 5:04 PM
Jack's
show was a prime example you don't need pathos to have an enjoyable comedy. They
only got serious in New Year's
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:04
PM
Hope
you are doing well, Laura, any turkeys in your backyard lately?
Rodrigo
Araya 5:04 PM
And
when Dennis left for the Navy.
Laura
Leibowitz 5:05 PM
Not
today, but I've seen some while driving down the hill.
5:05
They've
been having a hard time getting masks out here, so I think they're staying in
more.
garth_johnson 5:05
PM
I
got my new laptop and the problem with provisioning it for the network is giving
it a name --- I thought about "Left Luggage", but decided since I was
having a problem to call it "Blanc"
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:05
PM
the
turkeys are smarter than many humans, I understand
Laura
Leibowitz 5:05 PM
Rodrigo
- And sometimes on occasions like Ronald Colman's toast to the world.
5:05
Kathy
- I would say so.
Rodrigo
Araya 5:06 PM
Oh,
and Jack's 1946 speech
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:06
PM
Garth,
glad if you have some new hardware
Rodrigo
Araya 5:06 PM
Well,
Laura. Let me put things in context:
Laura
Leibowitz 5:06 PM
Garth
- Ironically when I tried to set up DSL about 20 years ago, I kept trying to
call my network nbcblue. I ripped out half my hair over it, and finally
made some changes and called it nbcred. Then it worked.
5:06
Rodrigo
- I love that speech.
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:07
PM
glad
your hair has been growing back. Laura
Laura
Leibowitz 5:07 PM
Yes.
20 years does wonders.
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:08
PM
it
felt like 20 years until I got mine snipped on thursday, hooray
garth_johnson 5:08
PM
I
have been enjoying that weight of paper. Lifting that TV book is good exercise
for my frozen shoulder
Rodrigo
Araya 5:08 PM
Just
in case you did not see it, a couple of weeks back, Kathy told us her students
had no interest on pre-1990 comedy and I commented on how people saw classic
comedy as either too bland, cerebral or surrealistic to be considered
"enjoyable".
Laura
Leibowitz 5:08 PM
Garth
- I think I told you that there were jokes about giving away a hernia truss with
Volume 3!
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:08
PM
how
IS your shoulder doing, Garth? My Kenny took about 6 months and then it felt
better
Rodrigo
Araya 5:08 PM
And
how Jack's show filled all three criteria.
garth_johnson 5:09
PM
Yes
--- a little side note -- each volume was printed on sequential days
Laura
Leibowitz 5:09 PM
I
confess I still need to archive off the prior happy hours. I'll catch up
then.
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:09
PM
its
a mighty strong binding, to hold it together. My Volume 1 is falling apart
through over-use hahaha
Laura
Leibowitz 5:09 PM
I
should do custom hardbound versions for the hardcore researchers.
Including myself.
5:09
Well,
let's not tar all pre-1990 comedy with the same brush.
garth_johnson 5:09
PM
Kathy
- I was able to clean the gutters this morning, so things are normalizing
still stiff in the mornings
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:10
PM
hooray
that you are starting the slow recovery process, Garth!
Laura
Leibowitz 5:10 PM
You
can pick up a Captain Billy's Whiz Bang and the jokes are kind of lame.
Rodrigo
Araya 5:10 PM
1.
Jack never did bawdy jokes like Cantor, except in 1932-33.
2.
The show often made obscure cultural references
3.
You all know how cartoony the show got post-1944.
Laura
Leibowitz 5:10 PM
Jack
did bawdy jokes in 1932?
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:10
PM
One
of my new kittens used figured out how to climb up the back of my shirt to my
shoulder, with his claws, so I will have new symptoms to report in a few weeks,
hahaha
Laura
Leibowitz 5:11 PM
Jack
did bawdy jokes in Las Vegas and Reno.
garth_johnson 5:11
PM
no
- Jack did jokes Badly in 1932
Rodrigo
Araya 5:11 PM
I
forgot the Vanities.
Laura
Leibowitz 5:11 PM
No
- Harry Conn did jokes in 1932 that didn't age well.
Rodrigo
Araya 5:11 PM
But
probably his opinion on it was as high as with Chevrolet.
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:11
PM
oh,
Monkeys being gay at the zoo, in May 1932, Jack was going for it....
Laura
Leibowitz 5:11 PM
Actually,
Great Temptations was downright notorious.
garth_johnson 5:11
PM
"I
will sell no rhyme before it's time"
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:12
PM
Yes,
Jack adn Mary always said they wanted out of the Great Temptations
garth_johnson 5:12
PM
1926
- Shubert's The Great Temptations - Roseray and Capella
Rodrigo
Araya 5:12 PM
Jack
went straight from MGM to radio and from Canada Dry to General Tire.
Laura
Leibowitz 5:13 PM
There
was an article in the Times a while back that advertised it with a drawing of a
little naked girl in the corner, and a tag line that was along the lines of
"A respite for the tired working man."
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:13
PM
well,
Rodrigo, Jack DID go back to be MC at the Palace and at some big movie theater
shows, a man's gotta make a living
Laura
Leibowitz 5:13 PM
Rodrigo
- MGM to the Vanities. But I think you pointed that out already.
Rodrigo
Araya 5:13 PM
I
was saying how Jack WANTED his career to be told.
Laura
Leibowitz 5:13 PM
There
ya go.
garth_johnson 5:13
PM
1927
- Sadye and Jack Benny Cutting a cake flanked by a bevy of chorus girls (Photo
by Harold Stein)
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:13
PM
a
sign of hard times, ante up the sexual titillation
Rodrigo
Araya 5:13 PM
Hence
the Chevy omission.
Laura
Leibowitz 5:14 PM
Well,
nudity on stage was nothing new. c.f., "posing" acts in
vaudeville.
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:14
PM
oh
YES Rodrigo, Jack wanted to say that he had always strived for clean comedy, and
I can't blame him'
Laura
Leibowitz 5:14 PM
The
change Temptations made was that the girls were actually MOVING, so the jiggle
was the notorious thing.
garth_johnson 5:14
PM
1930
- Earl Carroll Vanities - New Amsterdam Theater - Faith Bacon
Laura
Leibowitz 5:15 PM
Woo
hoo...Will Hayes just fainted...
garth_johnson 5:15
PM
there
is a movie of Faith in my collection doing a tease
Laura
Leibowitz 5:15 PM
She's
already quite the tease in that photo
Rodrigo
Araya 5:15 PM
At
least Jack did keep his act clean until the end (I'm lookin' at you, Bob and
Miltie).
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:15
PM
it
was a fine line between high class nudes at the Ziegfeld Midnight frolics, to
the jigglers at Minskys. I do not envy entertainers in 1928-1932
Laura
Leibowitz 5:16 PM
In
vaudeville pre-Temptations, you had to. Remember the Keith poster.
5:16
That
got Sophie Tucker fired.
5:16
Kathy
- Well said.
5:17
And
there was a pretty clear line (often walked by Mae West) between vaudeville and
burlesque.
Rodrigo
Araya 5:17 PM
"Pop
culture between 1996 and 2010 was so racy". 1920-1934 Pop culture would say
"Hold my beer".
Laura
Leibowitz 5:18 PM
LOL
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:18
PM
hahaha
Laura
Leibowitz 5:18 PM
Back
to that theme about early comedy not being interesting...there were a lot of
flavors in that ice cream store.
5:19
Weber
and Fields published an article entitled (approximately): "What is
Funny?
Rodrigo
Araya 5:19 PM
Not
being interesting according to Kathy's students.
garth_johnson 5:19
PM
Took
me long enough to find this
Laura
Leibowitz 5:19 PM
1.
Stick your finger in a man's eye.
Rodrigo
Araya 5:19 PM
Oh,
Garth told us about his guitar instructor being worse than Remley. Believe it or
not!
Laura
Leibowitz 5:19 PM
2.
Stick your fingers in both of his eyes.
5:19
Rodrigo
- How so?
5:20
3.
Stick your fingers in his eyes while you stomp on his foot.
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:20
PM
well,
if you can explain the context and get folks to understand what were the hot
issues of the day, it gets better. Many of my freshmen said they were surprised
to actually find Benny funny, once I had explained it, yay!
garth_johnson 5:20
PM
First
of the teacher couldn't count to 4 only had three fingers
Laura
Leibowitz 5:20 PM
Victory!
5:20
Garth
- Wait...you took lessons from Django Reinhart?
garth_johnson 5:21
PM
I
wish! --
Laura
Leibowitz 5:21 PM
I
would envy that.
Rodrigo
Araya 5:21 PM
Yeah.
Laura
Leibowitz 5:21 PM
Kathy
- Do your students like The Three Stooges?
5:21
Or
Laurel and Hardy?
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:22
PM
oh
I fear to ask, Laura, because I despise them, but I make that a big joke in the
class, that its OK to like things I don't, and then I pantomime sticking myself
in the eye and hitting myself over the head. The kids like my performance, at
least
Laura
Leibowitz 5:22 PM
Hey
Neil...feel free to jump in here! Don't want you feeling left out.
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:23
PM
they
have never heard of anything previous to The Office. I have to teach them
everything.......but sometimes they listen
Laura
Leibowitz 5:23 PM
Kathy
- I almost asked if you give them a chance to like them!
garth_johnson 5:23
PM
The
second was this three fingered sloth was using an electric when I'm trying to
learn accoustic --- was not a pleasant experience, and I'll leave out his
drinking habbit
Laura
Leibowitz 5:23 PM
Kathy
- And then they don't even know about the British series.
Neil
Ottenstein 5:23 PM
I'm
okay. Just imagining Kathy hitting herself over the head
Rodrigo
Araya 5:23 PM
Well,
Kathy. Don't tell your students I can't even see Adam Sandler's face. Or that
I've never saw the "Jumanji" reboot movies. Or that I enjoy "Seinfeld"
and "Community" more than "Friends" and "Big Bang
Theory".
Laura
Leibowitz 5:23 PM
Garth
- Gotcha.
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:23
PM
oh,
there are oceans of things they don't know...but they teach me about all the new
stuff, so we equal it out...
Neil
Ottenstein 5:24 PM
Never
saw any Friends
Laura
Leibowitz 5:24 PM
Kathy
- I wasn't a fan of L&H either, but then I saw "Big Business" at
the SF Silent Film Festival.
garth_johnson 5:24
PM
Point
them at "A Little bit of Fry And Laurie"
Laura
Leibowitz 5:24 PM
You
can get it on YouTube
Rodrigo
Araya 5:24 PM
Did
someone here have a violin instructor?
Laura
Leibowitz 5:24 PM
Garth
- Oh EXCELLENT call!
Neil
Ottenstein 5:25 PM
Fry
and Laurie are great fun
Laura
Leibowitz 5:25 PM
And
if you can get them on that, try Flanders and Swann.
garth_johnson 5:25
PM
At
least F&L are contemporary and then you can go back to "The Goon
Show!"
Laura
Leibowitz 5:25 PM
Especially
in Jeeves and Wooster.
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:25
PM
I
had earlier mentioned devolving down to watch episodes of Drunk history about
Hamilton.....in preparation to see the Disneyfied version later tonight
Laura
Leibowitz 5:25 PM
And
anyone who says, "Hey...that's HOUSE!" has to pay a quarter.
Rodrigo
Araya 5:25 PM
Blackadder,
Mr. Bean...
Neil
Ottenstein 5:26 PM
We
watched the original The Ladykillers last night - Peter Sellers' first feature
film
garth_johnson 5:26
PM
The
Two Ronnies and it its' good night from theme
michael_amowitz 5:26
PM
Made
it, finally! Slack was slack again tonight.
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:26
PM
oh
gosh I love Blackadder and ANYTHING by Rowan Atkinson
Laura
Leibowitz 5:26 PM
Fawlty
Towers
michael_amowitz 5:26
PM
Coming,
coming!
Laura
Leibowitz 5:26 PM
Welcome
Michael!
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:26
PM
Hello
Michael
Rodrigo
Araya 5:26 PM
British
humor ain't too gentle, but it sure has taste... except "Little
Britain" apparently.
5:26
And
James Corden seemingly.
Laura
Leibowitz 5:26 PM
Mr.
Bean was a little too zany for me, but I liked BlackAdder.
Rodrigo
Araya 5:26 PM
Hi,
Mike.
Laura
Leibowitz 5:26 PM
Kathy
- Did you see Atkinson's turn on the devil I posted a while ago?
Rodrigo
Araya 5:27 PM
And
some might not like Benny Hill.
Laura
Leibowitz 5:27 PM
You
know who Rowan Atkinson's comedic hero was, right?
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:27
PM
oh
yes, Laura, that was fabulous!!!! Americans, you line up on the left here,,,,
Rodrigo
Araya 5:27 PM
Jacques
Tati.
Laura
Leibowitz 5:27 PM
Rodgrio
- We're back to the jigglers at Minsky's.
5:27
Kathy
- LOL
Neil
Ottenstein 5:27 PM
James
Corden's Gavin and Stacey was a fun show
Laura
Leibowitz 5:27 PM
Rodrigo
- DING DING DING DING!!!!!!
5:28
Mr.
Hulot's Holiday is on my list of top 10 movies of all time.
5:28
Or
"Les Vacances de M. Hulot"
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:28
PM
I
have shown Rowan Atkinson's Blackadder World WAr I series finale in a 20th
century history course, as it sums up so much
Laura
Leibowitz 5:28 PM
I
need to rewatch some Benny Hill. Once in a while I'll see a clip and I'll
marvel at how clever it is.
5:28
Kathy
- OMG, does it ever.
Rodrigo
Araya 5:29 PM
With
five million men dying in the trenches, who'll miss a pigeon?
Laura
Leibowitz 5:29 PM
I
still remember seeing it.
garth_johnson 5:29
PM
LL
- May the Farce Be with you - a day late.
Rodrigo
Araya 5:29 PM
I
suppose you know how Benny Hill got his stage name...
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:29
PM
I
am still sorry that the Jack Benny in George Washington garb sequence was not
filmed
Laura
Leibowitz 5:30 PM
I
walked into Martin Gostanian's apartment once, and I don't know what he was
watching. But I heard a character (they were watching British sitcoms on
the show) say, "But why does everyone die at the end of the season?"
I let out a loud guffaw and had to explain it to Marty.
