A Request From Dear Editor

Hello all... Stupid Monkey here. I received a request from our Dear Editor to add to this wondrous bloggy thingy during his absence.
 
So, for my first post I thought it only appropriate to share a video clip of our Dear Editor's request of me.

In other words... Don't blame me if we go off track.

More Blazing Saddles as Obama/McCain Race

In the post below, I used imagery from the Mel Brooks classic Blazing Saddles to make a point about racism in the Barack Obama/John McCain race for the presidency. The more I thought about it, the more sense it made to me. So, I did a search on the Google for "Barack Obama" + "Blazing Saddles." Not surprisingly, there were quite a few hits.

My favorite, was this video, chronicling the race so far by using clips from the movie. It could benefit from some paring down, but just when I would think it had gone on too long, another choice, perfect moment would come along. You have to stick around for the classic Gene Wilder (Joe Biden) line about "people of the earth." And of course, McCain's (Harvey Korman) reorganization of his campaign. And Madeline Kahn/Lily von Schtupp as Hillary Clinton? Brilliant!

I'd love to see this clip tightened up a little, and see it go viral on the web. Very funny stuff.

Tim Conway and the Elephant Story

I lamented Harvey Korman's passage earlier on the blog, and I got to thinking about some of the best sketches on The Carol Burnett Show. While Harvey's sketches could make you laugh out loud, there was one sketch that truly slayed me, but it was after Harvey left the show. His replacement was Dick Van Dyke, but even a pro like that couldn't hold it together when Tim Conway was on a roll. Take a look.

In Memory of Harley Korman (That's Harvey!)

Image from Kenneth in the (212)

I haven't yet reached the age where I'm losing large chunks of family or friends. In fact, I really dread that day. But I'm old enough to start losing cherished bits of my childhood and young adulthood. Many of the entertainers I enjoyed so much back in the 1970s and 80s are sadly leaving us.

The first celebrity passing that knocked me for a loop was Gilda Radner. So sweet, so talented, and unfortunately underused as a performer, it just didn't seem right somehow. Then, several years later, Madeline Kahn was felled by the same dreaded disease. How difficult it must have been for Gene Wilder, having been married to Radner, and friends with Kahn. And poor Mel Brooks too, who lost his wife, Anne Bancroft. How strange that these celebrity deaths hit me harder than most, and were so connected.

Now there has been another one, Harvey Korman. Another of Mel Brooks' fabled company of performers, Korman was a delight as the prissy, self-important Heddy (that's Hedley!) LaMarr in Blazing Saddles, and Count de Money (de Monet, de Monet!) in History of the World Part 1. He also played Dr. Montague in High Anxiety as slave to dominatrix Nurse Diesel (Cloris Leachman). Of course, he is probably best known as one of the talented group of comics on The Carol Burnett Show, often (and best) paired with Tim Conway.

The sad part is, many of the rest of the best of these costars are in their seventies and eighties. I fear it won't be long before I end up like my grandparents, pointing to Randolph Scott and Gary Cooper, lamenting their passing. Sigh. Sorry for the bring-down. Let's try bringing it back up with some of Harvey Korman's best bits, shall we?