Some Dope on “The Comic”
Today is also Carl Reiner’s birthday — he was born the exact same day as Ray Goulding! What a great day for comedy. (And interesting to note…in routines with Sid Caesar and Mel Brooks, Reiner was usually a straight man very much analogous to the role Bob played for Ray).
I talk a little about Reiner in my new book Chain of Fools, mostly in the context of his 1969 silent comedy homage The Comic. Here’s a cool panel discussion he, Dick Van Dyke and Michelle Lee did on the subject of that film a few years back:
To find out more about the variety arts past and present, consult No Applause, Just Throw Money: The Book That Made Vaudeville Famous, available at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and wherever nutty books are sold.
And don’t miss my new book Chain of Fools: Silent Comedy and Its Legacies from Nickelodeons to Youtube, just released by Bear Manor Media, also available from amazon.com etc etc etc
March 20, 2013 at 5:49 pm
I was at that panel discussion last year. Carl Reiner and Dick Van Dyke actually stayed to watch “The Comic” after their talk, and sat in the row behind me. Throughout the film, one could hear Reiner’s deep, hearty laugh reacting to his own creation — probably the best way to watch the movie.
March 20, 2013 at 5:57 pm
I’ll say! I’ll go out on a limb and say THE best!