5:30
Kathy
- I wonder if it was just publicity.
Neil
Ottenstein 5:30 PM
That
is a nice story about Benny Hill
Laura
Leibowitz 5:30 PM
Rodrigo
- I do, but I won't spoil it.
garth_johnson 5:30
PM
Kathy
- that's negative thinking --- at least still have pictures (I'll duck now)
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:31
PM
supposedly
there was going to be a dream sequence in GWSlept Here, but it got cut. I like
the stills, though
Laura
Leibowitz 5:31 PM
WAh
wah wahhhhh
5:31
Kathy
- That's right.
5:31
I
was never sure if those costumes were intended for that sequence.
5:31
Would
be cool to see if a screen treatment for it still exists.
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:32
PM
Jack
manages to look quite masculine in the GW photos, and yet its right after
Charley's Aunt where he has to simper. I love the expressions on his face, when
he is trying to have no expression.'
Laura
Leibowitz 5:32 PM
I
think I remember seeing him and Ann Sheridan in Romeo and Juliet garb as well.
Maybe they were dreaming of lovers through time.
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:33
PM
and
oh how Mary Livingstone would have loved that, hahahaha
Laura
Leibowitz 5:33 PM
Kathy
- I probably told you that I find those serious shots extremely compelling.
Rodrigo
Araya 5:33 PM
How
would that have fit in the movie?
Laura
Leibowitz 5:33 PM
Kathy
- Mary and her little finger.
5:33
Rodrigo
- Apparently, it didn't!
Rodrigo
Araya 5:33 PM
"I
blame Dan Schneider for today's youth liking tasteless comedy." Read it in
the voice of an old-timer.
Laura
Leibowitz 5:33 PM
OK,
I'll bite. Who's Dan Schneider?
garth_johnson 5:34
PM
1942
- Jack Benny and Ann Sheridan, co-starred in Warner Bros. "George
Washington Slept Here," portray the famous love team of Romeo and Juliet.
Ann, as Juliet, caresses her lover, Romeo Jack Benny.
Rodrigo
Araya 5:34 PM
For
those asking, he did several popular teen-oriented sitcoms in the 2000s.
Laura
Leibowitz 5:34 PM
There
ya go.
5:34
Ah.
We may as well say Judd Apatow.
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:34
PM
wow
Garth, I have not seen the Romeo and Juliet before, wish they had thought of
that toupee in To Be or Not to Be, hahahaha
Rodrigo
Araya 5:35 PM
Apatow
is like "Brit comedy with an accent".
Laura
Leibowitz 5:35 PM
I
think I have one of Jack serenading her/Juliet with a lute, IIRC
garth_johnson 5:35
PM
Now
if we had the collective funds when this was on -ebay somewhere the dream
sequence may be mentioned
Laura
Leibowitz 5:35 PM
Rodrigo
- I confess I haven't seen any of his work.
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:36
PM
well,
if I can ever get out to the Academy/Herrick Library again, I will look for
this....
Laura
Leibowitz 5:36 PM
But...while
Marty and I were working on Volume 3, Apatow was shooting scenes from "This
is Forty" just outside the building. If I'd realized it beforehand, I
would have gone out to at least watch him work.
Rodrigo
Araya 5:36 PM
The
comedy is rowdy, but unlike in Sandler's case, it is handled tastefully. And
promoted to adults rather than families.
Laura
Leibowitz 5:37 PM
OK,
good to know in case I am ever forced to watch some of it.
Rodrigo
Araya 5:37 PM
And
no silly pathos two thirds into the movie.
michael_amowitz 5:37
PM
Woo
Hoo Hoo! I had so much to catch up on, I'm verklempt! So much cerebral tonight!
Laura
Leibowitz 5:37 PM
Actually...did
Apatow do Little Miss Sunshine? I did see that and liked it.
Neil
Ottenstein 5:37 PM
Speaking
of working - they have restarted in LA. My daughter is supposed to be on set on
Tuesday for a commercial or music video. They need to get tested every 3 days.
Laura
Leibowitz 5:37 PM
Mike
- Sorry, we've had a lot to analyze tonight.
michael_amowitz 5:38
PM
Rodrigo,
I forgot the Benny Hill story.
Laura
Leibowitz 5:38 PM
Neil
- So I heard. But no studio audiences, I'd imagine.
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:38
PM
yay
for production starting and I hope everyone is careful! We are having it hard
here in Austin, TX. I stay inside, but few other people do.
Neil
Ottenstein 5:38 PM
I
would think so
michael_amowitz 5:38
PM
LL,
it's all good. Making me think, which I do little of. And kudos to Garth for the
usual amazing photos.
Rodrigo
Araya 5:38 PM
Apatow,
Seinfeld and the Frat Pack are basically the same, but are the best comedy there
is for now.
Laura
Leibowitz 5:38 PM
Kathy
- Let me know if you and Kenny need masks.
Neil
Ottenstein 5:39 PM
Little
Miss Sunshine had nothing to do with Apatow
Laura
Leibowitz 5:39 PM
OK,
maybe that's why I liked it.
Rodrigo
Araya 5:39 PM
Speaking
of masks, I remember that horseshoe-shaped one Jack wore in a photo.
5:39
circa
1944.
garth_johnson 5:39
PM
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:39
PM
you
make amazing masks, Laura, I hate to ask, but would trade a couple for the Jack
Benny scripts books coming your way soon, yay! your fabrics are amazing
Laura
Leibowitz 5:39 PM
Oh
well done, Garth!
michael_amowitz 5:39
PM
LOL
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:39
PM
great
photo, Garth!
Rodrigo
Araya 5:39 PM
Wonder
if people feared gas attacks or somethng.
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:40
PM
or
Virus X
Rodrigo
Araya 5:40 PM
Especially
in teh Coast.
Laura
Leibowitz 5:40 PM
Kathy
- Tell me which you like and they're yours for the asking. And let me
know...ear loops or ties, nose wires or no.
garth_johnson 5:40
PM
But
there is no virus x's in texas
Laura
Leibowitz 5:40 PM
That's
the X factor
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:40
PM
plastic
loops, or metal loops, plastic loops....
garth_johnson 5:40
PM
Da
Loops
Laura
Leibowitz 5:41 PM
Yep,
exactly!
5:41
Fortunately,
my loops don't go around your toes
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:41
PM
You
get them caught in your toes, correct?
Laura
Leibowitz 5:41 PM
Unless
you're wearing the mask wrong.
Rodrigo
Araya 5:41 PM
Wonder
if people also feared getting sick by having contact with soldiers in leave.
Laura
Leibowitz 5:41 PM
Only
the girls, I'd think.
Rodrigo
Araya 5:42 PM
Memories
from the 1918 pandemic, you know.
garth_johnson 5:42
PM
Masks
- we don't need not stinkin' masks
Laura
Leibowitz 5:42 PM
LOL
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:42
PM
Garth!
wonderful photo
Laura
Leibowitz 5:42 PM
Mary
gets upset because Jack and Ann Sheridan aren't social distancing...
Rodrigo
Araya 5:43 PM
The
Fiddler... uh-oh. Wrong comment.
garth_johnson 5:43
PM
The
nice thing about slack is the file names appear so I don't have to spend much
time to identify the pics to people here
Laura
Leibowitz 5:43 PM
Joan
doesn't look too happy in that photo either.
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:43
PM
the
good news from the publisher, everybody, is that he's willing to publish ALL the
missing Benny scripts 1932-36, and we are already at work on volume 2. I have
not even received my physical copies yet, but hope soon!
Laura
Leibowitz 5:43 PM
Garth
- I've told you this before, but I'll say it "publically"...I love
your file naming format. May want to steal it for larger purposes.
5:44
Kathy
- That's outstanding news!
garth_johnson 5:44
PM
Maybe
Joan needed to see a Doctor
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:44
PM
hahaha
Neil
Ottenstein 5:44 PM
Nice
Laura
Leibowitz 5:44 PM
I'd
smile too being that close to Young Dr. Kildare
5:44
Or
Father whatever from The Thornbirds
michael_amowitz 5:45
PM
Excellent,
Kathy! Keep 'em coming, Garth!
garth_johnson 5:45
PM
Wasn't
he involved in the docto Gillespie killings!
Laura
Leibowitz 5:45 PM
Amen!
Rodrigo
Araya 5:45 PM
What
about Dr. Killpatient?
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:45
PM
hahaha
Rodrigo
Araya 5:45 PM
He
sounded like Mel Blanc.
Laura
Leibowitz 5:45 PM
Nyuk
nyuk nyuk
garth_johnson 5:45
PM
Was
that a man on a horse that just went Nyuk!?
Rodrigo
Araya 5:45 PM
Rabbititis
Quarantine
Laura
Leibowitz 5:46 PM
Rodrigo
- Hey, I'm living that right now.
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:46
PM
how
many rabbits at your house these days, Laura?
Rodrigo
Araya 5:46 PM
Me
too. Not for Rabbititis unfortunately.
Laura
Leibowitz 5:46 PM
Kathy
- 10. 7 of mine and three guests.
michael_amowitz 5:46
PM
Paging
Dr. Howard, Dr. Fine, Dr. Howard
Rodrigo
Araya 5:46 PM
Enough
to see spots in your eyes.
Laura
Leibowitz 5:47 PM
Kathy
- Happily, Queenie seems to be back to mostly her normal self after her ordeal
on Friday.
1
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:47
PM
gosh
I am glad, I hope the whole rabbit hutch-worth is happy and healthy
Laura
Leibowitz 5:47 PM
Oh,
I didn't post that on my timeline. I'll bring you up to speed offline.
garth_johnson 5:48
PM
LL
- don't get our your Poultry Seasoning mixed in with your rabbit seasoning
Laura
Leibowitz 5:48 PM
Garth
- It's Duck Seasoning
Rodrigo
Araya 5:48 PM
Rabbit
Season!
Laura
Leibowitz 5:48 PM
Duck
Season!
garth_johnson 5:48
PM
My
Bill Please
Rodrigo
Araya 5:48 PM
Elmer
Season!
Laura
Leibowitz 5:48 PM
Oh
no Mr. Bill!
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:49
PM
Elmer
season, fire!
garth_johnson 5:49
PM
Now
Elmer - thats not Fudd
Laura
Leibowitz 5:49 PM
Arthur....cue
Brian.
michael_amowitz 5:49
PM
I'm
being vewwy quiet
Rodrigo
Araya 5:49 PM
Death
awaits you... with big pointy teeth!
garth_johnson 5:49
PM
Always
look on the bright side of life
Laura
Leibowitz 5:50 PM
Aw
man, now knowing the truth, I can't think of him without....well....knowing the
truth. (Arthur Q. Bryan)
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:50
PM
(whistling
do do, do do do do do do )
Neil
Ottenstein 5:50 PM
Just
watched What's Opera, Doc with two commentaries, music only track, voice only
track and behind the scenes presentation. All quite interesting
Laura
Leibowitz 5:50 PM
That
sounds extremely cool!
garth_johnson 5:50
PM
Yopp
that would be fun to see
Laura
Leibowitz 5:50 PM
Let's
get saucy for a sec...was Bryan ever "caught?"
5:51
I
know I learned about that here.
Rodrigo
Araya 5:51 PM
Fetchez
la vache!
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:51
PM
I
am curious if anyone knows if Mel Blanc was connected with Warner Bros' Looney
Tunes BEFORE his Benny appearances, or only concurrently>
Laura
Leibowitz 5:51 PM
Or
was it just one of those things whispered in Hollywood circles?
Neil
Ottenstein 5:51 PM
that
was on my Looney Tunes Golden Collection: Volume 2 DVD
Laura
Leibowitz 5:51 PM
Kathy
- Oh, I bet he was already working for them.
5:52
Does
anyone know when Mel Blanc officially joined Warner Bros?
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:52
PM
I
know that he had like dozens of jobs to make ends meet
Rodrigo
Araya 5:52 PM
In
late 1936.
garth_johnson 5:52
PM
Mel
did Picador Porky in 1937 it was release feb 27
Laura
Leibowitz 5:52 PM
Like
any good character actor of the day.
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:52
PM
he
could have remained a freelancer forever
Laura
Leibowitz 5:52 PM
Rodrigo
- Ah, I didn't know it was that late.
Neil
Ottenstein 5:52 PM
apparently
Mel Blanc started in animation in 1936
Laura
Leibowitz 5:52 PM
I
thought he went back as far as the "round elmer" days.
5:53
OK,
I may be wrong then...
Rodrigo
Araya 5:53 PM
Mel
got an exclusive contract with Warners in 1941.
michael_amowitz 5:53
PM
I'd
forgotten Round Elmer
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:53
PM
does
that mean he could no longer do woody the woodpecker
Rodrigo
Araya 5:53 PM
Yep.
5:53
Lantz
still used the laugh until 1949.
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:54
PM
personally
I hate Woody the Woodpecker, meanest sob in town
Neil
Ottenstein 5:54 PM
they
kept his laugh - his laugh was still used in the Woody Woodpecker cartoons
until 1951
Laura
Leibowitz 5:54 PM
Well,
interesting mixed answer.
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:54
PM
I
am also distressed by Tom and Jerry cartoons where they screech in pain, call me
a bleeding heart, hahaha
Laura
Leibowitz 5:54 PM
Mel
was on 6/7/36. But then didn't appear again until 3/12/39.
Rodrigo
Araya 5:55 PM
Blanc
sued Lantz in 1948 over the laugh. But later he played Woody in radio.
Laura
Leibowitz 5:55 PM
I
can't stand Tom and Jerry
garth_johnson 5:55
PM
Ah
yes --- signs of a misspent youth --- too much time watching Saturday morning
cartoons and not enough in The Collected Works of Shakespear
Laura
Leibowitz 5:55 PM
Blanc
did the laugh on the Sportsmen's 78 of the Woody Woodpecker song.
Neil
Ottenstein 5:55 PM
Haven't
seen Tom and Jerry in ages
Laura
Leibowitz 5:55 PM
But
you all knew that.
5:55
Garth
- LOL
5:56
And
Blanc's role in 36 was a speaking turn.
garth_johnson 5:56
PM
Alas,
poor Benny, I knew him Nelson!
