Posted by TCB @ 07/22/2003 08:32 AM PST

BK, I enjoyed the mention of Shirley Knight yesterday. What a fine actress. Her performance as the daughter in Dark At The Top of The Stairs remains one of that great film's high points.

Posted by TCB @ 07/22/2003 08:36 AM PST

I like The Three Stooges, too, TCB. Some of their incarnations are not among my favorites, but Moe, Larry, and Curly always make me laugh.

My favorite team though is Abbott and Costello. And my favorite film they made is A/C Meet Frankenstein. It is a great combination of their comedy and my favorite monsters.

Of course Matthau and Lemmon are nothing to sneeze at, and Hepburn and Tracy made some great comedies.

On tv, Lucy and Ethel.

Of those comedy teams that NEVER made movies, I guess Bush & Quayle.

Posted by Jrand52 @ 07/22/2003 08:37 AM PST

How could I forget Burns and Allen? I loved their TV series, especially the little vaudeville bits at the end of each episode.

Posted by TCB @ 07/22/2003 08:43 AM PST

I'll take Mike Nichols and Elaine May over any comedy team in show business even though they were only together a short time. When I was a teenager in Chicago, Mike Nichols was a staff announcer at WFMT - Chicagoland's Fine Arts Station - and he and Elaine made a few recordings just for the station which would still be fresh and funny today. It's because of their telephone operator routine that I can't take "Sorry, Wrong Number" seriously. While both of them (especially Mike) have done a lot of very good things since the split, individually neither has ever achieved the heights they reached together. I hope that there will be at least one Nichols and May reunion in the future so today's generation can see what comedy can be in the hands of the masters.

Posted by William E. Lurie @ 07/22/2003 08:53 AM PST

I am WAY behind on catching up on notes, since I can only get to my computer every four or five days or so.

So, with that in mind, here's my favorite LP not on CD with a great BK quote attached:

There was a folk/pop/rock group, kind of in the Mamas & Papas, Spanky & Our Gang groove, called The Collage, which put out one LP on the Mercury imprint Smash in 1968. It is really a wonderful LP with lilting harmonies and some groovilicious arrangements by Perry Botkin. Unfortunately, there seems to be no information on who the group was--the back cover lists only the first names of the members. I even managed to get in touch with Perry, and even he didn't remember.

Anyway, years ago in perusing the label, I noticed that one of the songs, entitled "Driftin'", was co-written by a B. Kimmel. I had just met our esteemed BK via the internet and dashed off an email assuming that he was this B. Kimmel.

BK emailed me back that it was not him, but probably Bobby Kimmel of the Stone Ponys (which indeed it turned out to be). But he added this, which I have always thought is a classic BK quote: "I would never write a song with a missing "g" at the end." :)

Posted by JMK @ 07/22/2003 09:00 AM PST

Perhaps some bright cherub out there can answer this question for me. I was telling a story where an actor went up on his lines. Someone asked me where the term "went up" or "to go up" on one's lines originated. I don't have a clue. Anyone?

As for comedy teams, I always found Hope and Crosby pretty funny. "You're in the groove, Jackson."

Laurel and Hardy's slow , meticulous builds to wild chaos could be great fun too.

And though they were more an ensemble than a team, folks didn't get much funnier than the SCTV gang.

Posted by Charles Pogue @ 07/22/2003 09:13 AM PST

Oh, and let us not overlook the great Groucho and Bros. Marx.

Posted by Charles Pogue @ 07/22/2003 09:14 AM PST

But what about Burton Lane and Al Dubin's "Fightin' and Feudin'"? Does it get BK's blessin'?

Feudin' and fussin' and a-fightin,'
Sometimes it gets to be excitin,'
Don't like them ornery neighbors down by the creek,
We'll be plumb out of neighbors next week.
Grandma, poor ol' grandma,
Why'd they have to shoot poor grandma.
She lies 'neath the clover
Someone caught her bending over
Pickin' up a daisy!
Feudin' and fussin' and a-fightin'
This is a wrong that needs a rightin,'
Let's get that funeral service over
So then
We can start in a-feudin' again.

