Saturday, January 24, 2009

Funny, I didn't remember them.

We enjoyed some about a week of warm weather here in Colorado, but it has cooled off again, so I spent the afternoon working around the house and listening to NPR. Good thing, as I heard a great story on This American Life.

It was about Charlie Brill and Mitzi McCall, a couple of comedians who you may remember from appearances on such shows as The Match Game and The Love Boat. Back in the early 60's, they were a struggling comedy team (they are also married), when they finally got their big break to be on the Ed Sullivan show. There was another act going to be on the show they were excited about meeting....Frank Gorshin (an impressionist who you may remember as The Riddler on "Batman"). They weren't really to aware of a certain musical act from Britain who were making their first appearance in the US.

You should really take the time to go here and listen to the whole story (it starts about 5 minutes into the show). I can't really do justice to the way they tell it here. Suffice it to say, in their own words "We Sucked!".

I remember seeing that show....well, that is, I remember seeing the Beatles on Ed Sullivan, a memory as important in my young life as JFK's assassination and man on the moon. But I don't have any recall of Charlie and Mitzi. I think those young English lads made a bigger impression.

Now, in case you missed the Fab Four, here they are (sorry, couldn't find Charlie and Mitzi)

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