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:56
PM
but
Garth, that is how I learned anything about opera! from my mis-spent youth
watching Looney Tunes
garth_johnson 5:56
PM
How
Dooo - welcome to my shop!
Laura
Leibowitz 5:56 PM
Same
here. Guilty as charged. Don't tell my friends in opera circles.
garth_johnson 5:56
PM
Let
me Cut Your Mop
5:57
Daintily
michael_amowitz 5:57
PM
That's
true! The best was "Kiw da wabbit"
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:57
PM
yes,
you're next, you're so next..
Rodrigo
Araya 5:57 PM
Blanc
appeared in 1936; then from Feb. 39 to the fall of 41 as animal voices; from
Jun. 43 speaking voices.
garth_johnson 5:57
PM
This
is fun to have people know the lines and chime in
Laura
Leibowitz 5:58 PM
I
had tickets to Bugs Bunny on Broadway (touring) in 1991.
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:58
PM
they
were genius song parody writers
Laura
Leibowitz 5:58 PM
The
opening comedian stretched and stretched and stretched until people heckled him
off the stage.
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:59
PM
as
they ought haha (crickets)
Laura
Leibowitz 5:59 PM
And
then they took intermission and made an announcement that the rest of the show
was cancelled because the films had gone missing in transit.
Rodrigo
Araya 5:59 PM
Benny
and Burns...
Get
yer tomatoes ready.
garth_johnson 5:59
PM
kiwll
the comic -
1
Laura
Leibowitz 5:59 PM
LOL
5:59
I
feel so bad for the guy in retrospect, knowing the situation and why he was
stretching so hard.
6:00
I
remember an extraordinarily loud 20s-ish male voice yelling, "WE WANT
BUGS!!!!!!!"
6:00
Kathy
- I'm still kind of scratching my head at your students not liking early comedy.
6:00
Even
though I've run into it myself.
6:01
Doesn't
Chaplin on roller skates sway them?
6:02
Or
Preston Sturges?
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:03
PM
yes
Laura, eventually they get the point on early comedy, but they have to be in the
right mood. MOdern Times ALWAYS wins, as does Sherlock Junior. Most of the rest
are flops with freshmen,. someday I will teach an entire course on silent
cinema, but at least the students will self-select into it.
Rodrigo
Araya 6:03 PM
If
there isn't a sexual reference...
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:03
PM
They
LOVED Sturges' "Sullivan's Travels" when they had no expectations
before hand, hooray
Neil
Ottenstein 6:03 PM
nice
Rodrigo
Araya 6:03 PM
You
know, people tend to see pre-1960s women as harridans.
6:03
Think
about Brenda and Cobina.
Laura
Leibowitz 6:04 PM
I
need to rewatch The Lady Eve. I used to watch it over and over, but
haven't seen it in years.
6:04
Harridans?
That's a new word to me.
Rodrigo
Araya 6:04 PM
Hags.
Laura
Leibowitz 6:04 PM
Ah
ok.
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:04
PM
Mostly
I have to stand on stage and act it out with the film, and direct their eyes,
and SHOW them how to watch silent film, they are not used to watching that
closely'
Rodrigo
Araya 6:04 PM
Harridan
seems to be an UK word.
Laura
Leibowitz 6:04 PM
Jean
Harlow was no hag!
Neil
Ottenstein 6:04 PM
Who
was the nemesis in The Marx Brothers films?
Rodrigo
Araya 6:04 PM
Margaret
Dumont.
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:04
PM
Margaret
Dumont
Laura
Leibowitz 6:04 PM
Kathy
- That's true. I taught myself how to watch silents.
6:05
Neil
- Male or female?
Neil
Ottenstein 6:05 PM
I
was referring to the Harridan comment
Rodrigo
Araya 6:05 PM
People
think everybody was ugly before the sexual revolution. And that men were
pansies.
Laura
Leibowitz 6:05 PM
Rodrigo
- Thanks for teaching me a new word!
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:05
PM
yep,
and imagine I have 200 students who consider the Office to be ancient history. I
win 10 -20 over, hooray
Neil
Ottenstein 6:05 PM
so
yes Dumont (edited)
Laura
Leibowitz 6:06 PM
Oh
duh...I'd think the Marx Brothers would also grab students' attention.
garth_johnson 6:06
PM
I
was never one to watch "old stone face" Keaton, but every once and
awhile - watching The Rail Rodder makes me look for something else
Laura
Leibowitz 6:06 PM
Keaton
was the giant of them all.
michael_amowitz 6:07
PM
The
General
Laura
Leibowitz 6:07 PM
I
think he may have been the inspiration for much of Tati's comedy.
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:07
PM
oh
I adore Buster Keaton, he's much less sentimental than Chaplin. But now young
people won't watch The General for a number of years (sigh) so I have to switch
to Steamboat Bill Jr
Rodrigo
Araya 6:07 PM
Chaplin,
Keaton and Lloyd are the fathers of modern comedy
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:07
PM
I
adore the General, my very favorite film, its precise like a clockwork machine
garth_johnson 6:07
PM
"Safety
Last!"
Laura
Leibowitz 6:08 PM
I
remember I was so delighted when I was in ninth grade, and we got shuffled into
the auditorium for some reason, and they showed a bunch of clips. When
Abbott and Costello Go to Mars came on screen, the place broke up. I was
amazed!
6:08
Why
won't they watch "The General"?
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:09
PM
My
favorite bit with students today is getting them to think of the basics of
comedy, WHY is that funny, what is incongruous about it, what happens to human
bodies, and our expectations, etc
Rodrigo
Araya 6:09 PM
Probably
has to do with racial insensibilities.
Laura
Leibowitz 6:09 PM
I
had the pleasure of seeing Safety Last on the big screen at SF Silent Film
Festival, and there was a pocket of the audience that all I can figure is that
they'd never seen it before. They were screaming their heads off!
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:09
PM
Oh
Laura, undergrads right now wont have ANYTHING to do with the Civil War, esp
with the South as heroes , sigh
Laura
Leibowitz 6:09 PM
Rodrigo
- Aha...hadn't thought about that. You're probably right. But it's
not like showing "Birth of a Nation"
6:10
Kathy
- Ah gotcha. That's unfortunate.
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:10
PM
well,
the students are going on a bender, ANYTHING about history had better be PC or
its all wrong..... they will get past it in a few years
Laura
Leibowitz 6:10 PM
Kathy
- I hope so.
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:11
PM
I
have to defend every piece of old media that I show that includes only white
performers. Can I say how glad I am to be on research leave this coming school
year
Rodrigo
Araya 6:11 PM
Rule
#1 of Comedy: Saying "boobs" don't make things funnier automatically.
Laura
Leibowitz 6:11 PM
There's
a difference between looking at the past in a way that examines the good, the
bad, and the ugly and realizes that no one should be lionized.
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:11
PM
but
I will accomplish many things, and come up with ways to involve students, and
minority voices, ever more...
garth_johnson 6:11
PM
This
current generation want's instant resolution --- I blame the video tape machine
for having a Fast Forward button on it
Laura
Leibowitz 6:11 PM
Rodrigo
- I bet some people would disagree with that.
6:11
Garth
- I blame the microwave oven.
Rodrigo
Araya 6:12 PM
I
know who you're talikg about, Laura.
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:12
PM
microwaves,
yes!
Rodrigo
Araya 6:12 PM
Talking.
garth_johnson 6:12
PM
"60
seconds over Tokyo" 45 seconds too long
Laura
Leibowitz 6:12 PM
I
remember when I went to the Riviera with my father when I was 11 (geez, I'm old)
and we saw Joan Rivers and Neil Sedaka.
6:13
She
came out and said, "Herpes herpes herpes herpes" and got a laugh
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:13
PM
hey,
they were "ethnic" comedians then! Now we women are all Karens
Neil
Ottenstein 6:13 PM
I
just finished watching the available 9 episodes of Do Not Adjust Your Set.
Laura
Leibowitz 6:13 PM
I
don't remember any more of her act because I didn't understand it. Liked
her on The Tonight Show though!
garth_johnson 6:13
PM
Neil
- are you any more adjusted?
Rodrigo
Araya 6:14 PM
Sedaka
did comedy?
michael_amowitz 6:14
PM
I
would, Rodrigo, too much product out there and not enough time. If a movie drags
for me, I have no problem with fast forward. Actual films, I won't do that
Neil
Ottenstein 6:14 PM
Now
I am
Laura
Leibowitz 6:14 PM
Kathy
- Sedaka ended his performance with an Eddie Cantor impersonation, complete with
white gloves!
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:14
PM
omg,
that is amazing, Laura
Laura
Leibowitz 6:14 PM
THAT
I remember!
Neil
Ottenstein 6:14 PM
Each
episode had at least one performance of the Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band
Laura
Leibowitz 6:14 PM
Neil
- OMG I LOVE their work!
Rodrigo
Araya 6:15 PM
Mike.
What was your reply about?
Neil
Ottenstein 6:15 PM
One
performance had them all as some natives in blackface.
Laura
Leibowitz 6:15 PM
I
was thinking just yesterday of their rendition of "Hello Mabel"!
Rodrigo
Araya 6:15 PM
Uh-oh.
garth_johnson 6:15
PM
I
will need to check that out --- after Beyond the Fringe
Laura
Leibowitz 6:15 PM
I
have to find those Jack and Eddie Anderson blackface photos one of these days.
michael_amowitz 6:15
PM
oops,
Garth, not Rodrigo
Rodrigo
Araya 6:15 PM
OK
6:15
Rutland
Weekend Television
Neil
Ottenstein 6:15 PM
It
was quite a fun series of shows they had available on that DVD set
Laura
Leibowitz 6:16 PM
Now
I have 16mms of Abbe Lane and one other show
6:16
And
a silent version of What Ho Romeo.
6:16
So
I'll need to find someone who can do a good transfer of them.
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:16
PM
oh
gosh I have wanted to see Rutland Weekend Television, must get cracking on that
garth_johnson 6:16
PM
The
secret word is "burnt cork" - something found in every good
entertainers make-up case
Laura
Leibowitz 6:16 PM
THAT'S
IT!
Rodrigo
Araya 6:17 PM
That
was from "Meanest Man in the World", wasn't it?
Laura
Leibowitz 6:17 PM
I
have a few of them from that performance.
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:17
PM
wow,
where does that come from?
garth_johnson 6:17
PM
Laura
Leibowitz 6:17 PM
Jack
did blackface in Meanest Man, but that was for another event.
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:17
PM
ahhh,
if they aren't in blackface, they are dressing up like Gracie Allen
Rodrigo
Araya 6:17 PM
Has
anyone heard the minstrel shows?
Laura
Leibowitz 6:18 PM
No
transphobia here!
6:18
Rodrigo
- The radio versions? Oh yeah.
garth_johnson 6:18
PM
Laura
Leibowitz 6:18 PM
See,
Eddie isn't in blackface there.
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:18
PM
Jack
looks so sad/dour/put upon in this one still...
michael_amowitz 6:18
PM
What
a shot!
Laura
Leibowitz 6:18 PM
He
is in the top picture.
Rodrigo
Araya 6:18 PM
Did
they do Doc Benny's minstrel show on TV?
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:19
PM
supposedly
he is hiding from people who want money from him, I take it
Laura
Leibowitz 6:19 PM
Rodrigo
- No.
garth_johnson 6:19
PM
Laura
Leibowitz 6:19 PM
I
really want to get the live version of that show in circulation.
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:19
PM
now
Jack LOVED doing his Gracie bit
Rodrigo
Araya 6:19 PM
I
know people wouldn't take it in 1950.
Laura
Leibowitz 6:19 PM
It's
actually funnier than the filmed version.
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:19
PM
oh
gosh I would LOVE To see the early live version of the Gracie show
Rodrigo
Araya 6:19 PM
Except
in Britain, where thwy did "The Black and White Minstrel Show".
6:19
Until
1978.
Laura
Leibowitz 6:20 PM
Rodrigo
- Exactly. Even when Amos n Andy transitioned to television, there was
discussion of whether to have Gosden/Correll do it in blackface, or black
actors.
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:20
PM
Rodrigo
it was VERY controversial, but about 75% for and 25% shocked and against,
according to the research Jack's folks did
Laura
Leibowitz 6:20 PM
Kathy
- It has what may be the longest "real" laugh on the show.
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:20
PM
when
people could see up Jack's "skirt" yes?
Laura
Leibowitz 6:21 PM
Yes,
exactly. He goes to take off his shoe, and the crowd goes nuts!
Rodrigo
Araya 6:21 PM
Here's
a parody of that show:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=32ePC-uVKFI
YouTube | Matthew
Coombes
The
Two Ronnies The Short And Fat Minstrel Show Reprise
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:21
PM
hooray
for live audiences, amazing that they could see that clearly
Laura
Leibowitz 6:21 PM
Oh
my!
garth_johnson 6:22
PM
And
it's good night from him --- haven't seen this sketch before
Rodrigo
Araya 6:22 PM
1970s-era
British comedies have a testy reputation over racial politics.
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:22
PM
is
this British or Australian, just curious
garth_johnson 6:22
PM
BBC
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:22
PM
wow,
well there you go!
michael_amowitz 6:22
PM
Wow,
never even knew of this one before
Rodrigo
Araya 6:22 PM
"Curry
and Chips", "Mind Your Language", "Love Thy Neighbour".
Laura
Leibowitz 6:23 PM
Rodrigo
- Well, and Britain never had a Civil War over slavery or Martin Luther King
Jr., so I think that made a difference.
Rodrigo
Araya 6:23 PM
Before
1950, Britain was almost completely white.
6:23
Then
came people from the Caribbean and India.
Laura
Leibowitz 6:23 PM
Remember
the firestorm Ted (lost his last name...of Cheers) got for doing blackface when
he was going around with Whoopi Goldberg?
Rodrigo
Araya 6:24 PM
Danson.
Laura
Leibowitz 6:24 PM
Rodrigo
- Not Africa?
Rodrigo
Araya 6:24 PM
Not
yet.
Laura
Leibowitz 6:24 PM
Thanks...Ted
Danson.
Rodrigo
Araya 6:24 PM
Most
Afro-British people immigrated in the 70s.
garth_johnson 6:24
PM
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:24
PM
oh
dear
Rodrigo
Araya 6:24 PM
You
known V.D. Amin.
