The Tonight Show leaves New York, 1972

Here's an interesting slice of "Tonight Show" history -- a clip from the show's final week in New York City. In May, 1972 Johnny Carson moved "Tonight" to Los Angeles, where it would stay until Jimmy Fallon took the reins in 2014. For the most part, all of the show's New York City episodes (whether under Steve Allen, Jack Paar or Johnny) are lost forever, since the tapes were recycled. Starting in 1972 (although some sources say 1970), someone realized the value of "Tonight" and started archiving the tapes. This snippet features Mark Richards (aka Dick Liberatore) in the audience. I don't know much about him, but if you check out the rest of his channel, there's a number of game show-related clips of his work. Here, he manages to upstage guest host Joey Bishop, as well as Ed McMahon.

The "lost" episode of SNL, 1981

This a live 1981 TV special, "Steve Martin's Best Show Ever," which is now available on the DVD set "Steve Martin: The TV Stuff."  The beauty of this particular special is that it was done live, directed by Dave Wilson, produced by Lorne Michaels, from NBC's Studio 8H, on November 25, 1981 at 11:30 pm, with associate producer Cherie Fortis and announcer Don Pardo, and featuring writers/performers Laraine Newman, John Belushi, Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd, Tom Davis, Jim Downey, Al Franken, Tom Gammill, Sarah Paley, Max Pross, Alan Zweibel and Paul Shaffer.  Even the "orchestra" is conducted by Howard Shore and looks like most of his All-Nurse Band.  All the ingredients of the classic 1975-80 original cast.  It's essentially a lost episode.  Guests include Emily Prager (briefly a castmember at the end of season 6, and Tom Davis' girlfriend), Eric Idle (frequent host with the original cast), Gregory Hines (musical guest in season 4), Lauren Hutton (who had just hosted on Nov. 7 with the "new cast") and Lynn Redgrave.

This is the clip with Gregory Hines, and here is the entire show on Hulu.

The Lawrence Welk Show Christmas, 1972

One of the greatest Christmas intros in the history of mankind... from the 1972 Lawrence Welk Show Christmas special.  I do not understand why everyone laughs when he says something about a riding/writing song?  Is this a weird in-joke?  I will get you for this, Mr. Welk.

As an alleged bonus, here's "In the Mood" (not Christmasy) from one of the final Welk episodes in 1982.  This features Gayle, Ron and Michael.  Weird to hear it with words, play acting and Ron's apparent sunburn.

Finally, a spell-binding (for babies) version of "Georgy Girl" by John Lennon's Lennon Sisters.

Terror, cola wars and butter on Indian TV

Television did not spread from the major cities of India until the mid-1970s, so their "classic" commercials are mostly from the 1980s.  Here's a sampling, along with some other Indian TV bits...

Amul commercials (I believe Amul is a collective of dairy farmers):
-Amul ice-cream ad (1990s?)
-Amul "pizza cheese" (2000s... hot hot hot)
-Amul butter (a very old ad, from the early 1970s -- these seem like they would be shown in cinemas as opposed to on television... another is here)

-Doordarshan ID (this is the national TV network, not unlike the BBC... this terrified me then and now)

-Gold Spot commercials (I very much enjoy the man's over-British pronunciation)... as I understand it, the Indian government used to require foreign companies to partner with a local company.  So they didn't have Honda motorcycles, they had Hero-Honda.  They tried the same thing with Coca-Cola (which was already established) in the 1970s, and Coke said "forget it!  We're not partnering with someone local and giving you our formula."  So they left, and the soft-drink void was filled by already existing local drinks, then Pepsi, before Coke returned (under relaxed partnership rules).  The local drinks today barely exist, but in the 1980s, everyone could enjoy Gold Spot (orange), Limca (lemon-lime) and Thums Up (cola, SIC).  An article on the Indian cola wars is here.

The ABC Sunday Night Movie, 1982

This used to terrify me when I was little... the intro music and graphics for the ABC Sunday Night Movie.

MTV's The State

From MTV's under-appreciated series "The State," here's two classics... The first sketch (Bumblebees) is appropriate for #SNL4kidz; the other is not.

