Philosophy
Brothers, Sisters, and Transgendered Comedists Everywhere,
This week saw the birthday of Dan Aykroyd. Born on July 1, 1952 in Ottawa, he gave us some of the finest comedy of the late 20th century. Intending to be a Catholic priest...until he was expelled from seminary for dressing a pig up like the Pope, he only turned to comedy late in life. Dan Aykroyd is genetically predetermined to be funny, born with both webbed feet and different colored eyes, he went on to work with the Second City and National Lampoon troupes before...
Except for Sid Caesar's Show of Shows with writers like Mel Brooks, Carl Reiner, Neil Simon (who also celebrated his birthday this week), Woody Allen, and Larry Gelbart, I'm not sure there has ever been as concentrated a density of comic talent as in that first Saturday Night Live cast and Aykroyd was truly at the heart of it.
The coneheads, point-counterpoint (Jane, you ignorant slut),Bag-o-glass, and Fred Garvin, male prostitute are nothing short of classics. Here are two of my favorites, the swinging Czech brothers,
and Bass-o-matic, .
If he had stopped there, he would have had a career and a half, but then there are the films. He starred in many, but then there are the big two. Ghostbusters (You never studied) and of course,
(We're on a mission from God) And then there was his work with House of Blues.
Happy birthday, Dan Aykroyd. What are your favorite Aykroyd moments?
- Feast Of Saint Dick
My Fellow Comedists, This week is brings us the birthday of Dick Smothers, straight man and stand-up bass player with his brother Tommy as part, of course, of the legendary Smothers Brothers. Before there was Saturday Night Live, before there was Laugh...
- The Feast Of Saint John
My Fellow Comedists, This weekend would have been the 52nd birthday of John Belushi, the Hunter S. Thompson of comedy. He was born in Chicago to first-generation Albanian-Americans in Chicago, growing up just outside the city. In high-school, he was a...
- Feat Of Saint Sid
My Fellow Comedists, This week brings us the feast of Saint Sid. Sid Caesar turns 88. His Your Show of Shows took comedy from Vaudeville into the suburban world of grey suited middle managers of the 1950s. He could do the slapstick, he could do the highbrow...
- The Feast Of Saint David
Brothers, Sisters, and Transgendered Comedists Everywhere, This week we celebrated the feast day of Saint David. David Brenner is 73 years old. The son of a vaudeville performer, growing up in the tough parts of Philly, he became a pivotal figure in stand-up....
- Feast Of Saint Bill
Brothers, Sisters, and Transgendered Comedists Everywhere, This week saw the feast day of Saint Bill. Bill Murray turned 58. A native Chicagoan, he was born into a large Catholic family. Murray worked his way through Catholic school as a caddy and then...
Philosophy
Feast of Saint Dan
Brothers, Sisters, and Transgendered Comedists Everywhere,
This week saw the birthday of Dan Aykroyd. Born on July 1, 1952 in Ottawa, he gave us some of the finest comedy of the late 20th century. Intending to be a Catholic priest...until he was expelled from seminary for dressing a pig up like the Pope, he only turned to comedy late in life. Dan Aykroyd is genetically predetermined to be funny, born with both webbed feet and different colored eyes, he went on to work with the Second City and National Lampoon troupes before...
Except for Sid Caesar's Show of Shows with writers like Mel Brooks, Carl Reiner, Neil Simon (who also celebrated his birthday this week), Woody Allen, and Larry Gelbart, I'm not sure there has ever been as concentrated a density of comic talent as in that first Saturday Night Live cast and Aykroyd was truly at the heart of it.
The coneheads, point-counterpoint (Jane, you ignorant slut),Bag-o-glass, and Fred Garvin, male prostitute are nothing short of classics. Here are two of my favorites, the swinging Czech brothers,
and Bass-o-matic, .
If he had stopped there, he would have had a career and a half, but then there are the films. He starred in many, but then there are the big two. Ghostbusters (You never studied) and of course,
(We're on a mission from God) And then there was his work with House of Blues.
Happy birthday, Dan Aykroyd. What are your favorite Aykroyd moments?
- Feast Of Saint Dick
My Fellow Comedists, This week is brings us the birthday of Dick Smothers, straight man and stand-up bass player with his brother Tommy as part, of course, of the legendary Smothers Brothers. Before there was Saturday Night Live, before there was Laugh...
- The Feast Of Saint John
My Fellow Comedists, This weekend would have been the 52nd birthday of John Belushi, the Hunter S. Thompson of comedy. He was born in Chicago to first-generation Albanian-Americans in Chicago, growing up just outside the city. In high-school, he was a...
- Feat Of Saint Sid
My Fellow Comedists, This week brings us the feast of Saint Sid. Sid Caesar turns 88. His Your Show of Shows took comedy from Vaudeville into the suburban world of grey suited middle managers of the 1950s. He could do the slapstick, he could do the highbrow...
- The Feast Of Saint David
Brothers, Sisters, and Transgendered Comedists Everywhere, This week we celebrated the feast day of Saint David. David Brenner is 73 years old. The son of a vaudeville performer, growing up in the tough parts of Philly, he became a pivotal figure in stand-up....
- Feast Of Saint Bill
Brothers, Sisters, and Transgendered Comedists Everywhere, This week saw the feast day of Saint Bill. Bill Murray turned 58. A native Chicagoan, he was born into a large Catholic family. Murray worked his way through Catholic school as a caddy and then...