Laura
Leibowitz 6:25 PM
Rodrigo
- Oh interesting. I did not know that.
Rodrigo
Araya 6:25 PM
Sorry,
Idi Amin.
Laura
Leibowitz 6:25 PM
I
thought it was a joke name.
Rodrigo
Araya 6:25 PM
There
was an old SNL sketch.
Laura
Leibowitz 6:26 PM
Whoopi
was laughing, and everyone else was fighting about whether her being OK with it
made it OK, or, etc. etc. etc.
garth_johnson 6:26
PM
I
just found a pic that will straighten your curly hair
6:26
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:26
PM
racial
politics in the US is soooooo complicated today, there are no "right"
answers, only explanations, eh?
Laura
Leibowitz 6:26 PM
Oh
my yes!
6:27
And
Fred Astaire's blackface turn in "Swing Time"
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:27
PM
just
the example I was going to give, Laura!
Laura
Leibowitz 6:27 PM
Someone
showed me "The Party" which has Peter Sellers playing a bumbling actor
from India.
Rodrigo
Araya 6:27 PM
Yes.
Laura
Leibowitz 6:27 PM
I
kept saying, "Wow...you could NOT make this movie today!"
Neil
Ottenstein 6:27 PM
I've
seen that
Rodrigo
Araya 6:28 PM
Apparently
Sellers had developed the character in "The Goon Show":
Laura
Leibowitz 6:28 PM
Rodrigo:
Oh interesting. His own personal Apu.
Rodrigo
Araya 6:28 PM
Howzabout
Mickey Looney?
Neil
Ottenstein 6:28 PM
No
surprise there. He had a ton of characters in The Good Show
Rodrigo
Araya 6:28 PM
You
know, "Breakfast at Tiffany's".
Laura
Leibowitz 6:28 PM
Rodrigo
- Oh right!
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:28
PM
in
Breakfast at Tiffany's> What were they thinking???
Laura
Leibowitz 6:29 PM
Well,
we can nail Dennis Day for that too.
Rodrigo
Araya 6:29 PM
So
solly, prease!
Laura
Leibowitz 6:29 PM
And
it was about the time of "The Party" that Jack has Rochester drive him
home in one of his specials, and Roch has the button, "We don't do that any
more!"
6:30
It
was one thing in Broken Blossoms. But Breakfast at Tiffany's...man...
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:30
PM
Not
EVER to excuse any of it. but on radio, an accent other than American was used
to differentiate characters, all too often, and way too lazily
Laura
Leibowitz 6:30 PM
Well,
that brings up the audition recording for The Private Life of Rochester Van
Jones.
6:30
You
hear the actors announcing themselves in beautiful, pear-shaped tones.
6:31
(including
Scatman Crothers)
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:31
PM
Harry
Conn started it on the Benny show in 1932 (coming from vaudeville) easiest way
to get a joke was to quick throw in a German, Russian, Italian, Scottish or
Irish or African American voice
Neil
Ottenstein 6:31 PM
that
was on the set I am in the midst of listening to
Laura
Leibowitz 6:31 PM
An
den dey go into da dialect and you can cuts it with a knife!
michael_amowitz 6:31
PM
How
do you dooo!
Laura
Leibowitz 6:31 PM
Mike:
LOL
garth_johnson 6:31
PM
Irish
doing Italian
Laura
Leibowitz 6:32 PM
Holy
cow...I thought that was Jerry Colonna!
michael_amowitz 6:32
PM
I'm
still marveling at the BBC Minstrel show
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:32
PM
YES
Laura, what a terrible shame that the producers could not have let the
performers be more "real" and less stereotyped. They turned Rochester
into Andy of A&A
Laura
Leibowitz 6:32 PM
Kathy
- Exactly.
6:32
Which
is why I *AY-DORE* the bit of Jack having the Japanese announcer on
6:32
his
television show talking about "Rux Riquid"
Rodrigo
Araya 6:33 PM
Has
someone else ever saw the Jerr-O ad?
Laura
Leibowitz 6:33 PM
And
then finally after they keep trying to correct him, he says (approximately, and
in a perfect American accent) "Well, I can't help it if your writers write
with a bad accent!"
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:33
PM
a
joke for the "ear" rather than the "eye" became rare on
television!
garth_johnson 6:33
PM
Did
One Long Pan ever find the wewollover
Rodrigo
Araya 6:33 PM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U8BEDq1KNuo
YouTube | Throwback
Jell-O
Commercial (1958)
Laura
Leibowitz 6:34 PM
Kathy
- Have you ever seen the very first episode of the 1964-65 season?
garth_johnson 6:34
PM
Had
to look at the title - thought someone wanted his maypo
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:34
PM
omg
the Jell-O commercial; no Laura I have not seen the first 1964 show
Laura
Leibowitz 6:35 PM
What
Kathy said...OMG that commercial.
6:35
OK,
everyone put your fingers in your ears...I need to tell Kathy a secret
garth_johnson 6:35
PM
commercial
should have remained an ancient chineses secret
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:35
PM
shhhhh
Rodrigo
Araya 6:35 PM
My
first exposure to the big red letters on the box.
6:36
Sorry,
Don.
Laura
Leibowitz 6:36 PM
Kathy
- I've got some efforts going on to try and get out more "lost" shows.
But some things need to fall into place first. Like UCLA hiring a new
Television Archivist.
michael_amowitz 6:36
PM
Oddly,
Mister MaGloo just came back to me
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:36
PM
oooooh
a new TV archivist, hooray!!!!
Laura
Leibowitz 6:37 PM
Apparently
the one that replaced Dan Einstein got escorted out. But I have no gossip
on what led to that.
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:37
PM
Rodrigo,
I think a box of Celery-flavored Jell-O scared me in 1964 as a kid'
Rodrigo
Araya 6:37 PM
I
remember there was a brief vogue for public domain films in the mid-late 2000s.
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:38
PM
I
can check with a faculty member who has some connections, I have had a world of
trouble with the Special Archives curators...
Rodrigo
Araya 6:38 PM
Drive-in
ads, Fleischer cartoons, old commercials.
Laura
Leibowitz 6:38 PM
It's
still in the business case stages, so it's a long ways away. But at some
time in the future I'll reveal the cause of the tipping point that made me jump
on it.
6:38
Kathy
- You sure that wasn't Dr. Brown's?
6:38
Kathy
- Not Mark Quigley?
6:38
OK,
you can take your fingers out of your ears.
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:38
PM
oh
no, it was Jell-O and my mom put mushrooms and a few drops of tabasco sauce in
it, hahaha
Laura
Leibowitz 6:38 PM
Thanks,
folks.
michael_amowitz 6:39
PM
ew.
Laura
Leibowitz 6:39 PM
Kathy
- No wonder you're obsessed with the bad Jell-O recipe books.
6:39
Magic
mushrooms?
Rodrigo
Araya 6:39 PM
Did
people in the 50s actually do gelatin salads?
Laura
Leibowitz 6:40 PM
(Holding
back for Kathy to answer that)
michael_amowitz 6:40
PM
Yes,
as I remember
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:40
PM
oh
yes and so many other horrible things in jello! YES Rodrigo there was a
Santa Claus, people in the 1950s-80s in the US were OBSESSED with putting meats
and vegetables and fruits and anything else into jello!!!!
Rodrigo
Araya 6:40 PM
That
makes the casting of Mickey Rooney as a Japanese reasonable.
garth_johnson 6:41
PM
two
words - Brando Teahouse
Laura
Leibowitz 6:41 PM
Or
Sean Connery.
Rodrigo
Araya 6:41 PM
Or
John Wayne as The Conqueror.
Laura
Leibowitz 6:41 PM
WT*
were they thinking...
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:41
PM
Jello
even put out tomato, celery and "vegetable" flavors in the 1960s to
encourage it
otherwise
you needed to use KNOX unflavored jello to make the savory salads
6:42
I
actually collect crazy old jello recipes from church cookbooks and other local
sources from the 1950s-80s, and threaten to make my dear Kenny eat them, hahaha
Laura
Leibowitz 6:42 PM
Oh
come on...fish in cherry-flavored Jell-O sounds so good...
Rodrigo
Araya 6:43 PM
Orange,
Raspberry, Strawberry, Cherry, Lemon and Lyman.
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:43
PM
HE
says that I mostly torture him, on the way home from a trip to antique malls
where I find these monstrous cookbooks, by reading out the recipes
Laura
Leibowitz 6:43 PM
Kathy
- If you find a mid-1800s cookbook, you'll torture him even more.
garth_johnson 6:43
PM
A
good vegetable aspic is fine at Christmas, but don't ask me to eat it on a
regular basis -- sorry mother I will not eat it any other time
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:44
PM
LAURA,
before we scatter, remember that I have a lovely digital scanner now all set up
in my kitchen, just waiting for one of Barbara's scrapbooks! Very happy to pay
for the shipping +insurance
garth_johnson 6:44
PM
Abe
you're not out of the Woods yet
Rodrigo
Araya 6:44 PM
Grape-Nuts
have the Vhitemans you need for your day.
Laura
Leibowitz 6:44 PM
Kathy
- OK, let's connect offline. Was hoping Paul could get you an interface to
be able to upload stuff.
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:45
PM
its
good for scraps of fruit, stretches them during the winter, as Don Wilson says
Laura
Leibowitz 6:45 PM
And
Garth's not Lyman!
6:45
OK,
thanks for a fabulous conversation this evening. Sorry we went past our
hour!
Rodrigo
Araya 6:45 PM
It
doesn't Kostelanetz more than any other cereal.
Laura
Leibowitz 6:46 PM
That's
an dre wit.
michael_amowitz 6:46
PM
This
was just fascinating to take in!
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:46
PM
We
need more color in our lives, as Don says, and the 6 delicious flavors offer the
colors of spring, summer and etc
6:46
Rodrigo,
hahahaha!
garth_johnson 6:46
PM
Hey
Kathy a hint when scanning things colourful -- have a colour slate in the first
picture so corrections can be done at a later time
michael_amowitz 6:46
PM
And
I enjoyed my Orange Jello
Laura
Leibowitz 6:46 PM
And
more lutefisk in our Jell-O
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:46
PM
great
idea, Garth, thank you!
Laura
Leibowitz 6:46 PM
That
is a great idea!
6:47
OK,
thanks all! I'll see you next week at the "official" chat!
Neil
Ottenstein 6:47 PM
Great
Rodrigo
Araya 6:47 PM
Good
night.
garth_johnson 6:47
PM
One
of those things archivists learn and dont teach libray scientists
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:47
PM
thanks
everyone, it was a great "happy hour"
michael_amowitz 6:47
PM
Y'all
have a great week!
Neil
Ottenstein 6:48 PM
Bye
Sunday, July 12, 2020
garth_johnson 5:00
PM
Please
Stand By
Laura
Leibowitz 5:00 PM
Well,
isn't that fancy?
Rodrigo
Araya 5:01 PM
And
now for something completely different...
Laura
Leibowitz 5:01 PM
Funny,
since I was just making masks for Navajo Nation
5:01
How's
everyone tonight?
5:01
Hi
Roger, Tom!
Neil
Ottenstein 5:01 PM
Just
finished dinner
Rodrigo
Araya 5:01 PM
All
right, thanks.
Laura
Leibowitz 5:02 PM
And
Neil!
Neil
Ottenstein 5:02 PM
Thanks
5:02
Hello
all
roger 5:02
PM
Hello
everyone!
garth_johnson 5:02
PM
I
am surprisingly good considering I'v cut the lawn (1/4 acre) and continued
cleaning gutters --- This shoulder thing seems to be getting better
Rodrigo
Araya 5:02 PM
H...
E... L... L... Ooooooo!!!
Laura
Leibowitz 5:02 PM
Garth
- So glad to hear that!
Tom
V. 5:02 PM
Hello
Guys and Gals......
Laura
Leibowitz 5:03 PM
Jolly
good company
5:03
Is
it hot everywhere? Seems to be as far as I've seen
garth_johnson 5:04
PM
This
is the first nice day in three weeks
Laura
Leibowitz 5:04 PM
Garth
- Been raining up your way?
garth_johnson 5:04
PM
Finally
broke 80f
Tom
V. 5:04 PM
Hottest
day of the year here...102 degrees right now!
Neil
Ottenstein 5:04 PM
16
days straight so far going over 90 deg F
5:05
they
predict another week
Laura
Leibowitz 5:05 PM
Yowza
5:05
I'm
a wimp in the Bay Area. It's only about 90 here.
garth_johnson 5:05
PM
Sometimes
I like living in an igloo
Laura
Leibowitz 5:05 PM
Garth
- My cooler is too small for me to live in it.
5:06
Hi
Mike!
michael_amowitz 5:06
PM
I
am here, whew! Jello, Folks!
Laura
Leibowitz 5:06 PM
So
what Benny-wise is on everyone's mind this evening?
Rodrigo
Araya 5:07 PM
I'm
listening to Jack talking to Mr. Billingsley.
5:07
According
to Rochester, he's been acting strange lately...
michael_amowitz 5:07
PM
I've
been enjoying Kathy's articles lately. Are the books out now?
Laura
Leibowitz 5:07 PM
Rodrigo
- I love that character.
5:07
Michael
- Yes!
5:08
Rodrigo
- How can you tell?
5:08
Hi
Beverly!
Rodrigo
Araya 5:08 PM
He
was going for a T-Bone steak at the barber shop.
michael_amowitz 5:09
PM
Is
there a link?
Mr.
Billingsley often seems a little off the main path.
Laura
Leibowitz 5:09 PM
Having
a little steak for dinner, I see...
5:09
Rodrigo
is just live-streaming the episode he's hearing
michael_amowitz 5:09
PM
And
more good posts from Garth
Laura
Leibowitz 5:09 PM
Oh
always!
garth_johnson 5:09
PM
https://catalog.archives.gov/id/23175?&sp=%7B%22q%22%3A%22%5C%22Jack%20Benny%5C%22%22%2C%22tabType%22%3A%22online%22%7D&sr=13
catalog.archives.gov
michael_amowitz 5:09
PM
lol!
Rodrigo
Araya 5:09 PM
According
to Mary, Fred Allen said that Jack got his biggest laugh appearing at his draft
board.
Laura
Leibowitz 5:10 PM
Rodrigo
- Well, in WWI they still took him.