Paul McCartney's 1969 Christmas song

Following on this post about the Beatles' Christmas disks, someone has re-edited Paul's 1969 Christmas ditty into "45-length."  Enjoy -- it's better than "Wonderful Christmastime," if you're into that sort of thing.

Grilled Shane and his grilled cheese

Grilled Shane (aka Shane Kearns) shares some of his grilled cheese goodness before joining KB for questions from the audience.  Visit him at http://grilledshane.com/

Jazzercise catchphrase madness

This could not be catchier ... clips from the original video that made Jazzercise a national craze.  There's a mostly different set of clips posted here.  Every line she utters is an instant catchphrase.  How can you dislike Judi Sheppard Missett. #SNL4kidz

Hubba Hubba Hubba

From the 1945 Perry Como film "Doll Face," how annoying is THIS?!  The racism (standard for the time) doesn't bother me... it's the performers.  Guh.

Old PBS promos from 1972

I have not seen promos for PBS (as opposed to PBS shows) for years.  Here's several featuring very 1970s animation.

Knight Rider egress

Would Michael Knight's famous entry/exit from the Knight Industries semi actually work in real life?  Would the KITT car be splayed to bits?  MythBusters finds out.

James Bond in the 1970s

Adjusting to a new decade could have been tough for James Bond, but the first three films in that decade -- 1971's "Diamonds Are Forever," 1973's "Live and Let Die" and 1974's "Man With the Golden Gun" -- all have their moments.  Here are some of the most famous...

-Diamonds Are Forever car chase
-Live and Let Die crocodile jump (and a sequence of aborted takes trying to perfect this scene)
-Man with the Golden Gun 360-degree car jump

And just for fun, the very colorful opening of Live and Let Die.

Laugh-In at Sears

If you enjoy creepy, poorly edited industrial films, and you enjoy Laugh-In, you need to watch this 1968 training video for Sears refrigerator salesmen (and make no mistake, they are aiming this at men).  I will not comment on Judy Carne's (RIP) appearance, but Arte Johnson is pretty good as a hammy straight man.  Still, much of the atmosphere is too funereal...and I'm not even counting the part that's literally funereal.

This reminds me a lot of Baltimore's late, lamented "Atomic TV."

Jeffrey Dahmer on SNL

Not sure if most people will understand this SNL sketch anymore, given that Dahmer died in prison in 1994 and hasn't really been heard about since.  But the highlight is Chevy Chase's delivery, and his stumble on the word "Monday."

Robert Klein and Medical Marijuana

Another great under-rated comedic presence, Robert Klein performed his final (to-date) HBO special in 2005.  It included several songs, such as "Medical Marijuana."

And going back nearly 30 years before, here's an episode of The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson with a long segment with Klein.  He starts off slow, but it's pretty good overall.

More Dave and Johnny

With Johnny Carson back on Antenna TV, here's a look back at him with his protege, David Letterman.  The first is a generally great guest shot for Dave, while the second brief bit features Dave and Johnny cringing at Joe Piscopo's impression of Letterman.

SNL and Tim Kazurinsky

Here's a couple of quiet character-driven pieces from SNL's forgotten years (1980-85).  The first is from season 7 and features two couples having dinner, until one realizes their celibacy was all a misunderstanding.

The other is from an excellent season 9 episode with future castmember Billy Crystal... he's not in this particular sketch about a couple who used to shelter people in their attic during World War II.  A number of excerpts from this episode are posted here.

Note that Tim Kazurinsky features in both sketches, an under-rated bright spot during the first half of the 1980s.

Pokemon v. Chinpokomon

For all of you who enjoyed Pokemon as a child, and are now dumbfounded that they're back, here is a parody commercial from "South Park." #SNL40kidz

The Comedians of Catchphrase Comedy

Season 36 and 37 of SNL each featured a fake commercials for "bootleg DVDs" of "The Comedians of Catchphrase Comedy."  Explaining this to anyone who actually likes catchphrase comedy... is pointless.  Just enjoy parts one and two... and part three, which was slated for the season 37 finale (with Mick Jagger) but somehow got bumped.  In the past, SNL would have run this at a later date, despite the presence of Jagger, but now it just gets posted online.  That's a shame, since it's actually funnier than part two.