Posted by Dan-in-Toronto @ 07/22/2003 09:14 AM PST

LOL, JRand, re Bush & Quayle.

I love everything Matthau and Lemmon did together, especially The Odd Couple. Of course, Jack Lemmon was great with Tony Curtis in Some Like it Hot, too. Hmmmmmmm. I think Jack Lemmon is the key here. He's the best.

Posted by Susan @ 07/22/2003 09:25 AM PST

Of course, Burns and Allen were great, and Carl Reiner was funny with Mel Brooks.

How about Peter Cook and Dudley Moore?

And if the SCTV ensemble can be included, then I nominate the gang from Monty Python's Flying Circus.

Posted by Dave @ 07/22/2003 09:29 AM PST

I have heard that the term "go up" on one's lines comes from the notion that when you forget what you were going to say, you tend to look upward. This is also true of people when they are lying.

Any other suggestions?

Posted by Dave @ 07/22/2003 09:32 AM PST

And how about the team from Laugh-In? What a great show that was!

Posted by Susan @ 07/22/2003 09:34 AM PST

TCB, re seeing The Three
Stooges in person in 1960/61
- have you read Kritzerland
yet? I should think you would
be amused.

I, too, love The Three Stooges
- also certain Laurel and
Hardy, especially Way Out
West, a handful of Abbot and
Costello, Burns and Allen, etc.

Posted by bk @ 07/22/2003 09:34 AM PST

Sid Caesar and Imogene Coca. And, definitely, Nichols and May. As a kid I couldn't get enough of Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis. Wow, has my taste changed.

Posted by Dan-in-Toronto @ 07/22/2003 09:46 AM PST

No, BK, I haven't read it yet. However, if all goes according to plan, I am hoping to be able to order both books next month.

Posted by TCB @ 07/22/2003 09:46 AM PST

Hello Everyone! I am back from a fabulous trip to Seattle/Portland. Seattle is completely breath-taking! It really is one of the most beautiful cities I have ever been to, and there is so much to do there.

As for the topic of today, Abbott and Costello top my list. Who's on First is pure genius.

Posted by JB aka JK @ 07/22/2003 09:47 AM PST

Well, not to spoil anything, but I
can tell you that Benjamin
Kritzer meets The Three
Stooges at their live show, and
even has his photo taken with
them.

Welcome back, daughter of
mine. Did you find me a life
partner?

Posted by bk @ 07/22/2003 09:53 AM PST

Nichols and May, of course. Pay careful attention to how they react to the piano underscoring. (Which, often, is what I do for a living: tonight it's Second City students.)

Of film teams, I've been most tickled by Allen & Keaton. When he tells her she's going to meet Napoleon, Diane says "I'll wear my flats." Gotta love it.

Posted by Noel @ 07/22/2003 10:00 AM PST

Noel - Gracie Allen and Buster Keaton? He seems so much older than her.

Posted by TCB @ 07/22/2003 10:08 AM PST

Oh Woody and Diane. He seems so much older than her.

Posted by TCB @ 07/22/2003 10:09 AM PST

Count me in as another Abbott & Costello fan. I remember when we lived in Seattle - and actually in Connecticut too - one of the local channels would always show a different A&C movies each Sunday - usually followed by a Blondie one too. A great way to spend the afternoon after going to church.

I also like The Three Stooges, but haven't seen them much lately. My junior year in high school, my English teacher would show us classic films during the last week of each semester - he was always ahead of schedule. One day was always devoted to Three Stooges. A great way to pass a class period!

MMm... I think it's time for more frozen blueberries!

Posted by Jose C. Simbulan @ 07/22/2003 10:12 AM PST

George and Gracie
Nichols and May
Peter Cook and Dudley Moore
The Smothers Brothers
Senor Weñcez (it was almost like a team)
Edgar Bergen and Charlie McCarthy

Posted by Kerry @ 07/22/2003 10:29 AM PST

I love Laurel and Hardy. THE MUSIC BOX and MARCH OF THE WOODEN SOLDIERS would probably be my favorites. Abbott and Costello are great as well and A& C MEET FRANKENSTEIN would be tops there! I am also a big fan of Penny Singleton and Arthur Lake in the BLONDIE movies...all of their earlier films are quite enjoyable.