5:10
OK...let's
get back to Yosemite! Maybe it's cooler there!
If
you join the chat during the program, please join us at the above link!
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:29
PM
hi
folks, sorry I am late! will go to the watch...
garth_johnson 5:43
PM
LL
- If the trip to the mountains didn't cool you down --- how about to the corner
of Haight and Ashbury for an ice cream cone.
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:44
PM
hello
again, folks!
michael_amowitz 5:44
PM
Hi
Kathy and anyone I missed
Laura
Leibowitz 5:44 PM
I
wonder if that's open now!
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:44
PM
oh
that looks lovely, Garth!
Laura
Leibowitz 5:44 PM
I've
been by there a million times. Never gone in though.
5:44
So
thoughts on the show?
Neil
Ottenstein 5:45 PM
That
was fun
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:45
PM
I
always wondered where Rochester slept on I think part 2 while they were on their
way
Laura
Leibowitz 5:45 PM
Here's
a teaser...we'll probably do the last one of the Yosemite series during happy
hour next week.
garth_johnson 5:45
PM
April
1994 when I was at the record shop up the block and got the Longines Symphonette
society boxed set
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:45
PM
I
love the early Frank Nelson, just waiting for him to say "oooooh"
Rodrigo
Araya 5:45 PM
People
didn't care about such details back in 1940...
beverly_bennett 5:45
PM
It's
a good one; I've just heard it lots of times! But always ready again.
Thanks
Laura
Leibowitz 5:46 PM
Garth
- Oh, I bought George Burns' 1972 record there!
Rodrigo
Araya 5:46 PM
Now
audiences have to know every minuscule detail and take it as canon.
Laura
Leibowitz 5:46 PM
Hi
Beverly!
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:46
PM
"weeeeeeeee!"
reminds me of Maxwell the pig in the GEICO commercials
Laura
Leibowitz 5:47 PM
Well,
Jack asks at one point in the previous episode, "Where are you,
Rochester?" "Right next to you Boss!"
5:47
And
then there's a terribly racist line after that which always makes me cringe.
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:47
PM
hahaha
did he then say 'oh I couldn't see you in the dark....'
Laura
Leibowitz 5:47 PM
Kathy
- I can see that
5:47
Kathy
- No, Jack says, "Well, open your eyes or smile so I can see you!"
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:48
PM
the
writers' obsessive need to make race visual in this era is horribly fascinating
Laura
Leibowitz 5:48 PM
This
WAS 1940, and you still have Roch dreaming about crap games.
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:48
PM
omg,
well we can thank Morrow and Beloin for that
Rodrigo
Araya 5:48 PM
Or
going to the "chicken shack".
Laura
Leibowitz 5:48 PM
Kathy
- My thoughts exactly.
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:49
PM
making
skin color "visible" on the radio is so 1940.....
Laura
Leibowitz 5:49 PM
And
you had Ed Beloin playing the Indian for double-trouble
michael_amowitz 5:49
PM
I
had trouble with Jack telling Mary to quiet down; we need to sleep ... then he
wakes everyone with a bugle in the morning.
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:49
PM
Jack
at his early jerk-iest haha
Laura
Leibowitz 5:49 PM
Pardon
my language, but this specific episode is the one where Mary becomes a real
b!tch.
michael_amowitz 5:50
PM
lol
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:50
PM
yes,
but no other woman in radio or hardly even in the movies could get away with
what she did in 1940!!!!!
Rodrigo
Araya 5:50 PM
The
good thing about Jack's show is that the characters do not become jerk-ish
enough to make people not care about them, like with "Seinfeld" or the
like.
Laura
Leibowitz 5:51 PM
Kathy
- I suppose you had the wise-cracking sidekick, but even that had a more
sarcastic edge than this.
garth_johnson 5:51
PM
So
Kathy how goes the scanning --- Here's some thing that may give you buyers'
remorse https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fyKsNOTIwJk
YouTube | US
National Archives
Preservation
and Access: Digitization Services at the National Archives
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:51
PM
witchy,
yes, but not verbally abused like Vera Vagee or Cobina and Brenda on Bob Hope's
show
5:52
haha
Garth, I know folks who have a small archive of ancient equipment like that. We
are ABOUT to start scanning, hooray!!!!!
5:52
Vera
Vague is what I meant
Laura
Leibowitz 5:52 PM
Watching
your video...fascinating
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:53
PM
Rodrigo,
you make an excellent point imho about the essential likeability of the Benny
show characters
Laura
Leibowitz 5:53 PM
I
need that scanner for the 16mm prints I got recently
garth_johnson 5:54
PM
I
had to dig out my oldest scanner today to do some slides --- I wept when I saw
this video
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:54
PM
garth,
the only thing I have buyers remorse on, recently, is that Waukegan premiere
"postcard copy" which was a 25 cent photo print from Walgreens, for
11.99 sheesh, I need to read the fine print more often
Tom
V. 5:54 PM
Any
"lost" shows on those 16mm films, Laura?
Laura
Leibowitz 5:54 PM
Tom
- Yep, one.
5:54
Not
sure about the other one yet.
5:55
And
a silent version of "What Ho, Romeo?"
Tom
V. 5:55 PM
Cool!!
garth_johnson 5:55
PM
Put
Abbe in a box and keep her there
Laura
Leibowitz 5:55 PM
Garth
- You know I want to.
5:55
Boxing
Abbe
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:55
PM
Schrodinger's
Lane...
1
Laura
Leibowitz 5:56 PM
Kathy
- I guess this is where I need to walk my walk on wanting to look at Jack, warts
and all.
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:56
PM
sure,
every great genius can have some lousy shows haha
Laura
Leibowitz 5:56 PM
I
remember seeing Kubrick's very first movie that he'd stipulated that he never
wanted seen. I see why.
garth_johnson 5:56
PM
*
here is an example from Carol - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fyKsNOTIwJk
Laura
Leibowitz 5:57 PM
But
that said, it's fascinating to see a genius in vestigal stages.
5:57
This
show with Jack is more like a genius in sharp decline
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:58
PM
I
totally agree with you all, and I love to laugh at film historians who work so
hard to excuse a terrible film that their idol (Hitchcock, Scorcese, Wilder,
Ford, etc) directed
Laura
Leibowitz 5:59 PM
I
just keep pointing to the fact that Jack didn't want to do the last season, and
it sounds like his bad moods affected everyone, including the writers. So
you come out with stinkers like this one full of stupid plot, sight gags, and
general corniness.
Rodrigo
Araya 6:00 PM
OT:
If you think I dislike popular stuff given my comment on Sandler and "The
Rock" being rip-offs, I'd like to mention I prefer Marvel movies to the
ones from DC, not being even much interested in seeing "Joker".
Laura
Leibowitz 6:00 PM
However,
I've seen tons of publicity photos from this show. Even one of Abbe Lane
with Jack's writers all around her enjoying the view.
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:00
PM
sometimes
pointing out what worked so poorly in one episode reminds us of what amazing
things he and his group did at their best!
Laura
Leibowitz 6:00 PM
Kathy
- Well said.
6:01
Rodrigo
- A Chacun a son gout, as they say in France. I don't judge!
Rodrigo
Araya 6:01 PM
How
was the episode with Jack serenading a turkey while opening a supermarket? (a
photo was uploaded in a previous chat)
Laura
Leibowitz 6:01 PM
So
actually on that topic of Jack and physical humor
6:02
Rodrigo
- Actually, I'm OK with that show. I know it's last season, but not all of
them were stinkers.
6:02
Jack
plays off Andy Williams well, and I like him as a singer
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:02
PM
ummmm,
Jack and the chimps! Great silent film physical humor!
Rodrigo
Araya 6:02 PM
Je
conduis un camion poubelle
Laura
Leibowitz 6:02 PM
And
the whole concept of Jack tricking Williams into playing a meat market opening
is absolutely on character.
6:03
un
camion a ordure!
garth_johnson 6:03
PM
Physical
Humour - Jack and his muscles
Laura
Leibowitz 6:03 PM
Kathy
- There ya go. That's good stuff.
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:03
PM
I
think its interesting to think of Jack's writers going back to the volumes of
the old radio scripts, looking for inspiration.
Laura
Leibowitz 6:03 PM
Garth
- Excellent point. I think of that more as a sight gag than physical humor
6:04
Kathy
- I think I've told you that Jeanette and Dorothy confirmed what I had suspected
6:04
You
get late in the run, and in 39 Forever I start pointing out which parts of
previous shows were the origin of the show being documented.
Rodrigo
Araya 6:05 PM
I
never heard about Jack not wanting to do the 64-64 shows. Maybe he got quite
bummed from the Aubrey snub.
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:05
PM
Laura
-- that he kept the old scripts close to hand, to adapt from?
garth_johnson 6:05
PM
That
was the "Before" --- here is the after -- The Tarzan routine
with Carol Burnett
Laura
Leibowitz 6:05 PM
Hal
and Al were basically cutting up old scripts, sometimes into individual
lines/gags, and stitching them back together.
6:06
Rodrigo
- Yes, Jack didn't want Irving to try to sell the show back to NBC. He
wanted to do more symphony benefits and live performances.
6:06
And
Tarzan was 1962 IIRC
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:06
PM
well
you can't blame them. that stuff was gold, and just sitting on a shelf in
binders. One of my favorites is their snitching of PRINCE the mathematical dog,
from early 1932, in the Dreer Poosen episode of 1950!
Laura
Leibowitz 6:06 PM
But
Irving was Irving.
6:06
Kathy
- Oh wow good for you! I hadn't made that connection!
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:07
PM
and
sponsors would have thought BENNY was gold, the sponsors ALWAYS were more happy
to back an old proven performer than some unknown...
Laura
Leibowitz 6:07 PM
But
look at the final sequence with the coffee cup in Horn Blows at Midnight
garth_johnson 6:07
PM
Filmed
Nov. 11 -- (5 BGE - Before Garth Era)
Laura
Leibowitz 6:07 PM
Kathy
- Miles Laboratories agrees
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:07
PM
you
will see, Laura, when your copies of the first scripts book arrives on friday :
)
Laura
Leibowitz 6:08 PM
Kathy
- Yay! Happy dance!
6:08
I
actually have a hard time with Jack doing the bit of being caught in the coffee
cup
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:08
PM
Ben
Ohmart and his staff did a lovely job
Laura
Leibowitz 6:08 PM
It
just doesn't work for me.
6:08
Kathy
- And it's BLUE!
6:09
But
Jack dancing with Ginger Rogers, I AY-DORE that show.
garth_johnson 6:09
PM
Next
Volume RED?
Laura
Leibowitz 6:09 PM
Garth
- LOL
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:09
PM
yay!
the production guy had set it up in avocado green, and I panicked and told him I
had an allergy to avocado since a green refrigerator of my Mom's scared me.....I
picked a color near to Forever 39s
Laura
Leibowitz 6:09 PM
So
I throw out those (disjointed) thoughts on Jack doing physical comedy and the
success or lack thereof. Curious what others think.
6:10
All
our Blue Benny Books
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:10
PM
I
think Jack did physical comedy sparingly throughout his career. But when he
found a good idea, it was genius!
garth_johnson 6:11
PM
Jack
Benny is supposed to be "Banishing the blues."
Laura
Leibowitz 6:11 PM
Kathy
- So you're OK with the coffee cup? Feel free to disagree with me...I like
to hear different views.
6:11
Garth
- Except eyes
Rodrigo
Araya 6:11 PM
How
would the cover look in a ginger ale-like color?
Laura
Leibowitz 6:12 PM
It
would look like champagne...the champagne of ginger ales!
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:12
PM
I
think of a great routine he did on stage when he did an act at movie theaters
before the show, and he'd start to play a number on the violin, and he had the
film screen come down and the newsreel start playing in the middle of it. This
is like 1932-33
Rodrigo
Araya 6:12 PM
If
I remember from your book, it would be from 1931 when he did the Capitol on
Broadway.
Laura
Leibowitz 6:12 PM
Kathy
- OK, I hear that. But that's in character (even if it's more his later
character), of things happening to him.
6:13
Like
him playing the violin and the audience--or the Marquis Chimps--walking out on
him.
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:13
PM
well,
if we have like 10 volumes ahead of us, we could do the colors of the rainbow,
or have one more NBC Blue (which he was on) before one CBS (WHAT COLOR) and then
NBC Red with the Chevrolet broadcasts
Laura
Leibowitz 6:13 PM
Where
Jack has to do something funny that's physical, that's less successful.
Rodrigo
Araya 6:14 PM
Black
for CBS?
Laura
Leibowitz 6:14 PM
CBS
would be Tiffany-colored
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:14
PM
hahaha
Rodrigo, ahead of the Black Rock building
michael_amowitz 6:14
PM
All
of the Jello colors?
Rodrigo
Araya 6:14 PM
That
would be four.
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:14
PM
Good
point Laura, maybe the best Jack physical comedy would still be so subtle, in
film in To Be or Not to Be.....
Laura
Leibowitz 6:15 PM
You'd
keep confusing strawberry, raspberry, and cherry.
6:15
Kathy
- Exactly. On the nose.
garth_johnson 6:15
PM
The
colours of the Laramie Peacock!
roger 6:15
PM
Red
and White for State Farm.
Rodrigo
Araya 6:15 PM
Imagine
eating orange Jello over a cherry-colored book.
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:15
PM
but
his reactions to the chimps in that first TV Stars shine or whatever it was
called, is so Keaton-esque
Laura
Leibowitz 6:16 PM
See,
I think a lot of you know that the other episode of the last season that will
make me stand up and yell and throw things at the TV is the Cat Burglar show.
6:16
Kathy
- Excellent comparison, although Jack is far from stone-faced.
Rodrigo
Araya 6:16 PM
Speaking
of stone-faced, what would Fred Allen think of modern comedy?
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:17
PM
oh!
Jack is so scared of actual physical movement on TV....one of the few times it
works for him is the parody of "The Graduate" when his nervousness
around Mrs. Robinson/Phyllis Diller adds to the fun
Neil
Ottenstein 6:17 PM
I
can imagine that
Rodrigo
Araya 6:17 PM
He
sure wouldn't like how scatological humor has become so mainstream in the past
30 years.