Homer Simpson learns to play bass

Homer Simpson discovers the BASS!  The best line is about the gels.

Famous Samples

A great collection of samples used by rappers in the 1980s and 1990s.  It's rare that both the samplor and samplee are good, but back then it still applied.

Film auditions and SNL

An occasional SNL trope is the recreation of auditions for famous films. The first one I can find is from season one, when prisoners auditioned for Peter Cook.  That one is a classic, but only available as part of the full episode on Hulu+.  Here's some that are easier to find:

-Superman (1985): host Christopher Reeve auditions (and barely gets the part).  Another classic, and the only one on this list that's a standard sketch (as opposed to pre-tape).

-Star Wars (1997 / 2015): This was done for the film's 20th anniversary reissue.  The sketch is posted in parts here and here and here.  SNL did a similar bit when Episode VII was released, which is here.

-Pulp Fiction (1997): my favorite part of this is Norm's bizarre Quentin Tarantino impression.

-Top Gun (2011): Top Gun is a stupid movie, but this sketch is funny.

-Fifty Shades of Grey (2013): Proof that Miley Cyrus could be a classy beauty, as opposed to a human Rolling-Stones-logo.

-Back to the Future (2015): "GREAT JOB, SCOTT!"  Classic.

And this is only peripherally related, but it's the show's take on A Charlie Brown Christmas on Broadway.  Meh.

Don Rickles and Joan Rivers

Don Rickles was a familiar presence (both as guest and guest host) on "The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson" from his 1965 debut until 1979.  That year, David Letterman began filling the host chair much of the time Johnny was away.  Rickles had only five appearances that year, three in 1980, and none in 1981 or 1982.  In the late 70s/early 80s, it seemed Johnny (for various reasons) began paring back some of his regulars.  My guesses...

-Joey Bishop and McLean Stevenson were no longer "hot"
-Rodney Dangerfield would be increasingly baked
-Robert Klein began appearing more on "Late Night with David Letterman"
-Charlie Callas allegedly shoved Carson during an appearance (I'm not buying it; he may have become too "Vegas")
-David Steinberg transitioned into directing
-David Brenner and Rich Little seemed to annoy Johnny (read: Johnny's fake laughter) in their few post-1980 appearances
-Jerry Lewis seemed to do the same shtick and usually had nothing to promote
-Plus there was a huge new generation of comedians coming up due to SNL and the comedy club boom.

The only ones who seemed to survive this were Buddy Hackett and Don Rickles, who were limited to about one appearance a year.

Rickles returned to the show in 1983 with one appearance, and after that he was always with Johnny until 1992... with one exception.  Here is a shaky, iPhone-kinescoped appearance from 1984 with guest host Joan Rivers.  I hate to admit it, but Rickles was obviously saving his A-game for Carson.

#SNL4Kidz: Mr. Monopoly

This is the beginning of a new feature of this blog, #SNL4Kidz: sketches that are safe (or nearly safe) to show young people and hopefully foster their love for comedy beyond Disney sitcoms.  I'll be going back and adding the hashtag to older posts as I find them.

This first one is Mr. Monopoly, from season 11 (the first year Lorne Michaels was back).  This sketch is infamous because, at dress, Damon Wayans was in a suit, and the sketch got so-so laughs.  Lorne Michaels told him to change into a police uniform so people would know who he's supposed to be, adding that the suit made him "look like a pimp."  This sent Wayans into a rage, and he decided to "derail" the sketch (in his and Michaels' minds) by playing the character with a major lisp on-air.  This wasn't agreed to by anyone, and Michaels went ballistic and fired him, saying Wayans had violated the shows' principles.  I can't disagree, but Wayans' subsequent success (and the fact that he was even invited back at the end of the season) tell me this wasn't that big a deal.  The whole story is in Tom Shales' SNL book.  The sketch itself does not seem to get derailed by the lisp, and will be quite funny to kids who have played Monopoly.