Posted by MBarnum @ 07/22/2003 10:49 AM PST

Kerry: Great minds think alike. Smothers fan here, and George and Gracie and Cook and Moore.

Jose: Mmm, mmm, frozen blueberries. I love 'em, though my freezer is not great so I just chill mine in the fridge. My refrigerator is as old as Methusela (well, maybe not THAT old) but it was with the apartment when I moved in 23 years ago and I think it's about time to have the landlord spring for a new one. Then I can freeze my blueberries too!

Posted by Ben @ 07/22/2003 11:09 AM PST

DR Ben: I actually just buy the bagged frozen blueberries - and strawberries too. No muss, no fuss, and available year round. *Whenever I do get fresh blueberries, I eat them fresh. And if ever to get some wild ones.. WOW! *Now if Ben & Jerry's would just bring back the Limited Batch Wild Maine Blueberry Ice Cream....

Posted by Jose C. Simbulan @ 07/22/2003 12:18 PM PST

The Marx Brothers
Bob & Ray
Nichols & May
Monty Python

Posted by Drumm @ 07/22/2003 12:20 PM PST

Off to lunch. I need much
more reading matter - so let's
have a flurry of posting so that
when I get back there's lots of
reading matter for me. If
there's not enough reading
matter then I shall be forced to
say "What's the matter - why
isn't there reading matter"

Posted by bk @ 07/22/2003 12:59 PM PST

First saw Nichols and May in 1980 doing what was The First Jewis President gets a phone call from his mother. A classic routine! My parents then bought the best of album. Great routines. The operator and the lost coin in the pay phone routine and More Gauze are other favorite of mine.

I also enjoyed Brooks and Reiner because you never knew what was going to coming out of Brooks' mouth.

On film I loved Laurel & Hardy. I remember as a children every Sunday afternoon the CBC would show their short films. I loved them.

Never got Martin and Lewis though.

On TV I thought one of the great comedy teams was Jackie Gleason and Art Carney. Especially in the Honeymooners sketches and program. Remember "Addressing the golf ball"?

Lucy and Ethel/Viv were a great team.

And of course Jim J. Bullock and Tammy Faye Baker were another classic TV comedy team.

Posted by Michael Shayne @ 07/22/2003 01:17 PM PST

Of course, I have always loved Ronnie and Ollie's routine, "What Iran-Contra's on First."

Posted by TCB @ 07/22/2003 01:51 PM PST

Whoops........ second base.

Posted by TCB @ 07/22/2003 01:52 PM PST

The Marx Brothers for me will always be #1. My favorite is HORSE FEATHERS followed by DUCK SOUP and ANIMAL CRACKERS. THE COCOANUTS would be up at the top IF you could cut out all the scenes with Mary Eaton and Oscar Shaw.

My favorite Abbott and Costello is HOLD THAT GHOST, but not many people seem to remember that one.

Posted by Matt H. @ 07/22/2003 01:52 PM PST

Jose and Ben:

do you know what my pet peeve is (and yes... there is a point to my addressing myself to you)?

It's super huge steroid injected blueberries. The ones that look like slightly small plums. They are the bane of my existence.

You have to go for the small organically grown blueberries - those that actually taste like the fruit they look like.

I know that around here they're known as bluets de Lac St-Jean (blueberries from the St-Jean lake region) but I'm pretty sure you can get them anywhere.

Of course, maybe the blueberries are small because they grow in the tundra that is my home. Hmm... :)

Posted by Emily @ 07/22/2003 02:01 PM PST

Matt, isn't THE COCONUTS the with that song "Monkey Doodle doo", or something like that?

Now, I am curious which comedy teams do you all dislike. I for one cannot stand the Ritz Brothers. Wheeler and Woolsey are another team that I have seen in several films but I just can't find anything funny about. them.