Laura
Leibowitz 6:17 PM
The
plot alone stinks...Jack is hypnotized into thinking that he is a cat, and ends
up in a full-body cat suit, stealing things from other celebrities' homes, and
drinking milk from a saucer.
Tom
V. 6:17 PM
I'm
embarassed to say I don't recall the Cat Burglar episode.
michael_amowitz 6:18
PM
Loved
the chimps, but, for me at that time, it was a carryover from Kovacs' show
Laura
Leibowitz 6:18 PM
Jack
looks all of his 70 years when he's trying to pull that off.
6:18
Tom
- It's not in circulation. Thank GOD.
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:18
PM
Rodrigo.....oh
Fred was so acid on so many things....maybe he might actually like the streaming
and online comedy that is not under the control of vice presidents and censors.
I think he might like "Drunk History"
garth_johnson 6:18
PM
The
essence of Benny's physical comedy
Neil
Ottenstein 6:18 PM
that
must have been embarassing
Tom
V. 6:18 PM
That's
why - LOL
Laura
Leibowitz 6:18 PM
Mike
- A little smaller though!
michael_amowitz 6:19
PM
I
couldn't figure the coffee cup ... from the film? And I don't remember the cat
burglar either
Laura
Leibowitz 6:19 PM
Mike
- The coffee cup sequence at the end of Horn Blows at Midnight
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:19
PM
not
quite Pete Townsend distroying a guitar onstage, haha
garth_johnson 6:19
PM
michael_amowitz 6:20
PM
I
thought soLL
Laura
Leibowitz 6:20 PM
Where
he ends up in this mechanized neon sign with a giant kettle pouring
"coffee" into a bup
6:20
Kathy
- If Jack had still been viable then, I could see him doing it!
6:20
cup
not bup
garth_johnson 6:21
PM
I
liked the routine --- found it a bit long as he dangles about --- but then I
like "Safety Last"
Laura
Leibowitz 6:21 PM
Garth
- I like Safety Last too. But Jack ain't no Harold Lloyd!
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:21
PM
Jack
has all the fingers on both hands : )
Laura
Leibowitz 6:22 PM
Kathy
- Thanks for reading my mind.
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:22
PM
sorry,
lame silent film joke
garth_johnson 6:22
PM
Fred
Allen was presented ...
Laura
Leibowitz 6:22 PM
Fred
Allen would HATE comedy today
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:23
PM
he
might like the smartest podcasts, he would hate Judd Apatow comedies imho
michael_amowitz 6:23
PM
I
think Fred would have liked Dick Cavett
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:23
PM
Fred's
wicked sense of humor might enjoy the fact that there are no censors on
streaming or youtube
Laura
Leibowitz 6:23 PM
Heck,
he hated it in the 1940s when he felt that (quoting from memory) "The jokes
were written by a machine gun filled with ink."
6:24
Mike
- Dick Cavett does the BEST Fred Allen impresonation of anyone anywhere.
Rodrigo
Araya 6:24 PM
At
least he won't see "Dolittle" (with Bob Downey Jr) or "The
Rock's" "Jumanji" films. And considering he had hypertension...
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:24
PM
omg
hopefully no!
Laura
Leibowitz 6:25 PM
Kathy
- But he wouldn't be a fan of Howard Stern.
michael_amowitz 6:25
PM
I
didn't know that, LL
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:25
PM
I
have been reading columns of the two best radio critics, Jack Gould and John
Crosby, and both of them ADORED Allen as their favorite comic and popular
intellectual
garth_johnson 6:25
PM
Laura
Leibowitz 6:25 PM
I
think he would have loved Jon Stewart, at least when he wasn't doing toilet
humor.
Rodrigo
Araya 6:25 PM
He'd
might have liked "Seinfeld", Stiller's films and
"Community", but might as well chide them for being too
"dark".
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:26
PM
haha
great find, Garth!
Laura
Leibowitz 6:26 PM
INdeed!
Rodrigo
Araya 6:26 PM
Not
implying Fred was a prude or something.
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:26
PM
Gould
and Crosby both had lunch with Fred Allen regularly, lucky them. Although I
understand Allen was pretty acerbic and a downer
Neil
Ottenstein 6:26 PM
That
was a nice find
Laura
Leibowitz 6:27 PM
Von
Zell didn't seem to slow down Burns and Allen.
6:28
Kathy
- I have a feeling he was different in vaudeville. Just the differences
between Treadmill to Oblivion and Much Ado About Me show his affection for
vaudeville.
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:28
PM
I
am amused by the factoid that Allen and Portland lived so frugally that he left
her a rather large fortune when he died. Whereas Mary Livingstone liked to spend
the Benny's money hahaha
6:29
Laura,
some of my very favorite Benny + Allen episodes are the ones where they spin
vaudeville humor!!!!! Fink's Mules, the Japanese Flash acts,,,,,somebody's rats
and cats!
garth_johnson 6:29
PM
Harry
had a few more years of training before going to work for Gracie the clip
was from '38
Laura
Leibowitz 6:29 PM
I
can't remember whose book I was reading...who told a story of running into Fred
Allen when he was REALLY steamed about something, and he started barking at
them, but he was so daggoned funny in his criticism that they were rolling on
the ground.
6:29
Powers'
Elephants
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:30
PM
kind
of like Lewis Black today
Rodrigo
Araya 6:30 PM
Now
looking at the future, do you think sassy, rather bawdy humor will remain
popular post-pandemic or tastes will change again?
michael_amowitz 6:30
PM
I'm
enjoying your John Crosby articles!
Laura
Leibowitz 6:30 PM
Dangit...who
had rats and cats...
garth_johnson 6:30
PM
Starts
with a "S" if I remember
Laura
Leibowitz 6:31 PM
Rodrigo
- The challenge is in what comedy writers can produce. If wit doesn't
sell, then...
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:31
PM
there
is a great online archive of materials from the Keith/Albee vaudeville circuit,
and Fred and Jack's love of the old stories makes me want to learn more! You can
find some bills where Allen or Benny appear, as well as rats, cats, mules,
Japanese acrobats and etc
garth_johnson 6:31
PM
Swain's
Laura
Leibowitz 6:31 PM
Swain's
Rats and Cats...that's it!
garth_johnson 6:32
PM
http://hatchingcatnyc.com/2018/11/23/swain-rats-cats-bronx/#:~:text=The%20rats%20and%20cats%20first,by%20the%20man's%20mild%20showmanship.
The
Hatching Cat
1916:
The Rats and Cats That Took to the Stage in Manhattan and the Bronx - The
Hatching Cat
Billed
as a comedy novelty, Swain's Rats and Cats act featured felines and rodents
working in harmony to perform all sorts of aerial stunts and circus acts.
Nov
23rd, 2018
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:32
PM
Thanks
Michael!!!! We enjoy finding them, and I am building an archive that I will
share with folks,,,,,,Crosby wrote five 1000-word columns per week, so he wrote
A LOT!
michael_amowitz 6:32
PM
I
figure Milton Berle has all the jokes in his compendium, but I've never seen it.
Laura
Leibowitz 6:33 PM
Well
done, GArth!
michael_amowitz 6:33
PM
Wow,
Garth!
garth_johnson 6:33
PM
Thank
Google --- I had the name on the tip of my keyboard
Laura
Leibowitz 6:33 PM
Didn't
Berle publish a book called "Milton Berle's Joke File"?
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:33
PM
really,
would you want to follow the Rats and Cats on a vaudeville bill? haha scuffling
over the litter and fur
michael_amowitz 6:34
PM
Yes,
something like that, LL
garth_johnson 6:34
PM
Berl's
Joke File --- Bob Hope's closet
Rodrigo
Araya 6:34 PM
When
you take a joke from Berle, you're repossessing it!
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:35
PM
Dave
Freedman had the original million joke file in the 1930s, and Eddie Cantor sued
him about it. Unfortunately Freedman had a heart attack the day he was supposed
to testify
Laura
Leibowitz 6:35 PM
No,
moreso because they'd probably be open or close, and I wouldn't want to be after
either of those!
6:35
Rodrigo
- Well said
6:35
Kathy
- Wow! Didn't know that!
michael_amowitz 6:36
PM
That's
why I've always figured, that must have been a BIG book!
Laura
Leibowitz 6:36 PM
I
saw W.C. Fields' joke file once on display.
6:36
Godfrey
Daniels...
Rodrigo
Araya 6:36 PM
I
think even "blue" comedians would find modern comedy filthy...
Laura
Leibowitz 6:37 PM
Rodrigo
- Definitely
6:37
One
of the great honors of my life was Rusty Warren telling me to keep my knockers
up!
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:37
PM
which
actually makes me appreciate Jack Benny all the more, that he and his writers
kept thinking of new stuff, every week! Even after 1940, when they went back to
some early stuff, they always polished it nearly totally (until mid 50s on
radio)
Laura
Leibowitz 6:38 PM
Also
the beauty of doing non-topical humor.
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:38
PM
well,
its lazy...... stand up comics in live shows say dirty things just to get
audiences laughing, they are not THINKING
Laura
Leibowitz 6:38 PM
Kathy
- Yep, again on the nose!
michael_amowitz 6:39
PM
Actually,
Kathy, that made the visual of Marilyn Monroe and Jack come to mind.
Rodrigo
Araya 6:39 PM
What
about the "lost art" of self-contained comedy episodes?
michael_amowitz 6:39
PM
All
you needed was the image of them together
Laura
Leibowitz 6:39 PM
It's
easy to (comedically) "grab for the crotch"...it takes a whole other
talent to write a good joke.
Rodrigo
Araya 6:40 PM
Like
with "The Odd Couple": There were like ten episodes about how Felix
and Oscar met.
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:40
PM
Michael,
Jack and his writers handled that episode SO WELL! She was terrified of going on
TV, and how not to just appeal to the lowest common denominator, that is a great
episode, skates on the edge of sexual desire and then spins it'
Laura
Leibowitz 6:40 PM
George
Balzer was known to gripe to his family about how current writers had forgotten
the "rules of comedy"
garth_johnson 6:41
PM
"I
just can't help myself" --- classic
Laura
Leibowitz 6:41 PM
Or
the "Mr. Wonderful" gag that Jack did on TV, and then on stage as well
6:42
I
think he did it with both male and female singers...just didn't kiss the male
ones!
6:42
Well,
shall we call it good for this week?
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:42
PM
Just
want to say how very much I appreciate this group! Love of Benny, but also very
smart commentary on comedy and history and culture
garth_johnson 6:43
PM
Neil
Ottenstein 6:43 PM
Laura
Leibowitz 6:43 PM
Hallelujah!
Agreed, Kathy!
6:43
That
looks like Berle kissing Sinatra!
Rodrigo
Araya 6:43 PM
Well,
Sammy Davis, Jr. kissed Archie Bunker. Things the post-sexual revolution people
wouldn't understand.
garth_johnson 6:44
PM
I
don't trust Shutterstock captions
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:44
PM
haha
great line, Rodrigo!
Laura
Leibowitz 6:44 PM
There
was a headline of "Burns Busses Benny"
Tom
V. 6:44 PM
I
was gonna say, that doesn't look like Jack's hair!
garth_johnson 6:44
PM
michael_amowitz 6:45
PM
Hey,
that was taken 6 days after I graduated from high school Lol, that one brought
the house down, Rodrigo.
Rodrigo
Araya 6:45 PM
Did
anyone outside L.A. read "Hush" and those 1950s-era gossip rags? Did
anyone take them seriously at all? Or were they regarded as fake news?
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:45
PM
hahaha
Laura
Leibowitz 6:45 PM
And
if I sit here a couple minutes, Garth will have the associated photo at the
ready
michael_amowitz 6:45
PM
They
were the National Enquirer or TMZ of their day
Laura
Leibowitz 6:45 PM
Berle
just forgot he wasn't in drag.
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:46
PM
Rodrigo,
I think YES and no, they were the start of the new paparrazzi (sp) celebrity
journalism. I like finding old Confidentials
Laura
Leibowitz 6:46 PM
Rodrigo
- I think it's kind of like the "National Enquirer."
6:46
Yeah,
Mike got it.
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:46
PM
book
by Anne Peterson on Hollywood Celebrity in the 1950s talks about this.....
Rodrigo
Araya 6:46 PM
The
National Enquirer was founded in 1926, at the same time "Broadway
Brevities" and other papers appeared.
michael_amowitz 6:46
PM
I
appreciate this group too, y'all. I'm often surprised by what I didn't know, and
we've been around awhile!
Laura
Leibowitz 6:47 PM
I
have one of those with a headline "The Photos that made Benny BURN!"
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:47
PM
usually
its pictures of Jack as Gracie Allen!
Laura
Leibowitz 6:47 PM
Rodrigo
- But it was a different paper then. CNN recently did an outstanding
documentary on them.
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:47
PM
cross
dressing, god forbid haha
Tom
V. 6:47 PM
Michael
- Me, too! I learn so much from this group!
Laura
Leibowitz 6:48 PM
Kathy
- That's it. Jack in drag for a benefit.
6:48
I
learn from this group too!
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:48
PM
such
anxiety over compulsory standards of heterosexual masculinity, as the academics
might say
michael_amowitz 6:49
PM
My
favorite National Enquirer headline ever:
Brooke
Shields Announces Wedding Plans
She
was 14
Oh,
I have to see this!
They
weren't lying.
"I
plan to get married someday."
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:49
PM
omg
hahah!
Laura
Leibowitz 6:49 PM
Kathy
- I think we still wrestle with that.
Rodrigo
Araya 6:49 PM
But
the man in the street didn't care much until the 1970s. Otherwise, "The Odd
Couple" couldn't have happened.
garth_johnson 6:49
PM
Inquiring
Minds ....
Laura
Leibowitz 6:50 PM
Just
like I wrestle with my self-image over compulsory standards of heterosexual
femininity.
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:50
PM
its
fascinating to see that public reaction changed every decade. What about
Charley's Aunt in 1940? The whole point to it was Jack Benny in an old Ladies's
dress. That would not have flown in the 1950s
Laura
Leibowitz 6:50 PM
Garth
- I finally got the inside scoop on that after I interviewed Eddie Villery.
Rodrigo
Araya 6:50 PM
Well,
not after "Seduction of the Innocent" was published, Kathy.
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:51
PM
well
when it did as Jack dressed as Gracie Allen, the reviews said it was the MOST
CONTROVERSIAL tv episode of Jack's career!