Norm MacDonald v. Darrell Hammond as Col. Sanders

KFC is trying to pit these two old SNL buddies against eachother.  I notice there is no mention of whether Norm is replacing Hammond, or they're setting up some sort of evil-twin-duel in the future.  Either way, the new spots with Norm are pretty great for his meta deadpan.

The lost castmembers of SNL

Yet another SNL-related post because, honestly, with everything going on in the world, this is way more interesting.  The lost castmembers of SNL (only one not on this list seems to be Richard Karn, aka Al on "Home Improvement"... I believe he auditioned for season 6 in 1980).

SNL promos!

I'm surprised the DVD sets haven't included any of these old promos, which usually run 10-20 seconds and vary from cute to clever.

Ringo Starr with Billy Crystal (1984):


Sid Caesar and Joe Piscopo (1983):


Elliot Gould (1980): This was for the season 6 premiere -- the first anyone saw of the cast that was supposed to replace the original cast.  Note the absence of Eddie Murphy (who was a featured player).  The promo is actually pretty good; too bad that 90% of the season's sketches weren't this good:


Buck Henry (1978); the original cast years seem to have only featured the host solo, without a castmember. The first part features a voiceover by Donald Rickles (no relation):


Dick Cavett (1976): an interesting idea... I wonder how many people were confused by this back then.

Epic moments with Don Rickles

Here's a compilation made by someone online with too much time on their hands.  And as one of the commenters says on the video, you'd need hours to get even 10 percent of Rickles' genius.

What's it like being a stand-up?

Crothers Games aims to give you the banal experience of drifting from town-to-town as a comedian, complete with late-1980s graphics.  Check out this free videogame (and donate if you like).

Pink Floyd, Dogs and WKRP

"WKRP in Cincinnati" is one of the most under-rated sitcoms in history.  It's "Turkeys Away" episode keeps it in the history books, but there are many, many excellent episodes among the show's 88 installments.  One scene from "Turkeys Away" not on the DVD is linked here.  It uses copyrighted music; in this case, "Dogs" by Pink Floyd, from the 1977 LP "Animals."  And the song is absolutely crucial to the dialogue (which is why a soundalike replacement wouldn't work).  Enjoy.

Let Krazy Glue Do It

From the fine folks at the Museum of Classic Chicago Television... a 1979 commercial for Krazy Glue.  THIS is what advertising is all about.  Leave me comments if you know anything about how this was produced.

Loblaws and William Shatner

This is apparently a Canadian grocery store chain.  I just like the way Shatner pronounces "Loblaws."  And I am so, so sorry for this... "Beam up the SAVINGS!"  Yikes.

Dave Letterman's Summertime Sunshine Happy Hour

On August 29, 1985, "Late Night with David Letterman" devoted an entire show to a send-up of summer replacement shows like "The Glen Campbell Goodtime Hour," "Sonny & Cher" and others from the 1960s and '70s.  They even brought in Ken Berry and John Hartford, two mainstays of the earlier shows (see yesterday's entry for "The Ken Berry WOW Show").

Although Dave had done (and would do) other theme shows, he apparently wasn't happy with this one and it was never rerun.

The Ken Berry WOW Show

In the 1960s and '70s, variety shows really did have variety to them: singing, dancing, numerous stars and comedy sketches all combined into a big mess most of the time.  And all that effort during the TV season meant the stars wanted the summer off.  The "Ken Berry WOW Show" was one such summer replacement featuring the star (fresh from "F Troop"... or something), along with Steve Martin, Cheryl Ladd (then going under her maiden name, Cheryl Stoppelmoor), Teri Garr and Carl Gottlieb (who co-wrote "Jaws" and "The Jerk").  This is the absolute epitome of variety craziness (but not disgusting variety excess, as in "The Brady Bunch Variety Hour").  Enjoy the clips below.  They'll make you say "wow."

