A 1966 photo whose participants represented a comedy era, after the jump:
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On such a horrible day politically … methinks we need some Comedy Tonight.
The other day, the comedian Bill Dana died at the age of 92. He had been the last survivor of the ten comedians shown in this 1966 photo (when I would have been a young pup of ten years old). They were not the whole of the comedy world fifty-plus years ago ... but represented a noted portion, and are worth another look.
(at top) Jack Carter — (middle row): Milton Berle, Wally Cox, Soupy Sales, Dick Martin, Bob Hope, Jimmy Durante and Dick Shawn — (at bottom): Dan Rowan and Bill DanaJack Carter (1922-2015) — despite suffering a car accident in his late eighties, he worked nearly to the end of his life. He had hosted a show Cavalcade of Stars during the 1950’s (followed by Your Show of Shows). At the time of this photo, he appeared on numerous variety shows, was a guest actor in many sitcoms and appeared on numerous game shows (which I recall from the 1970’s). He died of respiratory failure at the age of 93.
Milton Berle (1908-2002) was a genuine superstar, known as “Uncle Miltie” and “Mr. Television” during its early days. His career spanned silent film to vaudeville to radio to TV, garnering a 30-year contract from NBC. By 1966, his career was starting to decline, as ABC showcased him in a new Milton Berle Show which lasted only one season. Yet he worked steadily in TV guest roles until 2000, two years before his death at the age of 93.
Wally Cox (1924-1973) was often typecast as a pipsqueak, but in fact was an Army veteran and an avid swimmer, hiker and motorcyclist. He first came to fame in the 1950’s show Mr. Peepers and by 1966 he became known as the upper-left corner occupant on the Hollywood Squares as well as the voice of the cartoon character Underdog (both are how I knew him best). His best friend was Marlon Brando— who kept Cox’s ashes when he died of a heart attack at only age 48.
Soupy Sales (1926-2009) was one of my childhood heroes, and I dedicated a previous Top Comments comprehensive diary about him. By 1966, his syndicated New York show (which made him famous) was coming to an end. His memoirs you may find at the library, written a few years before his death at age 83.
Dick Martin (1922-2008) had been a radio comedy staff writer before teaming-up with Dan Rowan (who will be recounted further on) in 1952. They worked together in clubs for several years, then apart for two years until reuniting in 1963. Their big break came when they were chosen as the summer replacement (for the Dean Martin Show) in that fateful year of 1966. The exposure was what enabled them to be offered their own show in early 1968 (more on that later). He later went into game shows (as a celebrity guest and host) in the 1970’s and later as a comedy director. He died of respiratory failure (already having lost the use of a lung due to tuberculosis as a teenager) at the age of 86.
Bob Hope (1903-2003) would have been age 63 at the time of this photo, yet was still a continuous presence on TV. His film career may have been over, but his USO shows were an omnipresent part of my youth. And while he became symbolic as an American entertainer, he was born in a suburb of London, England— and he never forgot his roots, funding a local theater. He died at the age of 100.
Jimmy Durante (1893-1980) became known as a comedic actor and TV host, but began his career as an early jazz pianist, whose comedy skills brought him to forefront of the band, then to vaudeville, to radio, film and TV. By 1966 he would have been age 73, but still made regular appearances on TV, hosting ABC’s Hollywood Palace show and other variety shows — I still recall him singing “Young at Heart” on the Smothers Brothers show — and he actually recorded several albums singing in the 1960’s. He died of pneumonia at the age of 86.
Dick Shawn (1923-1987) — unlike some of the others listed, he reached his zenith during the 1960’s, having honed his craft as a stand-up comic and nightclub singer during the 1950’s. He had two memorable film roles in the 1960’s: first as the deadbeat son of Ethel Merman’s character in 1963’s It’s a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World … and then in 1968 as the stoner Lorenzo St. Dubois (LSD) in Mel Brooks’ The Producers. From the 1970’s on, he stuck to performing one-man-shows, with comedy, singing and pratfalls. A frequent tactic was to lie perfectly still during the show’s intermission. At a San Diego performance in 1987, he once again fell on the floor … except that he had suffered a fatal heart attack at the age of 63.
Dan Rowan (1922-1987) had been orphaned at age 11, then rose to becoming a staff writer at Paramount Pictures. After a highly distinguished record as an Army pilot during WW-II, he became the straight-man for Dick Martin (as noted above) and they presided over the madcap 1968-1973 Rowan & Martin’s Laugh-In — see my Top Comments diary from years ago. Rowan retired from performing in 1980 (he was a Type 1 diabetic for years) and died of lymphoma at the age of 65.
And finally, Bill Dana (1924-2017) — who worked as a stand-up during the 1950’s, then found work as a staff writer for the Steve Allen Show into the early 1960’s. It was a series of guest appearances on the Danny Thomas Show in the early 1960’s that he developed his signature character: A Bolivian hotel bellhop named José Jiménez — who became so popular, he was given his own TV program, The Bill Dana Show (1963-1965). On it, a different comic (portraying the hotel detective) began to develop his own personality, leading Don Adams to portray Maxwell Smart later that year. Dana largely dropped the Jiménez role as the 1970’s began (due to changing attitudes) yet he had plenty of work in TV guest appearances (as Sophia’s brother in Golden Girls) and as a writer. Bill Dana died just the other day at the age of 92.
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Let’s close with the Stephen Sondheim-written theme song of a play that premiered on Broadway, then made it to the big screen in 1966 ….. A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum— with Zero Mostel singing Comedy Tonight.
x xYouTube VideoNow, on to Top Comments:
From Tamar:
In the really bad diary by mbinbg about cashiering Nancy Pelosi— there was a great pithy comment (and about Democrats & Republicans) from Jaxzan Proditor.From mosesfreeman:
In the diary by Arilca Mockingbird about some recent site bannings — I nominate this comment from frankzappatista.From MiketheLiberal :
In the diary by ursulafaw about the Administration official who is distraught over the Trumpster’s pronouncements …. this kind of comment from Lava20 needs to be repeated, over and over.
And ... in the front-page story about the Trumpster claiming that Russia had no role in the 2016 election — this comment by OpposeThis needs to be read — not because it's so well-written, but because people need to see this message early and often.
From justaHippie:
In the front-page cartoon by Reuben Bolling on ‘free market’ healthcare — I'd like to nominate Raptavio's meme-worthy response: succinct, accurate, perfect.And from Ed Tracey, your faithful correspondent this evening ........
In the diary by about gchaucer2 about her affection for Penzey’s Spices (which I readily confess to, as well) — even if her Roger the Cat must settle for a tad less chow — MN MississippiWatcher goes on to reference the founder of Alcoholics Anonymous in expressing appreciation for the spice firm founder’s offerings.And lastly: yesterday's Top Mojo - mega-mojo to the intrepid mik ...... who rescued this feature from oblivion:
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