6:51
Laura,
you and me both : )
garth_johnson 6:51
PM
Laura
Leibowitz 6:51 PM
And
yet Monty Python did just fine. Maybe because they had the Shakespeare
connection...
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:52
PM
Garth,
yes! I love to show this to my undergrads, and tell them that in 1948 the
shocking thing was Benny and not Jolson!!!!
michael_amowitz 6:52
PM
I
don't know, Kathy ... I've never seen any of Tyler Perry's Madea (spelling it
wrong) movies, but it seems like the same premise to me
garth_johnson 6:52
PM
Brit
audiences are used to guys in drag - panto and other music hall theatre
Rodrigo
Araya 6:53 PM
That's
the correct spelling, Mike.
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:53
PM
the
playing with gender continued, decade after decade. Its just the US public
response that kept changing!!!
Laura
Leibowitz 6:53 PM
Garth
- Exactly
Rodrigo
Araya 6:53 PM
P.S.
Haven't seen those movies either.
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:53
PM
and
yet the Tyler Perry movies are VERY popular with conservative Christians, that
is great, and it makes me laugh too...
Laura
Leibowitz 6:54 PM
And
now you have RuPaul
garth_johnson 6:54
PM
Actually
Jolson shocked a few people he hadn't blacked up in awhile --- here's the
caption -- 1948 - FROLICKING FRIARS -- Know 'em? The gentleman at right
might be recognized by veteran movie goers as Al Jolson. He is pictured in black
face for the first time in 21 years. But the "lady" on the left
-- No, that is not Gracie Allen, that, believe it or not, is Jack Benny, as
Gracie Allen. They are shown during intermission of the Friar's Frolic in
which a million-dollar array of talent performed for charity at the Philharmonic
Auditorium in Los Angeles.
Laura
Leibowitz 6:54 PM
Kathy
- Are they? That's kind of ...facinating
Neil
Ottenstein 6:54 PM
Alec
Guinness in Kind Hearts and Coronets playing both the male and female heirs
Rodrigo
Araya 6:54 PM
Jolson
stopped doing blackface in 1927?
Laura
Leibowitz 6:55 PM
I
think that may have been the source of the photos that "Made Benny
BURN"
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:55
PM
there
was quite the Jolson renaissance in 1948 with the Jolson Story release,
everything he did was golden, even though all of it was based in the 1920s......
eek
Laura
Leibowitz 6:55 PM
He
does it in Jazz Singer, but I need to catch up on the rest of my Jolie movies.
garth_johnson 6:56
PM
Radio
Best Magazine
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:56
PM
so,
for nostalgic reasons, but I would say also tied into postwar conflicts over
civil rights, it was a mess ,.....and worthy of somebody's Master's thesis...
Laura
Leibowitz 6:56 PM
He
was the World's Greatest Entertainer, but his acting came with a substantial
side of ham.
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:56
PM
the
DETAILS of Jack in his undies are amazing!!!!
michael_amowitz 6:57
PM
lol
Laura
Leibowitz 6:57 PM
I
feel like I read somewhere that he enjoyed shaving his legs!
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:57
PM
also,
who knew he had so much chest hair, hahahaha
Laura
Leibowitz 6:57 PM
Well,
*I* did. And so did Barbara...
kathy_fuller_seeley 6:58
PM
hahaha!!!!!
6:58
folks,
this is just great, but I am afraid I must go for the evening. Laura, we will be
in touch and thanks everyone!!!!
Laura
Leibowitz 6:58 PM
She
put an arrow on one photo that said, "Note back hair"
6:58
Sounds
good!
6:59
Thanks
all...I'll hopefully see you next week!
Rodrigo
Araya 6:59 PM
Good
night.
garth_johnson 6:59
PM
We're
a little late ...
Rodrigo
Araya 6:59 PM
Don't
let the NBC VP find out.
Neil
Ottenstein 7:00 PM
Good
night
michael_amowitz 7:00
PM
Take
care, Kathy, LL, Rodrigo, Garth, Neil, Tom, and anyone I missed!
garth_johnson 7:00
PM
At
least we don't get cut off for a commercial (Kathy any new books to plug?)
Tom
V. 7:00 PM
Good
night, folks.
Sunday,
July 19th
garth_johnson 4:55
PM
Laura
Leibowitz 4:55 PM
Well
done
garth_johnson 4:56
PM
I'm
toasted --- a balmy 80f in the igloo this afternoon
Laura
Leibowitz 4:56 PM
Do
you taste better?
4:56
Feel
free to consider that a rhetorical question
garth_johnson 4:57
PM
No,
but I am milder and lighter
Laura
Leibowitz 4:57 PM
And
naturally finer
Neil
Ottenstein 4:58 PM
extremely
hot and humid here
Rodrigo
Araya 4:58 PM
Cleaner,
fresher, smoother!
garth_johnson 4:58
PM
So
tell us the story of the Tiffany goodies
Laura
Leibowitz 4:58 PM
Be
happy, go Lucky
4:58
Oh
yes, right here on the desk.
garth_johnson 4:58
PM
If
I am lucky, I'll go happy!
Laura
Leibowitz 4:59 PM
Not
much to tell, Hazel tipped me off to them on eBay, and I bought them.
garth_johnson 4:59
PM
Did
you not already have a pair?
Laura
Leibowitz 4:59 PM
Nope
4:59
I
also don't have a Jack Benny 39-cent check
4:59
Been
offered many of them, but not for a price I wanted to pay.
5:02
Hi
Rodrigo! And Neil, and Nathan
Neil
Ottenstein 5:02 PM
Hell
everyone
Rodrigo
Araya 5:02 PM
Hello.
garth_johnson 5:02
PM
Why
do people want to recoup storage costs on such paper --- it is beyond me --- now
something like a poster
Laura
Leibowitz 5:02 PM
I
have that sign!
5:03
It's
a freakin' billboard. Comes in pieces
5:03
How's
everyone doing tonight?
Rodrigo
Araya 5:03 PM
Not
doing much. Being Sunday of course, it's time for Benny.
Neil
Ottenstein 5:04 PM
Just
finished dinner. We've been watching To the Manor Born again on Sunday nights
Laura
Leibowitz 5:04 PM
Any
Benny questions or comments on anyone's mind?
Rodrigo
Araya 5:04 PM
Does
anybody want to play a trivia?
Laura
Leibowitz 5:05 PM
Yes!
But I'll give everyone a chance.
5:05
in
the zoo
Rodrigo
Araya 5:05 PM
Have
you done this previously by any chance?
Laura
Leibowitz 5:05 PM
Not
on the chat
Rodrigo
Araya 5:07 PM
Here's
an easy one: What flub involved a musical instrument?
Laura
Leibowitz 5:08 PM
A
grass reek
Rodrigo
Araya 5:08 PM
You'll
be sorry!
5:08
Oops!
Wrong show.
Laura
Leibowitz 5:09 PM
Anyone?
Any guesses?
Rodrigo
Araya 5:09 PM
All
right, it involves sitting.
Laura
Leibowitz 5:10 PM
A
cello
Rodrigo
Araya 5:10 PM
Well,
the instrument has strings, but it's not a bowed.
Laura
Leibowitz 5:10 PM
I
actually don't know the answer, even if it's an easy one
5:10
A
harp
5:10
A
piano
5:11
A
guitar
Rodrigo
Araya 5:11 PM
Piano
b...
Laura
Leibowitz 5:11 PM
A
zither
5:11
An
autoharp
Rodrigo
Araya 5:11 PM
Piano...
garth_johnson 5:11
PM
Rodrigo
Araya 5:12 PM
Where
do you sit when playing the piano?
Laura
Leibowitz 5:12 PM
A
stool sample?
garth_johnson 5:12
PM
You
sit on stage
Laura
Leibowitz 5:12 PM
You
sit by the keys
garth_johnson 5:13
PM
LL
- only in Florida
Laura
Leibowitz 5:13 PM
(This
is not going as Rodrigo had planned)
5:13
Garth
- Nyuk nyuk nyuk
5:13
You
sit on a bench
5:13
Mary
becomes a real bench?
Rodrigo
Araya 5:14 PM
Bunch!
Laura
Leibowitz 5:14 PM
Ralph
Bunche?
Rodrigo
Araya 5:14 PM
Bunch!
Piano bunch!
5:14
Hair!
Hair!
Laura
Leibowitz 5:15 PM
Blank
stare
Rodrigo
Araya 5:15 PM
In
fact, Jack would like it if no one answers.
garth_johnson 5:15
PM
Crickets
Laura
Leibowitz 5:15 PM
OK,
I give up
Rodrigo
Araya 5:16 PM
It
was a piano bunch.
Laura
Leibowitz 5:16 PM
Whatever
show it is, you've heard it way more recently than I have.
5:16
So
what's the flub?
Rodrigo
Araya 5:16 PM
Phil
or Jack said "piano bunch" instead of "piano bench".
5:17
Not
as good as "chiss sweese" or "Drear Pooson".
Laura
Leibowitz 5:17 PM
Wow,
I probably logged, it ,but I don't remember it.
5:17
Man,
you're tough!
garth_johnson 5:18
PM
Here's
a simple one from the Radio Era -- who is Geography
Laura
Leibowitz 5:18 PM
OK,
let's go to the show and finish up Yosemite
Rodrigo
Araya 5:18 PM
Got
the idea from the 1942 episode where Jack parodies "Take It Or Leave
It",
Laura
Leibowitz 5:18 PM
OK,
holding for Garth's question
5:18
The
father of our country?
5:19
Doo
wah ditty?
Rodrigo
Araya 5:19 PM
Does
Garth's question have to do with a town in New Jersey?
garth_johnson 5:19
PM
Hint
number 1 - It's a Phil Harris-ism
Rodrigo
Araya 5:20 PM
Lozenges!
5:20
Er,
Los Angeles.
Laura
Leibowitz 5:20 PM
I
was wondering if it was a school days joke
5:21
J'ai
manger la fenetre
garth_johnson 5:21
PM
Hint
Number 2 - Fans of the Fred Allen Program would band together to conduct
me elsewhere
Laura
Leibowitz 5:21 PM
Portland?
5:22
Peter
Van Steeden?
5:22
Mr.
Ramshaw?
garth_johnson 5:22
PM
Ferde
Grofe's brother - George
Laura
Leibowitz 5:22 PM
Charlie
McCarthy?
5:22
Wow
Rodrigo
Araya 5:23 PM
Just
when I thought about Wallington.
Laura
Leibowitz 5:23 PM
I
have found Benny trivia air that is too rareified for me.
5:23
I
do remember that gag, now that you mention it.
garth_johnson 5:23
PM
Phil
had his school home work -
Laura
Leibowitz 5:24 PM
Right,
I figured it was from that era...that's why I made the French reference.
garth_johnson 5:24
PM
lets
listen to jack ...
Laura
Leibowitz 5:24 PM
Yes,
let's do.
5:25
Oh
dangit...I did it again. One moment please.
Rodrigo
Araya 5:25 PM
Never
thought Ferdie Grofe had a brother...
garth_johnson 5:44
PM
Evein'
Folks -- how y'all --- That's right. you're right, chillun a question from
Kay Kyser
Rodrigo
Araya 5:56 PM
Francis?
Neil
Ottenstein 5:56 PM
Haven;t
had Jello in ages
Laura
Leibowitz 5:56 PM
If
you listen to enough of these shows in a short period, it becomes a compulsion
Neil
Ottenstein 5:56 PM
I'd
think so
Laura
Leibowitz 5:57 PM
I
wonder if that recipe would work with chocolate pudding
5:57
Voice
of experience on the compulsion
5:57
Grape
Nuts Flakes did not, nor Luckies thank God
5:57
So
thoughts on the show?
Rodrigo
Araya 5:57 PM
What
about Canada Dry?
5:58
Chevrolet?
General Tire?
Neil
Ottenstein 5:58 PM
Jack
spent a lot of money
Laura
Leibowitz 5:58 PM
Not
enough recordings, and Thorgerson wasn't as persuasive as Don
5:59
Neil
- Indeed. A wonder he didn't have Roch play Casino with Bill Morrow
garth_johnson 5:59
PM
They
seemed to be running out of steam with this fourth episode , would have been
nice to have a guest like Barbara Stanwyck
Laura
Leibowitz 5:59 PM
That's
a good point. It's mainly repeated gags.
Neil
Ottenstein 5:59 PM
My
favorite line was Rochester's "I knew we'd get there, but I didn't know
how" (edited)
Laura
Leibowitz 5:59 PM
But
the whole thing is a skit, so they couldn't go into a skit of, say, Double
Indemnity.
6:00
Other
thoughts?
6:01
OK,
we're at the top of the hour...let's call it good and we'll reconvene in a week!
Rodrigo
Araya 6:01 PM
Good
night.
Laura
Leibowitz 6:02 PM
Stay
safe, stay healthy folks!
Neil
Ottenstein 6:02 PM
Thanks for the fun
Saturday, July 25th
garth_johnson 3:41
PM
...
that's Geography! - 1949-01-16
Sunday,
July 26th
Laura
Leibowitz 4:58 PM
Hey
Garth
garth_johnson 4:58
PM
Good
evening, Easterners — good afternoon, Westerners – and good morning,
"I've
Got The Potatoes - But Someone Else Has Got My Girl"
The
harmonious shenanigans of Brice Moss and Neal Siegal at the Moss family Garden
Party of May 2019 substitute for Paul Small and the George Olsen Orchestra
"lost broadcast" of May 23, 1932
Neil
Ottenstein 4:59 PM
Nice
garth_johnson 4:59
PM
It is
darn hard to find all those old songs that George didn't record
Laura
Leibowitz 4:59 PM
He
recorded a ton
garth_johnson 5:00
PM
Ya -
I've got a tonne of MP3s --- but not of stuff he did on the show
Laura
Leibowitz 5:00 PM
I have
no idea how many 78s I have wth him.
5:00
It's a
really nice rendition!
5:01
George
Segal used to be good about bringing back old songs like that.
5:02
He did
an amazing rendition of "Down Among the Sheltering Palms" on Carson
once.
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:02
PM
howdy
folks!
Laura
Leibowitz 5:02 PM
Hi
Kathy! Hi Neil!