Richard Pryor and NBC

Richard Pryor's 1977 NBC variety show is the stuff of legend -- both on-screen and off.  It was preceded by a TV special which contained, among other moments, The Pips... without Gladys Knight!  This works on so many levels.

Pryor's special aired the same night as Chevy Chase's (May 5, 1977), and here they both are promoting the specials on The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson.  Chase's segment pops up online occasionally and features a very rambling explanation and demonstration of his SNL falls; there's also a funny John Belushi cameo.

In the segment with Pryor, he clearly has little respect for Chase.  A few years later, Richard was back and had a more worthy sparring partner in guest-host Steve Martin.

Family Guy moments

Some random Family Guy moments thrown together by someone with time on their hands.

Weezer: Buddy Holly

Following on Saturday's post, here's another amazing video from the past, this time from the 1950s via the 1970s via the 1990s: "Buddy Holly" by Weezer.



And here's Beavis & Butthead's confused take on the video...

#SNL4kidz

Bobby McFerrin, "Don't Worry Be Happy"

This song was everywhere in 1988, and I was always told it's because it was on the mega-hit soundtrack of the terrible film "Cocktail."  Sound plausible, but I was also told "Wild Wild West" by Escape Club was a hit for the same reason... and it's not on the soundtrack (although on the surface, you'd think it was a better fit than Bobby McFerrin).  Here's the video with the Bill Irwin and the late Robin Williams.  By the way, seek out Irwin's "Dancing Man" short film (featuring "Shake Your Groove Thing") if you can... it aired on SNL December 20, 1980 (with a sequel on October 23, 1982).  Both are hard to find, but amazing to watch if you're an Irwin fan.

Coke v. Pepsi

I had to do a lot of research to write a paper on "New Coke," and now you will suffer the consequences in this (for some reason) French-made documentary about Coca-Cola's rivalry with Pepsi.

Also for some reason, here's Max Headroom shilling for Coke, that one time when he was actually funny.

More Starland Vocal Band and Letterman

Did you enjoy this post about the Starland Vocal Band so much you wanted more, more, more?  Here's the first episode of the group's variety show with a young David Letterman as a sort of co-host.  His segments are actually quite sharp.  Seeing Mark Russell on this show -- and out of his PBS element -- is bizarre.

And here's "Boulder to Birmingham," a lovely SVB tune written by their talented tunesmith, Bill Danoff (writer of many other big hits for others).

The Best of Ralph Wiggum

Here's naivety incarnate on The Simpsons; I believe this is an extra on one of the DVD sets, but not sure which one.



#SNL4kidz

The Academy Awards v. the BBC

The Oscars sometimes miss the mark and give the award to a less-than-enduring piece of work (such as "How Green Was My Valley" winning over "Citizen Kane").  The BBC's list of the greatest films puts the Oscars "to shame," as this author tells us.

DuMont: The 4th network

If you ever wanted to know all about the DuMont network, here's the site for you.  Along with giving Jackie Gleason his first break, and inventing a revolutionary system for "telerecording," DuMont eventually gave way to Metromedia, which formed the backbone of Fox TV 30 years after DuMont went off the air.

Prince on SNL, 1981 redux

In a call-back to this post about Prince on SNL in 1981, here's a Washington Post article that sheds more light on how the Purple One landed on the worst season of Saturday Night Live.

Tom Waits and Jeremy Irons

This has been floating around but I changed the caption.

The Beach Boys' Smile

So much has been written about the "lost" album that the Beach Boys could or should have released in 1967 to followup "Pet Sounds."  I've listened extensively to the outtakes from the disk on their 1993 boxed set, I've listened to bootleg versions, plus the albums that actually contained many of the cuts originally slated for "Smile."  And I was really excited for the 2011 "reconstruction" of what's left of the album (see below).  It sounded to me, though, like a few great tunes surrounded by a lot of atmospheric film music, despite what Rolling Stone magazine says.  None of this era really piques my interest, nor did the 2004 re-recording by Brian Wilson and his touring band.

