bebanovich
03-08-2005, 12:06 AM
As a lover of comedy, I am really enjoying using the PVR to take a look at the work of my favorite comedic actors. I don't mean "clown" in the traditional sense, and I'm not simply talking about the best comedians (Richard Pryor wrapped that one up for me in about 1972). I mean those people who, regardless of the material (and sometimes in spite of it), are just plain fun to watch and are always worthy of the rewind button just to get a better appreciation of a gesture, inflection, eyebrow raise, etc. Anyway, I whittled my list down to 5 just to see if anyone else might bite on this topic . . .
1) Harpo Marx - He commands the screen equally with two of the quickest wits ever (sorry Zeppo and Gummo) and never says a word. 'Nough said.
2) Michael Richards - Watching him on Seinfeld is the reason I started thinking about this thread. I loved this guy when he was on Fridays and even when he did his cigarette-smoking fitness guru schtick on Carson. I find myself rewinding parts of Seinfeld just to catch his reaction to the other characters' lines. I defy anyone to find a moment when he's onscreen and not a) in character b) working and c) just plain fun to look at.
3) Redd Foxx - I have only run across a couple of people who agree with me on this one and it's not the "This is the big one, Elizabeth. I'm comin' to join ya honey," bit (oh how the 70s loved their catch phrases). This guy just made it look effortless. He delivered some of his best lines as if he were simply thowing away a gum wrapper. Just to watch him walk across the room is enough to make me smile.
4) Ted Knight - Ted Baxter and Judge Smails . . . has anyone even approached this level of stuffy buffoonery? It's a shame he never appreciated the importance of his own comic genius and ended up feeling like a frustrated dramatic actor. On the Mary Tyler-Moore show, I don't think anyone else could have brought such believable absurdity to an otherwise (somewhat) realistic sitcom.
5) Dick Van Dyke - Edges out Art Carney for me. The king of TV slapstick and the second best stammerer in TV history (after Bob Newhart). For evidence, try to catch the Stay-awake-a-thon episode where he has to stay awake on on the radio for 100 hours.
Crap, I've gotten to #5 and haven't mentioned John Cleese as Basil Fawlty . . . oh well, ask me again in 10 minutes and the list will be 60% different. Hard to limit to five but I want to hear others' opinions. Any takers?
1) Harpo Marx - He commands the screen equally with two of the quickest wits ever (sorry Zeppo and Gummo) and never says a word. 'Nough said.
2) Michael Richards - Watching him on Seinfeld is the reason I started thinking about this thread. I loved this guy when he was on Fridays and even when he did his cigarette-smoking fitness guru schtick on Carson. I find myself rewinding parts of Seinfeld just to catch his reaction to the other characters' lines. I defy anyone to find a moment when he's onscreen and not a) in character b) working and c) just plain fun to look at.
3) Redd Foxx - I have only run across a couple of people who agree with me on this one and it's not the "This is the big one, Elizabeth. I'm comin' to join ya honey," bit (oh how the 70s loved their catch phrases). This guy just made it look effortless. He delivered some of his best lines as if he were simply thowing away a gum wrapper. Just to watch him walk across the room is enough to make me smile.
4) Ted Knight - Ted Baxter and Judge Smails . . . has anyone even approached this level of stuffy buffoonery? It's a shame he never appreciated the importance of his own comic genius and ended up feeling like a frustrated dramatic actor. On the Mary Tyler-Moore show, I don't think anyone else could have brought such believable absurdity to an otherwise (somewhat) realistic sitcom.
5) Dick Van Dyke - Edges out Art Carney for me. The king of TV slapstick and the second best stammerer in TV history (after Bob Newhart). For evidence, try to catch the Stay-awake-a-thon episode where he has to stay awake on on the radio for 100 hours.
Crap, I've gotten to #5 and haven't mentioned John Cleese as Basil Fawlty . . . oh well, ask me again in 10 minutes and the list will be 60% different. Hard to limit to five but I want to hear others' opinions. Any takers?