Tag: Richard Benjamin

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April 5, 1980 – Richard Benjamin and Paula Prentiss / The Grateful Dead (S5 E15)

Segments are rated on a scale of 1-5 stars


DISCLAIMER
Police Boat will not be seen tonight


COLD OPENING
Carter Held Hostage- Frank Reynolds (HAS) covers presidential agoraphobia

   

— Hearing Harry’s Tom Snyder voice-over talking during a picture montage of President Carter really makes one yearn for Dan Aykroyd’s presence this season.
— “Carter Held Hostage”. A very funny concept. Though why does this make me think of the upcoming 80-81 season? Maybe I’m thinking of the “America Not Held Hostage Anymore” cold opening I remember seeing from that season.
— Oh, it turns out Harry’s not playing Tom Snyder; he’s Frank Reynolds. I sure don’t see any difference with the voice, though. As much as I enjoy Harry Shearer, quite a number of his celebrity impressions this season are vocally interchangeable with one another.
— Boy, the audience is pretty quiet during this sketch.
— It almost seemed like Paula Prentiss forgot one of her lines at one point. Maybe that was just an odd character choice.
— A passing reference to President Carter’s infamous rabbit attack.
— I believe this is Harry’s very first LFNY.
— Overall, despite the promising concept, this ended up being not too great and the interview portions dragged.
STARS: **


MONOLOGUE
Paula downplays Richard’s irritation over being cut from the cold opening

— Richard’s increasing bitterness over being cut from the cold opening is pretty funny.
— Decent ending with Richard finding out his Barry Manilow impression was cut as well.
STARS: ***


JESUS CRUSH
little girls (GIR) & (LAN) fantasize about their dream guy Jesus

   

— I liked Gilda’s line about Jesus not being a snob because he hangs out with lepers.
— Did I hear right? Gilda’s character is named Debbie Nimrod????
— Gilda telling Laraine “You can have Lazarus” was great.
— Cute sketch so far.
— Gilda’s character mentions Bill Murray’s name as one of the many celebrities she and Jesus are going to the roller disco with.
— The ending with Paula was VERY awkward. What was up with that? Something seemed to go wrong. Also, why did it sound like she spoke with an accent at times?
— Overall, despite the weak ending, this was a very good sketch. Felt like something they would’ve done in the first two seasons.
STARS: ****


MUSICAL PERFORMANCE
musical guest performs “Alabama Getaway”


POST-COITAL TORTURE
married (Richard) experiences paranoid guilt after infidelity with (LAN)

   

— Two back-to-back bedroom sketches co-starring Laraine tonight.
— Richard’s breakdown, repeating “Why am I here?” while banging his head against the door, is very funny.
— Loved Richard’s silent long scream when someone knocks on the door.
— The whole part with Laraine fooling Richard into thinking his wife has come over is absolutely great. Garrett confused reaction also added to the humor.
— Garrett’s comments are funny.
— Good ending.
— Overall, another solid slice-of-life sketch tonight.
STARS: ****


WEEKEND UPDATE
Big Vic Ricker reports on women’s golf & the probable baseball strike
ALF asks viewers to send him their receipts so he can avoid income taxes
BIM sings “Happy Birthday” to the Three Mile Island accident

     

— The return of Big Vic Ricker. Good to see Harry get a recurring character.
— Liked the part with Harry’s “Let’s see that one more time” (*no clip plays*) “Okay, let’s don’t.”
— Another follow-up to the Al Franken Decade storyline.
— Hmm, Al talking about how impressive the amount of money he makes is. Wouldn’t he later do an Update commentary with that same premise, in the Jeff Daniels episode from 1991?
— Okay, Al’s commentary ended up going in a different direction, but overall, it was completely forgettable. His Update bits haven’t been doing too well lately.
— The bit between Bill and Jane about how much money Jane is worth had some pretty funny lines from Bill, and for historical purposes, I liked hearing him make a reference to NBC’s infamous then-current disastrous variety show “Pink Lady and Jeff”.
— Bill brings back his usual smarmy singing of “Happy Birthday”, this time to the Three Mile Island incident. This was worth it just for the visual of a birthday cake with a nuclear meltdown birthday candle.
— During her sign-off, Jane says “Feel better, Larry”. Who was that referring to?
STARS: ***


ASSERTIVENESS TRAINING
Iris de Flaminio (JAC), Bobbi Farber, Christy Christina get assertive

  

— The debut of Jane’s Iris De Flaminio character. This is a well-known character from this season, and I’m surprised to see Jane didn’t start playing her until the homestretch of the season. It’s rare for a cast member to debut one of their most popular characters right before they leave the show. The only other example that comes to mind is Vanessa Bayer’s gibberish-spouting weather lady.
— Hmm, Jane’s doing the same voice she used as a Dolly Parton impersonator in the preceding episode’s David Susskind Show sketch.
— Always nice to see Gilda’s Bobbi Farber.
— Jane is great in this.
— Laraine explaining that her compliment to herself in the mirror was “I want to be inside you” was very funny.
— Where have I heard Laraine do that high-pitched laugh before?
— Once again tonight, Paula’s timing and delivery is coming off a little awkward at times.
— Oh, now I think I know why Laraine’s character and laugh seems so familiar. Is this her character from the E. Buzz Miller sketches?
— Strange ending with Paula and Laraine.
— Overall, a very enjoyable ensemble sketch for the female cast members, with each of them doing solid character work.
STARS: ****