My advice?  Grab the following songs from the group's late-60s albums; this would be side one:

-Our Prayer (from 1969's "20/20")
-Cabinessence (from "20/20")
-Wind Chimes (from "Smiley Smile," the LP released in place of "Smile")
-Vegetables ("Smiley Smile")
-Cool, Wool Water (from 1970's "Sunflower")
-Wonderful ("Smiley Smile")
-Surf's Up (from 1971's "Surf's Up" LP)

For side two, start off with any of the long, long, long edits of the bits and pieces of "Heroes and Villains."  This would have taken up almost a whole LP side in 1967 -- unprecedented (notwithstanding "Return of the Son of Monster Magnet").  There used to be an amazing, 7-minute version that used only the parts found on the 1993 boxed set.  It was encoded for RealPlayer (I found it around 1997) but, alas, it's long gone.

Close off side two with the mono single mix of "Good Vibrations" (also from "Smiley Smile").

THAT is how you follow-up "Pet Sounds."

On a side note, collecting the Beach Boys' 800000 releases (and wading through the BS) can be daunting.  I recommend the 1993 boxed set (for singles and key album tracks... ignore the fifth "Sessions" disk of weird outtakes that you'll listen to once), and the LPs "Pet Sounds," "20/20," "Sunflower" and "Surf's Up."  And that's it!

RAM on Mono

Here's some tidbits on Paul McCartney's second solo album, "Ram."

On its release in 1971, the album went to #2 in the U.S., #1 in the U.K.... and the bottom of most critics' lists.  Contemporary albums like "Sticky Fingers" and "Tapestry" fared much better.  Sadly, the whimsy of "Ram" was lost on most self-important reviewers of the time; it is an incredibly dense and complex album with -- at worst -- silly lyrics.  I keep picturing Chris Thile with a crazy handlebar mustache.

Most intriguing, it's one of the last major albums to get a separate mono mix for radio stations.  That was made available as part of the deluxe reissue of "Ram" in 2012.  So was an all-instrumental version that was recorded in 1971 and shelved until 1977, when it came out eponymous-ly credited to Percy "Thrills" Thrillington... although the mono mix got a vinyl release, "Thrillington" sadly did not.  Missing entirely is the insanely rare promotional disk of mini lead-ins for the album's tunes, titled "Brung To Ewe By" (and including bits of the song "Now Hear This Song of Mine").

One thing that struck me about the mono mix was the incredible, almost overpowering bass.  In this article, engineer Dixon Van Winkle comments on how there was almost too much bass on the album.  His fault, I'm guessing, because Paul never allowed THAT again (and never worked with Van Winkle again, as far as I can tell).  Too bad -- it sounds great.

For "Ram" fans who want even more, these gems may already be laying around in your record collection; they were recorded during the same sessions as the album...

-Another Day / Oh Woman Oh Why (released as a preview single, but not included on the album)
-Dear Friend (released on Paul's next album, "Wild Life," credited to Wings)
-Get On The Right Thing; Little Lamb Dragonfly: Big Barn Red (released on "Red Rose Speedway," credited to Paul McCartney & Wings)
-A Love For You (released on the soundtrack to 2003's "The In-Laws")
-Little Woman Love (released as the b-side to 1972's "Mary Had a Little Lamb")
-I Lie Around (released as the b-side to 1973's "Live & Let Die")
-Great Cock and Seagull Race; Rode All Night; When The Wind Is Blowing; Sunshine Sometime (unreleased until the deluxe edition)
-Hey Diddle (a snippet is available on 2001's "Wingspan" compilation)
-Seaside Woman (re-recorded and released in 1977 as a single credited to "Suzy & the Red Stripes")

This was the album that launched Paul's feud with John Lennon, with the latter feeling many of the songs were digs at him and Yoko.  Paul says maybe two lines on the whole LP are about his former partner, although there IS a pic of two beetles screwing on the back.  John reciprocated with the rocking "How Do You Sleep?" on his also-excellent "Imagine" LP later that year.  Plus, there was a postcard inside of Lennon mocking the cover to "Ram."  Google the pic, because I have yet to see a copy in real life that still included the postcard.  (By the way, same goes for the postcard in Todd Rundgren's 1973 album "A Wizard/A True Star," which is ironic since Rundgren would shortly insert himself into John and Paul's feud).