Neil
Ottenstein 5:02 PM
Howdy
all
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:03
PM
I am
looking for a copy of "Its going to be OK. America!" or whatever
Olsen's song was
Rodrigo
Araya 5:03 PM
Hello,
folks.
Laura
Leibowitz 5:03 PM
Hi
Rodrigo!
5:03
I have
a legal-sized file cabinet-plus of vintage sheet music. I might have it.
5:03
It
doesn't ring a bell, though.
Rodrigo
Araya 5:04 PM
By any
chance, does that Olsen song have any relation to Walter Winchell?
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:04
PM
we may
have to wait until after election day to sing it, hahahah
Laura
Leibowitz 5:04 PM
Why,
because Winchell stole other people's gals?
Rodrigo
Araya 5:04 PM
In the
summer of 1932, Olsen and Winchell appeared on the Lucky Strike Dance Party.
Laura
Leibowitz 5:04 PM
Kathy
- LOL...I was thinking about that.
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:04
PM
yikes,
too small a radio world!
Rodrigo
Araya 5:04 PM
Phil
also appeared in late '32.
Laura
Leibowitz 5:04 PM
I'll
be doggoned!
Rodrigo
Araya 5:05 PM
As did
Abe Lyman and Jack... Denny.
garth_johnson 5:05
PM
Speaking
of sheet music, I need a violinist to record this --just like a teen-aged Ben
Kubelksy would
PDF
Laura
Leibowitz 5:06 PM
Garth
- You doing a project with it?
Rodrigo
Araya 5:06 PM
The
show ran thrice a week (Tue, Thu, Sat) and featured music, gossip, comedy and
drama.
garth_johnson 5:06
PM
I saw
it mentioned here, so I collected a copy of the sheet music
Laura
Leibowitz 5:07 PM
Wicnhell
handled the gossip
5:07
Garth
- Ah, excellent catch!
Rodrigo
Araya 5:07 PM
Among
the comedians were Bert Lahr and Jack Pearl (Vass you dere, Sharley?)
Laura
Leibowitz 5:09 PM
Doing
Baron Munchausen?
Rodrigo
Araya 5:09 PM
Regarding
last week as Fred Allen would say (let me put on the clothespin):
"There
was an attempt to do a trivia about Benny... I hope Bob Ripley is listening.
Things didn't work out as planned."
5:09
That's
right, Laura.
Laura
Leibowitz 5:10 PM
Yes,
indeed.
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:10
PM
great
Allen representation, Rodrigo!
Laura
Leibowitz 5:10 PM
Hey
Kathy...want to talk about scrapbooks?
Rodrigo
Araya 5:10 PM
O.K.
America!
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:10
PM
SURE!
glad to tell everyone that the operation is going, #1 is done and it is amazing
Rodrigo
Araya 5:10 PM
That
was Winchell's catchphrase in '32.
Laura
Leibowitz 5:11 PM
By the
way, I do have a copy of "Ancestors Would Rise from their Graves to See
Cuba Free" sheet music.
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:11
PM
Barbara
Thunell's scrapbooks are among the MOST complete, longest-lasting of any
scrapbook that "fan scholars" have ever studied!
Rodrigo
Araya 5:11 PM
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:12
PM
I so
want to learn more from Barbara about the materials, she hinted that she raided
libraries for her finds
Laura
Leibowitz 5:12 PM
Benny
contraband!
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:12
PM
WOW
Rodrigo! may I please post that to my facebook feed with credit to you!!!
Laura
Leibowitz 5:12 PM
When
did Winchell change to "Good evening Mr. and Mrs. North America and all the
ships at sea, let's go to press"
Rodrigo
Araya 5:13 PM
I
found that on Google.
5:15
You
see, I joined the chat a couple of minutes late, so I thought you were talking
about "It's Going to Be OK, America", not"I've Got the
Potatoes".
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:15
PM
so, I
can say that my scanner works pretty well; I am saving both pdf and jpeg
versions of each page. Barbara found materials from fan magazines, newspapers,
trade papers, industry stuff from CBS, and we won't talk about where the pebbles
from somebody's driveway came from, hahaha
Laura
Leibowitz 5:15 PM
No
problem, Rodrigo!
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:15
PM
is the
Potatoes song one of Eddie Cantor's?
Laura
Leibowitz 5:16 PM
You
may be thinking of "Now's the Time to Fall in Love"
brad_strickland 5:16
PM
Hello,
Mr. Benneee!
Laura
Leibowitz 5:16 PM
Similar
lyric, though
5:16
Hi
Brad! Haven't seen you in a while!
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:16
PM
Hello
Brad!
Rodrigo
Araya 5:16 PM
I
don't think the other involves tomatoes as well...
brad_strickland 5:16
PM
Been
dodging the Covid.
Laura
Leibowitz 5:17 PM
Potatoes
are cheaper, tomatoes are cheaper...now's the time to fall in love
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:17
PM
I hear
the prices on both tomatoes and potatoes are getting more reasonable
Rodrigo
Araya 5:17 PM
That's
the one.
Laura
Leibowitz 5:17 PM
Brad -
I'll bet
brad_strickland 5:17
PM
I've
been trying for fifteen minutes to get Slack to let me in. I kept getting a
"server error" until I changed browsers.
Laura
Leibowitz 5:17 PM
It's a
convenient rhyme!
brad_strickland 5:17
PM
Hi,
Kathy!
Laura
Leibowitz 5:17 PM
OK...should
we go to the show?
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:18
PM
Hi
Brad, hopefully you have seen that the first volume of Benny 1932 scripts is
finally out, hooray!
brad_strickland 5:18
PM
OK
with me, if Firefox agrees.
Laura
Leibowitz 5:18 PM
And
they look amazing!
brad_strickland 5:18
PM
Kathy,
no I haven't! Title? Publisher?
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:18
PM
typos
and all : )
Laura
Leibowitz 5:18 PM
Har
har har
Rodrigo
Araya 5:18 PM
Jack
Benny: The Lost Radio Shows
brad_strickland 5:18
PM
Har
rah har. Oops.,
5:19
Available
on Amazon?
Rodrigo
Araya 5:19 PM
By
Jack Benny AND Harry Conn.
kathy_fuller_seeley 5:19
PM
Bear
Manor Media, and Laura that will be "hair hair, what;s on top of your
head" and Amazon
garth_johnson 5:19
PM
Laura
Leibowitz 5:19 PM
Kathy
- I was thinking about evolving that to "hair hair"
brad_strickland 5:19
PM
Terrific!
I'm so there. I've made a note to self to get it.
Laura
Leibowitz 5:19 PM
OK...hope
you like what I picked for tonight
5:20
watch2gether.com
Let's
meet on Watch2Gether
If you
join the chat while the show is in progress, please go to the above link!
michael_amowitz 5:40
PM
Hi
kids! I'll be along shortly ... just glad to get in!
Laura
Leibowitz 5:46 PM
Hi
Mike!
5:47
So
thoughts, comments?
roger 5:47
PM
Great
episode!
brad_strickland 5:47
PM
I
liked it. Wanted to tell Kathy I just ordered the book. In harcover. It's
expensive, but worth it!
Laura
Leibowitz 5:47 PM
Oh hey
Roger!
garth_johnson 5:47
PM
Hi
Irving!
michael_amowitz 5:47
PM
No
thoughts from me yet ... I just caught up on chat
brad_strickland 5:48
PM
Hi,
Michael!
Laura
Leibowitz 5:48 PM
I
wonder if the same gorilla suit was used on every network show
roger 5:48
PM
Hi
Laura!
michael_amowitz 5:48
PM
Hi
Brad, I saw you had troubles getting in too
brad_strickland 5:49
PM
It
looks like Bob Burns's gorilla outfit.
5:49
If
he's credited, that's his.
michael_amowitz 5:49
PM
So did
Lucy have to deal with Jack's bank guard?
garth_johnson 5:49
PM
Probably
-- one actor, can't remember who - will have to search facebook, did many of the
gorrilla appearances
Neil
Ottenstein 5:49 PM
what
inspired you to pick this?
Laura
Leibowitz 5:49 PM
Neil -
Just wanted to do something different, a non-Benny show appearance.
5:50
I
hadn't seen it in a while, so figured maybe others would enjoy revisiting it.
5:50
The
first time I saw it was in the Waukegan Public Library!
michael_amowitz 5:50
PM
I
expect i saw it at the time
Neil
Ottenstein 5:50 PM
I
don't think I ever saw it. Nothing about the gorilla suit in the imdb page
for the episode
Laura
Leibowitz 5:51 PM
I'm
going to do a conscious spoiler because I dislike the Abbe Lane episode so much
5:51
Lane
plays the sex-mad wife of a mad scientist (Jack) working in the jungle of
wherever.
5:52
He's
trying to invent a banana peel with hair on it so you don't slip on it.
garth_johnson 5:52
PM
brad_strickland 5:52
PM
This is the Bob Burns gorilla.
Laura
Leibowitz 5:52 PM
Then
Dennis shows up, she falls in love with him, somehow Dennis gets injected with
the banana serum, comes back in a gorilla suit and carries off Abbe Lane.
5:53
Cool,
Brad!
brad_strickland 5:53
PM
Whoops,
I linked to the wrong picture. But Burns made several and usually wore them,
mostly for comedy shows.
Rodrigo
Araya 5:53 PM
Did
they use Salvador Dali as script consultant?
michael_amowitz 5:53
PM
lol
Laura
Leibowitz 5:54 PM
Rodrigo
- I know...someone was smoking something pretty bad when they came up with the
concept.
5:54
And
believe it or not, the actual show is even cornier than the premise with lots of
additional sight gags more suited to the Soupy Sales show.
brad_strickland 5:54
PM
So
Savador meets a woman with beautiful hair and asks, "What product keeps
your hair so soft and shiny?" "Halo, Dali."
Neil
Ottenstein 5:54 PM
Ba-doom
Laura
Leibowitz 5:55 PM
Does
everyone know about the Marx Brothers movie that was written by Salvador Dali?
brad_strickland 5:55
PM
Ya kin
tell I'm on the laptop with the itty bitty keys and fat fingers.....
Neil
Ottenstein 5:55 PM
I
think I heard about it
Rodrigo
Araya 5:55 PM
Yes,
I've heard about it.
brad_strickland 5:55
PM
Yes, I
actually read the treatment for that movie.
Laura
Leibowitz 5:55 PM
I had
the script by my chair for a while, but I straightened up a week ago and took it
down to my "to read" shelf.
garth_johnson 5:55
PM
Hey
--- we are sponsored by Palmolive-Peet none of this "Halo" stuff
michael_amowitz 5:55
PM
I'm
going to be surprised
Laura
Leibowitz 5:56 PM
Garth
- Or Lux
brad_strickland 5:56
PM
Dennis
gives you a bar of soap and then asks you to return it? He's cheaper than his
boss!!
Laura
Leibowitz 5:56 PM
Maybe
he compliments you before asking for it back.
garth_johnson 5:57
PM
That
silly kid --- somebody should talk to him
brad_strickland 5:57
PM
Ah,
like the peanuts in our neighborhood bar that keep telling you how nice you
look. Complimentary peanuts, of course.
Neil
Ottenstein 5:58 PM
that
was painful Brad
Laura
Leibowitz 5:58 PM
Neil -
If you haven't seen that show, you may not know that the set for the vault was
the most expensive one done for TV up to that date.
garth_johnson 5:58
PM
'fraid
not in my local establishment
brad_strickland 5:58
PM
I got
a million of 'em.
5:58
And
yet . . . the radio vault was funnier.
Rodrigo
Araya 5:59 PM
So,
does that mean that TV producers of the 50s and 60s were cheaper than Jack?
michael_amowitz 5:59
PM
I grew
up to the video version ... loved it
Neil
Ottenstein 5:59 PM
Laura
- thanks for the info. I don't think I watched much of The Lucy Show.
Watched loads of I Love Lucy though.
garth_johnson 5:59
PM
Laura
Leibowitz 5:59 PM
If
only we could find a film of the SFX person doing the vault. I guess the
best is Ray Erlenborn at OTR conventions.
6:00
Garth-
Yepper, that's the vault I knew first!
brad_strickland 6:00
PM
BTW,
if ever you are in Warm Springs, GA, the Little White House museum has Jack's
safe.
Laura
Leibowitz 6:00 PM
Yes,
the March of Dimes safe!
garth_johnson 6:00
PM
Beware
of Dog
brad_strickland 6:00
PM
Unfortunately,
the only photo I got of it was ruined by glare. That's the one, Laura!
Laura
Leibowitz 6:00 PM
Well
done, Garth
Neil
Ottenstein 6:00 PM
Nice
Laura
Leibowitz 6:01 PM
OK,
we're at the top of the hour. Anything else Benny-wise?
garth_johnson 6:01
PM
Laura
Leibowitz 6:01 PM
Tell
Glare to mind her own business
brad_strickland 6:01
PM
Eddie
Carroll had a small role in Lucile Ball's last series, one episode, but I'm not
sure it ever even aired. Wish I could see it!
garth_johnson 6:01
PM
Good
health to all from .... RCA Victor
michael_amowitz 6:02
PM
lol
Laura
Leibowitz 6:02 PM
Garth
- Good health to your Jack Russell Terrier too
brad_strickland 6:02
PM
Oh, my
gosh, a Jack Russell? Hey, I was Wishbone's biographer!
michael_amowitz 6:02
PM
Brad,
check with Stu Shostak
Laura
Leibowitz 6:03 PM
Good
call, Mike.
garth_johnson 6:03
PM
1950's
- Griff Barnett The Rexall Family Druggist
brad_strickland 6:03
PM
Will
do, Micheael!
Laura
Leibowitz 6:03 PM
OK,
let's call it good for this week, and the official chat is next Sunday.
6:03
Stay
well, stay strong folks!
Neil
Ottenstein 6:03 PM
Thanks
brad_strickland 6:04
PM
I will
endeavor to be among the present. Bye!
michael_amowitz 6:04
PM
Yay!
i've got my drugs!
Neil
Ottenstein 6:04 PM
Bye
michael_amowitz 6:04
PM
Have a
great week, folks!
garth_johnson 6:04
PM
see
you all at the next once cent sale
roger 6:04
PM
Thanks
Laura and all!
Rodrigo
Araya 6:04 PM
Good
night.