THE FRANKEN AND DAVIS SHOW
Khomeini the Magnificent (ALF) does Iranian version of Carnac bit

 

— Oh, they’re still doing the Franken and Davis Show? I had assumed they retired it this season.
— Funny concept with Al playing Ayatollah as Johnny Carson’s Carnac the Magnificent.
— The “Day-O” joke about the hostages in Iran was hilarious.
— Fun sketch so far.
— Al even managed to get laughs out of his line flub about a prayer rug.
— Tom’s good at doing the Ed McMahon laughing.
— The Shah/cat food joke was another hilarious one.
STARS: ***½


JOEY BISHOP FANS
Joey Bishop fans (BIM) & (GIR) find common ground with neighbors (hosts)

   

— The performers are doing a good job with the long, tense, stretched-out silences.
— A good laugh from Richard’s excitement when Joey Bishop first got mentioned.
— So much energy in this.
— Great sudden turn with Bill and Gilda’s mood turning sour when they disagree with Richard and Paula’s claim that Joey’s late show is better than his early show.
— Loved Bill’s angry yelling of “What people!!!” after slamming the door.
— Funny ending with Bill getting overemotional and asking for his pills, and relating that to Joey Bishop.
STARS: ****


MUSICAL PERFORMANCE
musical guest performs “Saint of Circumstances”


MR. BILL STRIKES BACK
by Walter Williams- trip to the police backfires

     

— Wow, it’s actually been a good while since this character last appeared.
— “Sgt. O’Hanahan”. Heh, I see where going; O’Hanahan’s going to turn out to be Mr. Hands in disguise.
— Overall, not much to say, but this was pretty funny.
STARS: ***


GOODNIGHTS

 

IMMEDIATE POST-SHOW THOUGHTS:
— This was easily the best episode from the second half of the season so far. While the prior episodes from this half of the season have been either disappointing or just average, tonight’s episode was very solid, with a lot of well-written and well-performed sketches. Aside from the cold opening, there weren’t any sketches that fell flat for me; pretty much everything in tonight’s show worked. I also like how we got several slice-of-life pieces, which has become more of a rarity at this late stage in the original SNL era; it made this feel more like an episode from the first three seasons.
— If there was any downside to this episode, it’s that I felt Paula Prentiss was kind of a weak co-host. She seemed to falter a bit in the sketches where she wasn’t working with Richard Benjamin. She did fine whenever she was alongside him, though.


HOW THIS EPISODE STACKS UP AGAINST THE PRECEDING ONE (Paul Simon and James Taylor):
— a step up


My full set of screencaps for this episode is here


TOMORROW:
Burt Reynolds

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April 7, 1979 – Richard Benjamin / Rickie Lee Jones (S4 E16)

Sketches are rated on a scale of 1-5 stars


COLD OPENING
DAA gives a sub (Marvin Goldhar) tips on how to do absent JOB’s bits

 

— They reveal that John Belushi’s out this week because he has an ear infection. I had forgotten that I always heard there was an episode John was absent in towards the end of his final season. An ear infection’s not REALLY the reason for his absence, is it? Was he out filming scenes for a movie (“1941”, perhaps)?
— John’s substitute actor is pretty funny.
— Dan does a pretty good impression of John’s Samurai gibberish.
— That may have been one of the corniest segues to LFNY I’ve ever seen, but at least the soon-to-depart Dan gets a LFNY after all the LFNYs they’ve been throwing at the also-soon-to-depart John’s way lately. John got five consecutive LFNYs in the last five episodes, which I just realized may be an all-time record for a cast member not named Chevy Chase.
STARS: ***½


OPENING MONTAGE
— Don Pardo announces Belushi as “John Belushi… absent!”


MONOLOGUE
away from wife Paula Prentiss, host kept company in NYC with GIR

  

— Richard has a likable presence, and his story about his night out with his new girl is pretty funny.
— I had a feeling it would be revealed that the girl he’s talking about is Gilda.
— Gilda’s angry reaction is good.
STARS: ***


THE PEPSI SYNDROME
Jimmy Carter (DAA) is nuked; Rodney Dangerfield cameo

             