Posted by MBarnum @ 07/22/2003 02:04 PM PST

I love French and Saunders (Dawn French and Jennifer Saunders) from England. "Absolutely Fabulous" was based on a skit that they did on their show "French and Saunders", and individually they've gone on to do some great work. I loved Jennifer Saunders on "Friends" as Emily's mother as well as "AbFab," and Dawn French created two fabulous series: "The Vicar of Dibley" and my favorite, "Murder Most Horrid." I just got their latest live "concert" DVD through eBay from England.

Posted by George @ 07/22/2003 02:33 PM PST

I finally managed to get a copy of A & C's THE TIME OF THEIR LIVES without paying an arm and a leg for it. The used video copies, when you can find them, usually run around $45.00 and up. I didn't pay that much for it, but it is worth every cent I did pay for it. TToTL, along with HOLD THAT GHOST, are the two best films they ever made.

Posted by TCB @ 07/22/2003 02:44 PM PST

Emily,

I only see the regular or small blueberries. I know which ones you're talking about but I have never seen them in the store in which I shop. I like a handful of blueberries, anyway, to pop in my mouth. The steroid induced ones would be too big for my hands!

I never found Cheech and Chong even remotely funny. They are high on my list of comedy duos I cannot abide. There is another team which, although it wasn't a matter of "couldn't stand them", I never found them that funny but I can only remember one of their names. The fuzzy haired man and I think his name was Rossi, right? It wasn't Martin and Rossi was it? They were on Ed Sullivan frequently. Although I enjoy her away from her husband, I have to admit, I never found Stiller and Merea funny. They were just annoying. I have an immediate, visceral bad reaction to Jerry Stiller now and it's because of Seinfeld. Off-topic but I will admit to the world, or at least to Hainsie/Kimmlets, I HATED Seinfeld. I have never watched an entire episode. I never "got it". I found it tiresome at best. It's also, IMHO, not even close to being the greatest sitcom of all time, even though it's been annointed as such by so many people. Oh, well. Just my point of view. I'll get off my soapbox now. Bye.

Posted by Ben @ 07/22/2003 02:55 PM PST

DR Emily - I also prefer "bleuets" - which is what I see in most of the supermarkets in Richmond. I usually only see the large ones at restaurants. Sometimes they're good, sometimes they're just bigger. Now the wild Maine ones are very small - they almost resemble currants. Small, but they pack a lot of flavor. Also pretty good frozen.

-And this may have been mentioned in a previous post, but... In today's mail, I received what is being labeled the second to last issue of the Stage & Screen Book Club catalog - which used to be Fireside Theatre. Kind of sad, but not really unexpected. And, frankly, when the balance of the books being offered started favoring movie-related material, I actually started losing interest in the club. I like movies, but I joined Fireside for play and musical scripts, not screenplays and on-the-set diaries. Ah, well... They're transferring everyone over to QPB - which I was a member of before... And since most of the book clubs are based out of the same warehouse - just different specialty/focus catalogs - the transition should be seamless - and relatively painless. But I will miss being able to get the "exclusive" hardcover editions... But, in the words of Miss Gloria Gaynor, "I will survive."

Posted by Jose C. Simbulan @ 07/22/2003 03:00 PM PST

A & C, B & A, L & H, F & S, W & S, C & M. I also loved the Rosemarie - Morey Amsterdam double act on the Dick Van Dyke Show. All very funny. DR George: The new Dawn French series "Wild West" set in Cornwall is a big disappointment after the joys of her other shows.
Loved the Jim & Tammy reference Michael. they made it "big" over here - and only as a comedy team!
Bush and Blaire would be funny if were not real.

Posted by Tom from Oz @ 07/22/2003 03:12 PM PST

Never "got" Cheech & Chong either and felt exactly the same about Seinfeld Ben. Were we the only ones? I have not liked the Simpsons either (But I did like the first few seasons of South Park.)
More than anything I think it was the agressive colour of The Simpsons that annoyed me.

