Favorite comedians and TV comedy shows past and present

[trying2win]

--As a lot of us know, you're not going to find much comedy in the news media (with perhaps the exception of some bungling politicians).

--As someone once aptly put it..."The news media likes to dwell on the negative of what the minority of the people in the world are doing."

--They say laughter is the best medicine. Lot of truth to that old cliche. We can all do with a good laugh now and then. With that in mind, it would be interesting to read what are some of the PA members favorite comedians and TV comedy shows, past and present.
--
Favorite comedians that have made me laugh a lot over the years:

- Jackie Gleason, Art Carney, Jack Benny, Don Adams, Red Skelton,
Lucille Ball, Rodney Dangerfield, Johnny Carson, Harvey Korman, Tim Conway, Carol O'Connor. Robin Williams, Jay Leno.

Favorite TV comedy shows (shouldn't be surprising that they include a lot of the comedians listed above):

-The Honeymooners
-The Jack Benny Show
-Get Smart
-Red Skelton Show
-I Love Lucy
-The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson
-The Carol Burnett Show (only the part when Harvey Korman and Tim Conway were doing a skit together)
-All In the Family
-The Tonight Show with Jay Leno

-- A couple of sidenotes...I used to get a lot of laughs watching Rich Little's impersonations of famous people on TV. Robin Williams makes me laugh myself silly, when he's a guest on a talk show and he starts doing impersonations of people of different ethnic origins.

--I might have overlooked listing the odd comedian, but that's enough for now.

--One last note...I've gotten a kick out of the wit and humor of the Canandaigua kid. Thanks for lots of laughs Tom, since I've become a PACE ADVANTAGE member.

Regards,

Trying2win

[so.cal.fan]

I used to love Jackie Gleason and Red Skelton when I was a kid growing up with TV.
My family would all sit around the TV and wait for Jackie Gleason to make his famous stance and yell "and away we go"!
Red Skelton's Freddie the Freeloader was another favorite.
My favorite modern day comedian is our very own:

TOM
:D :D :D

[sq764]

Being 30, I didn't get to appreciate the oldies, so my favorite comdians are more recent:

John Candy, Chevy Chase, Steve Martin, Homer Simpson :-)

[Speed Figure]

I love the old Black shows.

1.What's Happening

2.Good Times

3.Martin Lawrence (Martin Show)

I'm a 31 year old Hip-Hopper!

[Big Bill]

Seeing Red Skelton's name mentioned in these posts reminded me of when he would do the two seagull jokes. I think he named them Gertrude and Heathcliff.

And one of those jokes would fit in perfectly on this board. Red would flap his elbos as he told how the two were flying over a race track. Gertrude said, "Look Heathcliff, were flying over a race track". And Heathcliff replied, "Yes, I know, and I just put everything I had on number five."

Anyone else remember that? If so, your as old as me! <g>

Big Bill

[shanta]

THESE ARE MY FAVS:

1)LUCILLE BALL

2)ROBIN WILLIAMS

3)JACKIE GLEASON

4) REDD FOXX

5)STEVEN WRIGHT

AS FAR AS FUNNIEST SHOW: I LOVE LUCY!!!!!:)

[Tom]

T2Win...thanks for the commnet-I always figured if you can't laugh at something, then damn it, laugh at it!

Shanta- LOVE Steven Wright.....
"I bought some instant water.....don't what to add to it!"
"I went to drug store that was open all night and the guy was just cloing. Your sign says open 24 hours I told him, and he says
Not in a ROW!"
"I once made instant coffee in a microwave oven....I went back in time!"

[shanta]

TOM IS STEVEN WRIGHT STILL AROUND??? I HAVE NOT SEEN HIM IN YEARS. THAT WAS 1 REAL SICK PUPPY IN HIS TIME BOY!!!!!

[kenwoodallpromos]

Cheech and Chong!! Benny Hill. Jim Carey. / Show- Jack of all Trades. Laugh-in. Jeffersons. Barney Miller. Night Court. And of course, MR. ED!!!!

[Lefty]

Just heard a rasio advert today for Wright. he's appearing somewhere in Vegas. He's a hoot.
But, hands down, funniest show ever is: Tv Guide had it right: SEINFELD. Had it all; writing, and acting.
Funniest bit: Did you ever see Jerry VanDyke do his pantomine routine of "How The Lone Ranger Became The Lone Ranger. He used the actual soundtrack from the old radio show. Saw him do it yrs ago on the tonight show and it had me on the floor. If I coulda got the old lady down there too it woulda been nirvana.

