Jump to content

Type keyword(s) to search

Rowan & Martin's Laugh In - General Discussion


  • Reply
  • Start Topic

Recommended Posts

Oh, yes! Arte Johnson was VERRRY intewesting re his characters and when Tyrone and Gladys got together it was always lots of fun (though not for either of them due to Gladys being shocked and Tyrone getting whacked with her purse for his efforts).  I've often wondered why Mr. Johnson did very little after this because this show demonstrated how much of a creative genius he was (especially since the performers had to develop memorable characters who literally had only seconds to make their mark before the next segment started).

    Let's also salute the late Judy Carne who was believable as the swinging 'mod' co-ed as well as the temperamental 'Judy Doll' who more than took care of 'mashers' (and it was hilarious seeing her as a robot wife to Arte Johnson's robot husband).

   Goldie Hawn sure proved to be 'dumb as a fox' as Miss Carne once put it.

   Then, Joanne Worley was quite the character but it seems that was mainly because SHE herself is a character!

Ironically, even though Dan Rowan and Dick Martin were the show's stars (and they made sure the audience never forgot it), IMO, they weren't as funny as the rest of the cast even though each of them had their moments (e.g. when Mr. Martin played the boozing drunk flirting with Ruth Buzzi's bar belle character).

   Thankfully, Mr. Martin was able to make a good second career for himself as a director after this and would live to 86 despite the fact that he'd had to make due with a collapsed lung since his teens (which, in retrospect, makes it all the more appalling that his partner Dan Rowan chain smoked next to him without the slightest consideration).

  • Love 1

Dick Martin's best character on the show probably had to be...Dick Martin.  He was basically doing the same shtick as Goldie, but with added horndog on top.  This is best evidenced in the one episode when Johnny Carson guest hosted in Dick's place.  And he put on the Dick character.

And of course there was the entire cast portraying the Farkel family, with Dick as neighbor Ferd Berford.

  • Love 2

Oh yes!!  I totally forgot to mention the Farkels.  Hilarious......

It is really cool how many went on to good careers.  Goldie, Lily, Henry, Arte (I have seen him in old TV shows like Rockford Files, etc) Others to a lesser degree.

Joanne Worley was a little over the top for my taste.

The guest stars they got was an amazing list.  Even Pres. Nixon after the fun they poked at him every week.  Can you imagine Trump doing anything like that?

I think not......

Milburn,

 

 That was true as long as the show itself was fresh. Alas, by the last year when virtually the whole original cast, save The Stars (R&M), Gary Owens and Ruth Buzzi departed en masse,  they just seemed to symbolize how tired the whole thing had become. They were having Alan Sues dress up as JoAnne Worley to make Boris jokes. Lame.

I've been watching the sixth season on Decades.  It really is not that great, and it feels like a lot of the last season regulars are simply meant as copies of more popular originals.  For example, they have a blonde actress named Sarah Kennedy who might as well be called "Holdie Gawn."  She looks just like Goldie and she and another brunette performer do the same "giggly" shtick that Goldie did.  I guess what was cute in 1967 or 68 just seems tired by 1973.  And I can't even discuss the ventriloquist, adding children as regular cast members or the Beautiful Downtown Beauties, who are the Laugh In equivalent of the women who introduce prizes on the Price is Right.  There are some decent sketches and performers, but the excitement and daring is gone.         

Edited by txhorns79

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Restore formatting

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

×
×
  • Create New...