Posted by Tom from Oz @ 07/22/2003 03:18 PM PST

Tom, glad to hear I'm not alone. Re: the Simpsons, when they were a short on Tracy Ullman's show on Fox back in the 80s, I really liked them. And, in the beginning, I enjoyed what they were trying to do but now, some 13(?) or more years later I just don't find it funny anymore. Sometimes I wonder if I have a sense of humor anymore because what the world finds funny I find either appalling or tired or silly or whatever (I hate that phrase). South Park can be funny (what I saw of Sadaam and the Devil being lovers in Hell was funny) and in the beginning, as with the Simpsons, there were some terriffic moments, but now I think it's mostly let's have 9 year old cartoon characters say poo poo and kaa kaa because we can. That's not terribly difficult to write. Anybody can write "taboo" or "dirty" words. It's using them intelligently that makes the difference. It's why I tire of David Mament some times. How many times can you use the word f*ck before people shut off. I've moved completely off topic here, but I just wanted to respond to DR Tom. Hope I haven't taken up too much of your time (Kander and Ebb reference)

Posted by Ben @ 07/22/2003 03:46 PM PST

I forgot to mention that I could
not fall asleep last night (finally
did around two) so I can barely
keep my eyes open todya.
Has anyone noticed that I just
typed "todya" instead of
"today"? That is because I can
barely keep my eyes open. I
may leave a bit early so I can
go home and vegetate on my
sofa.

Posted by bk @ 07/22/2003 03:55 PM PST

dang it...

it WOULD take someone from Virginia to notice my French typo.

It is of course "bleuets" not "bluets".

Posted by Emily @ 07/22/2003 04:06 PM PST

Has anyone else noticed a snubberoo on the Man of No Importance Cast Album?

In the opening song at the end of the "break" when the boss, Carson, comes in to break up Robbie and Alfie instead of saying "The Dublin Transit Company does not take this lateness laxly" like he's supposed to, I swear he says "The DTC does not take this laxness lately".

Posted by Emily @ 07/22/2003 04:11 PM PST

Well, you won't believe it, I
could barely believe it myself
and yet it is true - the amazon
sales ranking of the BK
softcover just jumped again,
this time we improved from
96,000 to 84,000. And, for the
first time, the Kritzerland soft
cover just cracked the top
100,000 - it's hovering at
94,000. A week ago, the
amazon sales ranking for the
softcover Kritzerland was
1,253,000, so that's quite a
jump if you ask me.

Posted by bk @ 07/22/2003 04:34 PM PST

DR Ben: Good to know that "no-one is alone". Forgot to mention that I was very much a fan of the Two Ronnies (Barker & Corbett) too.
Yesterday's topic (sort of). I still play Lili Tomlin's "This Is A Recording" (A tape rather than a record). Comedy records certainly don't age well but this one was a gem.

Posted by Tom from Oz @ 07/22/2003 04:39 PM PST

My favorite comedy team is my 349-pound psycho-therapist and the middle aged hippie who's been out of work for twenty years. Their "Fountain of Youth" routine was a classic.

Posted by Sandra @ 07/22/2003 04:51 PM PST

My favourite comedy team would have to be Victoria Wood and Julie Walters. Of course, they only made one film ("Pat and Margaret"; Wood wrote the screenplay) and it was a British TV movie, but they're still my favourite. Some of Julie Walters' best work has been stuff she's done with Victoria Wood - as in her priceless Mrs. Overall in "Acorn Antiques".

Posted by Stephen Farrow @ 07/22/2003 05:10 PM PST

Not on the topic: I went to an advance screening of CAMP last night. This film, written and directed by Todd Graff, takes place at the fictional Camp Ovation, a theatrical summer camp where the campers put on a fresh show every two weeks. It is based on a real summer camp called Stagedoor Manor, which is in the Catskill Mountains of New York and where the film was shot. My brother actually went to Stagedoor Manor for a few summers, so I have had more than a passing interest in the movie.

One of the thrusts of CAMP's story is that these kids may be marginalized at home, but at Camp Ovation they can be themselves and strut their stuff. There's a fair amount of teen angst, as you would imagine, given that these campers are budding theatre types/drama queens. A lot of the story is very soap opera-esque--light-hearted soap opera-esque, but soap opera-esque nonetheless--I'm afraid, devoted to who likes whom, who's sleeping with whom, etc. Everybody is very gay accepting, of course, though struggles with sexuality are depicted. The lead character, as much as there is a lead in this ensemble piece, is a straight golden boy named Vlad, whose character starts off a bit too perfect to be true and provides considerable eye candy to feast on over the course of the movie. Almost all the adults in the story are rather uni-dimensional and do not come off very well. All the kissing that is shown on-screen is of the heterosexual variety, which is rather odd, given the makeup of the camper population. A gay bashing early in the film is glossed over.