[COUGAR]

A smile came to my face thinking of RED SKELTON, he was my child hood favorite. Freddy the freeloader... I love it...

COUGAR

[Valuist]

Best shows no longer running: Seinfeld, Andy Griffith, All in the Family

Best current show: Curb Your Enthusiasm

Speed Figure-you forgot the Jeffersons??

[Speed Figure]

Valuist,

I also forgot "Sanford and Son"

[Valuist]

That was a classic show. Some real characters; Aunt Esther was always funny, as was Fred.

I thought TV was at its peak in the 70s. I can't stomach watching 99% of the garbage thats on now.

[trying2win]

Just remembered that I neglected to mention two other TV shows, that I used to get a kick out of...i.e. The Dean Martin Show, plus Sanford and Son.

In addition, here's a few classic lines that Rodney Dangerfield (one of my all-time favorite comedians) has said in the past:

--"I tell ya, I don't get no respect...Like on the last Halloween when the kids came to my door. They'd yelled out TRICK OR TREAT!...When I opened the door and they saw my face, they gave me candy!"

--"My wife and I just joined a bridge club. We jump off next Tuesday."

--"I tell ya, my wife ain't so bright. Like the other day, I lent her my car. When she came home later in the day, I said..WHERE'S MY CAR?...She's said it was stolen out of the supermarket parking lot. I said...Did you get a description of the bandit?...She said no, but I got the license plate number."

--"I tell ya, I don't get no respect from my doctor either. Like the other day, he told me...RODNEY, YOU'RE OVERWEIGHT...I said to him, I want to get a second opinion...he told me okay YOU'RE UGLY TOO!"

--"I tell ya, I got no luck with women. Like the other day, I was in a phone booth. There was some writing on the wall....it read PHONE ME, I'M LONELY... So, I dialled the number...A man answered...he said that's right I'M LONELY."

--"I tell ya, I don't get no respect...like the other day, I phoned up Gambler's Anonymous. They gave me 2-1 I couldn't kick my gambling habit."

Regards,

Trying2win

[Tom]

A bartender asked me if I have any nude pictures of my wife.
I told him no. He says "You want some?"

[kingfin66]

Bill Hicks

George Carlin

Somebody mentioned Seinfeld. Does anybody watch Curb Your Enthusiam on HBO? It is written, produced and starred in my Seinfeld co-creator Larry David. Hilarious stuff.

[trying2win]

Kingfin,

--Just saw George Carlin recently on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno. He's still got that offbeat, sense of humor. It's amazing how George can still rattle off one joke after another in rapid succession. George Carlin's been around a long time. I can still remember years ago when he used to do the "Hippy Dippy Weatherman" jokes.

--Yes, it's good for your health to have a few laughs. I once read an old axiom on the subject...It went something like: "The three best doctors for your health are Dr. Diet, Dr. Quiet, and Dr. Merryman." Some wise advice there.

Trying2win

[kingfin66]

Try to check out Carlin's Complaints and Grievances on HBO if you can. It is laugh out loud funny. The guy does a bit on people he wants to die; including people who let their kids leave outgoing messages on the answering machine and guys named Todd.

[sq764]

Anyone follow Lewis Black? I think he is on the Jon Stewart Daily show now.. I think he is hilarious..

My wife and I wanted to catch him live, but he never seems to get to the east coast much..

[dav4463]

I think David Letterman is much funnier than Jay Leno. Best comedy TV shows....I like Andy Griffith, Leave it to Beaver, Sanford and Son......

[Tom]

Originally posted by sq764
Anyone follow Lewis Black? I think he is on the Jon Stewart Daily show now.. I think he is hilarious..

My wife and I wanted to catch him live, but he never seems to get to the east coast much..


That guy is a riot! I love his specials on Comedy Central.
Guy is just out there.
I love his bit about the candy corn at Halloween. :D :D :D

[melman]

Kind of suprised we went this long without the name of Bob Hope. The master of timing and the one liner. A man in a class all his own in my view. If some of the younger people can rent some of his movies or get tapes of his trips overseas for the US armed forces you will know genius when you laugh at it. Although Mr Hope is gone now "Thanks for the Memories".