Also, try and tell me that Mexican EP (bottom right of the pic above) does NOT look like some weird, late 90s independent release.  Try it.

Watch It, Pal: Late Night with David Letterman (1984)

At various times, the writers on "Late Night (Show) with David Letterman" had jokey contests for catchphrases ("they pelted us with rocks and garbage") or slogans (such as one for New York City, which was on the infamous episode in which Drew Barrymore flashed Dave).  However, I think they nailed it way back in the early '80s with this gem, "Watch It, Pal."  I realize they're playing off NBC's "Be There" slogan, and it's meant to get people to tune in.  But Paul Shaffer's catchy ditty makes me wish there was a terrible detective show out there that had them telling crooks, "watch it, pal."

SCTV and Larry Seigel

Rick Moranis' manic and ridiculous Larry Seigel is, sadly, a prototypical Hollywood mover-and-shaker... even though this sketch is more than 30 years old.  Allegedly, he was imitating then-producer of SCTV, Barry Sand, who later worked with David Letterman.

Simon & Garfunkel in quadraphonic sound

My interest in Quadraphonic sound comes and goes, and I have 2 quad copies of Simon & Garfunkel's "Bridge Over Troubled Water" on vinyl... which turns out to be one of the best quad mixes out there.  It sounded like it was running a bit fast the one time I played "Baby Driver" for a bit.  Anyhow, here is a review of the quad version.  I also had the 45rpm audiophile edition from about 10 years ago, and never opened it.  That was apparently the best-sounding version ever. Rats.

And for good measure, my favorite song on this LP is "Keep the Customer Satisfied."  Somewhere online, it was done up by an obscure Australian group in 1971; the black-and-white clip seems to have disappeared, and I forget the name of the group.  Someone help!

What happened to Mark Russell?

Well, he's 83.  If you don't know who he is, you may recognize his Star-Spangled-theater-in-the-round set from more than 100 PBS specials from 1975-2004.  Apparently, he retired from public appearances in 2010, but he's back now, as seen on his website.  Some people love him, some people are baffled by him, as evidenced by this SNL sketch.  To see the actual Mark Russell, here's a 1988 compilation of his 1976 specials; in the cold open, he draws parallels to the 1980 and 1984 elections.  Wow.  And just for balance, here's a clip from "NewsRadio" in which Phil Hartman's character turns into a Mark Russell-ish songsmith.

Celebrating Mel Brooks

This American Film Institute Tribute to Mel Brooks features a plethora of stars... and does not feature Judd Apatow.  According to this interview, he was all set to speak but got cold feet.  He tells the story in far more interesting detail.  I've never been a huge fan of his work -- I can appreciate it but do not love most of it -- however, his interview with Terry Gross is quite good.  He talks about being a teenager and interviewing stand-ups like Jerry Seinfeld and Jay Leno.  The AFI event is quite good, too, which begins below with a musical tribute by Martin Short...




For good measure, here's Brooks imitating Frank Sinatra:

Robin Williams needs a new phone

This is a cute 1977 ad for Illinois Bell, featuring native son Robin Williams as a mischevious husband.  The lady playing his wife is NOT Pam Dawber, who would co-star with Williams the next year in "Mork & Mindy."

Ira Glass on SNL

SNL has never been shy about poking fun at NPR and public radio, as evidenced by "Schweddty Balls" and its numerous, paint-by-numbers retreads.  This piece -- with Fred Armisen doing a spot-on Ira Glass -- did not make it past dress rehearsal.  I'm guessing because it was just too inside (judging by audience reaction).  It's still enjoyable for public radio fans.

Triumph the Insult Comic Dog at the Great American Beer Festival

How can you not like Triumph the Insult Comic Dog?  Do you dislike America?  Well maybe you like craft beer... or maybe you hate it.  IRREGARDLESS, Triumph destroys the microbrews.  Thank you, Conan O'Brien and Robert Smigel.