Now that I've gotten that off my chest, I must encourage all of the Dear Readers here to scamper off and see this movie. Interspersed with the soap opera is some of the cleverest and funniest theatre-related comedy I've seen on screen. There are oodles and oodles of throwaway lines and set-ups that are absolutely hysterical. In fact, I am sure I missed quite a few lines because the audience (myself included) was howling at what was going on up there on the screen. It's a hoot, too, to see these kids hoof their way through "Turkey Lurkey Time" and belt their way through "The Ladies Who Lunch," just two of the numerous musical numbers that pepper the film. Only the stone-hearted would not get a big kick out of a sub-plot that owes more than a little to ALL ABOUT EVE. Mr. Stephen Sondheim even makes a cameo appearance in the movie. So go!

CAMP opens in limited markets this Friday (it will be in only one theatre in Los Angeles) and, I assume, will gradually expand to additional markets.

Disclosure: I am not associated in any way with the producers, artistic team, distributors or anyone who has a financial interest in this film.

Posted by Jay @ 07/22/2003 05:23 PM PST

Thanks for the review, Jay! I am really looking forward to seeing Camp. I saw the trailer and it looked very promising--hell, just the premise of seeing teenagers singing "Losing My Mind" on a bus together is inducement enough.

I went to a theatre camp about 5 years ago. There was minimal melodrama (well, I did have a crush on one of the instructors!), but it really was a lot of fun. We did musical revues and talent shows and Shakespeare scenes, and I vividly remember the "musical" the camp did. They pretty much did Star Wars: The Musical, taking the music from Les Mis and writing new lyrics. Thus you had Luke and Darth Vader in the Confrontation and Leia singing I Dreamed a Dream. I don't know as to the legality of Star Wars: the Musical, but it was a lot of fun!

As to favorite comedy teams, the more anarchy and clever banter the better. So my favorites are the Marx Brothers, Keaton and Allen and that loveable trio from Animaniacs Wacko, Yakko and Dot.

Posted by Maya @ 07/22/2003 06:18 PM PST

Maya, I actually ran across a "Star Wars" musical once in my internet meanderings. It may also be a parody, and I can't believe it's officially recognized by Lucas' Empire. You can read about it at:

http://www.infauxmedia.com/swmusical/STAR_WARS-The_Musical.htm

And speaking of comedy teams, I remember being very impressed as a child (less so with their more recent films) with the comic stylings of R2-D2 and C-3PO.

I think they have been compared to, and were probably influenced by, Laurel and Hardy: 3PO being the dominant, irritable one, and R2 being the subservient, quieter one, who once in a while throws a fit.

Incidentally, anyone remember the "Star Wars Holiday Special"? There's a show Lucas & Co. WISH they hadn't approved . . .

Posted by Sigerson Holmes @ 07/22/2003 07:03 PM PST

I have done much cleaning today. I
can state unequivocally that I have
an incredible respect for all those
who work in the cleaning industry.
Some of the stuff on finds-Oy is all
that I can say. Oy. Oy. Oy.

I love Allen and Keaton, the Pythons
(I don't love them quite as devotedly
as in my youth, but that would be
sick.) and some others that have
been mentioned.

I want to see Camp very much,
though I am disappointed that there
are no romances between the two
young men. Even in this day and
age?

Posted by Hapgood @ 07/22/2003 08:02 PM PST

Yes, MBarnum, THE COCOANUTS has Irving Berlin's "Monkey-Doodle-Doo," and a couple of other forgettable tunes. All pretty painful, but I shouldn't complain. I'm glad we still have a 1929 movie in as good a shape as this one is.

Oh, THE TIME OF THEIR LIVES is a wonderful, moving film; quite a departure for A&C and one that wasn't popular at the time, as I understand. Seeing it for the first time now is like uncovering buried treasure. It's wonderful.