[cj]

Top comedy shows I always watch, even though I've seen them 1,000 times!

1. Seinfeld
2. Cheers
3. Newhart (either one)
4. All In The Family
5. Police Squad (very hard to find)

[lsbets]

Southpark.
Totally demented and off the wall, but when I was in Bosnia, we could not wait to get the new episode in the mail. My First Sergeant's wife would tape it and mail it every week. We would watch it, and then give it to our soldiers to watch, and then for the next 6 days all you would hear is everyone quoting the new episode. I always smile when I see it now, and think of the guys I deployed with. I'll probably leave it on in 50 years for that reason.

[Lefty]

Funny thing about Police Squad: When it was first on TV it wasn't successful, yet the Naked Gun Movies were a big success and it's the same characters and joke engine; just a different name and longer format. Funny funny stuff.

[sq764]

CJ, how can you leave out The Simpsons?

[cj]

If I want good animated comedy, I watch Loony Toons! I don't mind The Simpsons, South Park, etc, but I like real actors better.

[sq764]

You're telling me Homer isn't real?

[Binder]

Anything by

Mel Brooks ...

I also love reruns of
The Odd Couple
and Seinfield

[Tom]

My two mentors are Homer Simpson and Al Bundy.
When I wan Looney Tunes, I go to work.
:D

Take my boss, PLEASE!

[sq764]

After they had the episode where Bart rode the racehorse and they had Trevor Denman announcing, they had finally finished toughing every aspect of my life (Beer, horseracing and acting like immature 95% of the time)

[trying2win]

--I also get a lot of laughs from watching some entertainers on TV, who do impersonations of famous people, past and present. Among my favorites in this category are:

--Rich Little, Frank Gorshin and Darrell Hammond (from Saturday Night Live).

Trying2win

[hdcper]

How about Laurel and Hardy!!

And my favorite is Who's on First by Abbott and Costello

Another one of my favorite lines from Rodney:

I get no respect, when I sit in the sandbox the cat covers me up!


In closing, Grace Allen and George Burns.

Enjoyed reading this post,

Bill

[Tom]

.....the THREE STOOGIES!

knuck, knuck,knuck!:eek:

[trying2win]

--"I tell ya, my old man gave me no respect...when I was a kid, I asked my old man to take me to the zoo. He said I can't. They don't have any cages for you."

--"When I was young kid, I got no respect from the other kids in the neighbourhood. When we played hide-and-go seek and it was my turn to hide, they wouldn't go look for me."


Are you a Rodney Dangerfield fan too? More funny stuff at his website at www.rodney.com if you're interested.

Trying2win

[BillW]

We just lost another great one. Art Carney died this past weekend at age 85.

[trying2win]

Bill,

--Thanks for the info. I didn't know Art Carney passed away recently. Sorry to hear that.

-- I fondly remember those old TV shows with Jackie Gleason as Ralph Kramden, and Art Carney as Ed Norton, starring in THE HONEYMOONERS. One of my all-time favorite comedy shows.

--Ralph Kramden certainly had some familiar phrases like "You're a riot Alice, a regular riot!"...and way he pronounced Norton as "NAWTIN". Then there were times when Norton was bugging Kramden about something, and Kramden would yell at him..."Will you STOP THAT!"

--Then there was Ed Norton saying things like "Hey Ralphy boy".


--I still get lots of laughs, when I watch those old Honeymooner shows when they appear on TV now and then.

Trying2win

[so.cal.fan]

My all time favorites before TV were :
W.C. Fields and the Marx Brothers

If any of you want a great laugh, get a video of "A Day at The Races"

One old clocker I knew years ago, always quoted W.C. Fields....."Never give a sucker an even break or smarten up a chump" LOL

[MarylandPaul@HSH]

This classic Honeymooner's episode? Ralph enters the "Name that Tune" competition. Norton is playing songs on the piano to quiz Ralphie in preparation for the show. Before every song he plays, Norton plays a few simple notes of the same song to warm up (damn I can't rememer the song...was it Swannie River?), which drives Ralph nuts; he yells at him every time.

Ralph gets to the show, and sails through to the big final question, and the song he gets is that little ditty that Norton warms up with, which of course he doesn't know.

Classic, just classic...

MP