Put me down as another who never found Cheech and Chong funny. Painful is more like it. And the Ritz Brothers were just so cheezy, trying SO hard to be funny and usually failing miserably.

Posted by Matt H. @ 07/22/2003 08:20 PM PST

Actually Matt, "Monkey Doodle-Do" is my favorite part of THE COCONUTS! LOL! To me it just isn't the funniest of the Marx Brothers. It isn't bad, just not a good as some of there others. Sadly it is the only one that I have on DVD.

Posted by MBarnum @ 07/22/2003 09:21 PM PST

Sigerson--I checked out the Star Wars: the Musical website....very, uh, interesting :)

Some things should just not be musicalized. I found a link a few weeks ago to a Silence of the Lambs musical webpage! Let me quote Hapgood here, and just say OY!

Posted by Maya @ 07/22/2003 09:35 PM PST

What are these unseemly lulls during the evenings? We must not lag all of a sudden, we must not have these unseemly lagging lulls. Those who have been errant and truant need to get off their collective butt cheeks and get a rally going. Otherwise, there will be a bitch-slappin' festival going on here.

Posted by bk @ 07/22/2003 10:41 PM PST

BK, it is almost eleven o'clock. If you didn't get much sleep last night, don't you think it might be wise to toddle off to bed soon?

Posted by TCB @ 07/22/2003 10:53 PM PST

It really boggles the mind if you stop and think of the unlimited possibilities there are out there for musicals. SILENCE OF THE LAMBS may sound strange, at first, but then the story line of SWEENEY TODD isn't your usual R & H fare either. STAR WARS - THE MUSICAL, hmmm, interesting. Where will it all end? Or should it end at all. I suppose if Richard Nixon's trip to China can be the basis of an opera, anything is possible.

Hey, BK, if you haven’t already done this topic, maybe it could be on the agenda sometime? I would love to hear some of the suggestions.

Posted by TCB @ 07/22/2003 11:01 PM PST

Sorry to have been E&T this
evening, but it was a Sound of
Music night, so I had to pull
Baron Eberfeldt/Nazi duty.

Comedy teams? I'd have to
say DR Sandra and the other
community college students of
Scottsdale.

As for source material for
musicals, and friend and I
have thought for awhile that
DOCTOR STRANGELOVE
could actually work reasonably
well. Heck, we even started on
a song for President Muffly's
phone call to the Soviet
premier.

Posted by Jed @ 07/23/2003 12:56 AM PST

Since strange topics for musicals is one of the discussions today, I thought I'd mention again that the beginning of next month I am seeing a musical based on Leopold and Loeb directed by Martin Charnin. Should be interesting.

I am looking forward to CAMP which I will see this weekend because as much as I hope I'm wrong I don't think it will do much business and may be gone if I wait too long. I saw a review of the Soundtrack CD, though, and it appears to be mostly little-known rock recordings with only 2 showtunes. I hope the film is more showtune oriented.

Posted by William E. Lurie @ 07/23/2003 06:08 AM PST

Well, I have to respectfully disagree with you, MBarnum, about THE COCOANUTS. I think all of the Marx's routines are riots. The "viaduct" skit and the land auction as well as the finale with everyone in Spanish attire makes me smile just thinking about it.

Dumont: "Mr. Hammer, can't you DO something?"

Groucho: "He's doing plenty."

(And that was one of the throwaway gags.)

Posted by Matt H. @ 07/23/2003 06:45 AM PST

Here I am, in the eastern zone
Awake before the rest.

Making posts that are silly poems,
And generally being a pest.

It's 10:21 where I am now.
But in LA, it's early.

If I were awake in that time zone
I'd be feeling pretty surly.

Posted by Hapgood, the great poet @ 07/23/2003 07:28 AM PST

Wow....so many good answers!

Although I don't appreciate most of their humor, one of my favorite comedic routines is the Firesign Theater's "The Adventures of Nick Danger" - I hear new bits every time I play it!

And welcome back, Jason!

Posted by Phil @ 07/23/2003 07:54 AM PST