— Ah, yes, this is an epic sketch that I’ve always heard about and I’ve always wanted to see. Supposedly, it’s one of SNL’s longest sketches of all-time.
— I love the set-up of this premise, with Bill’s coca-cola spill accident.
— Richard’s analogies to what being exposed to the radiation is like are pretty funny.
— I really like this part with Franken and Davis as the Two-Mile Players mime troupe, especially them getting called out on their un-mime-like talking.
— Exciting sketch so far, and I love how extensive this all is.
— This part with them discussing Amy Carter reminds me, I remember hearing that when this sketch aired in SNL’s Presidential Bash special from 1992, they LITERALLY fast-forwarded through the Amy Carter discussion portion of this sketch while Dana Carvey popped up on-screen as Ross Perot (who Carvey was co-hosting that Presidential Bash special as) to explain that he only wanted to show the best parts of the sketch. I love Carvey’s Perot impression, but man, that sounds annoying as hell having him “pop up” on screen to interrupt a classic SNL sketch like this.
— Garrett in drag once again.
— Funny with Bill cruelly tricking Garrett’s janitor character into mopping the nuclear core room.
— HAHA, this part is excellent with Rodney Dangerfield randomly being brought in to explain in a stand-up comedy-esque way how big President Carter is now. Hilarious!
— Now this epic sketch has included Gilda’s Baba Wawa, who we’re seeing for the first in a fairly long time.
— Great surprise with Garrett as a now-giant janitor being Giant President Carter’s new First Lady.
— Overall, that sketch was absolutely fantastic. Fully-deserving of its classic status. I enjoyed this so much, I didn’t even notice how long it was.
STARS: *****


NERDS & MILT
Todd hopes to score with Lisa at his brother Milt’s (host) apartment

       

— Interesting setting for Todd.
— Richard’s funny as a germaphobe nerd.
— Todd’s attempt at trying to act all suave and romantic to Lisa are hilarious.
— Bill’s genuinely making Gilda crack up by making her sip her drink so fast, which is obviously an ad-lib.
— Oh, there’s the famous “I can see your nose hair!” part, which is often shown as a clip in highlight reels representing 70s SNL.  That clip used to be what always immediately came to my mind whenever I would hear about these Nerds characters.
— Love how Todd is removing each cushion on the couch one-by-one while still locking lips with Lisa.
— Jane’s sex/hard-boiled egg analogy was really funny.
— Overall, a great sketch, and probably my favorite of all the Nerds installments so far.
STARS: ****½


WEEKEND UPDATE
BIM reports on Chico Escuela’s attempt to rejoin the Mets
BIM makes his Oscar picks in his usual cavalier fashion
Roseanne Roseanndanna travels from rising beef prices to gross seafood

         

— Oh, this is the pre-taped Chico Escuela commentary I mentioned in a recent review, where he interacts at a baseball stadium with Mets players.
— The interview portion between Chico and Bill is pretty funny.
— I like how Chico’s tell-all book about the Mets is simply titled “Bad Stuff ‘Bout the Mets”.
— We get yet another follow-up to the “you left this at my apartment last night” bit between Bill and Jane, which has become a running gag.
— Hey, an Update joke about John Belushi.
— The second annual edition of Bill’s Oscars Predictions, which is a segment I always love.
— I liked Bill’s shame in admitting he didn’t see friend-of-the-show Buck Henry’s movie “Heaven Can Wait”.
— Overall, another good Oscars Predictions segment from Bill.
— Oh, man, here’s Roseanne Roseannadanna ONCE AGAIN. I am SO tired of how this season’s Weekend Updates have gotten so predictable in which recurring guests are going to appear. As I pointed out in my last review, there’s a narrow cycle of Father Guido Sarducci, Rosanne Rosannadanna, and Chico Escuela.
— Rosannadanna’s almost starting to reach Emily Litella levels of tediousness for me, and you guys probably remember how sick I got of THAT character (Litella). Rosannadanna’s a funny character, but I knew it was only a matter of time before I’d eventually tire of her with how frequently they’ve been using her and how formulaic all her appearances are.
— I admit, the ending of Roseannadanna’s commentary with her reciting a poem written by her grandmother gave me a few chuckles.
STARS: ***


MUSICAL PERFORMANCE
musical guest performs “Chuck E’s In Love”


A BIRD FOR ALL SEASONS
by Aviva Slesin- fancy feathered-friend fashions

     

— Bill doing another short that features cutaways to animals doing human things. Is this film made by the same person who made that singing dogs short earlier this season?
— The movie trailer part is cracking me up a lot.
— This is getting funnier and funnier.
— I assume this short’s a dig at NBC’s troubles at the time with Fred Silverman’s questionable programming decisions.
— I like the pizza sitcom trailer with Italian-accented birds.
— “Produced & Directed by Aviva Slesin”. Ah, so this IS by the filmmaker who made the singing dogs short. Wonder why her(?) films always star Bill. He IS great in these, though.
— Overall, a very silly short that I enjoyed a lot.  Quite an improvement over the singing dogs short.
STARS: ****


SCOTTISH RESTAURANT
Scottish restaurant charges (host) & (LAN) extra for basic amenities

   

— Funny how Dan’s using a torn-in-half paper bag as two tablecloths because he’s wearing the actual tablecloth as a kilt.
— HA at the nasty-sounding Scottish food.  It’s funny cuz it’s true.
— LOL at Richard and Laraine having to pay for every little thing at the restaurant, even for being handed the bill itself. No wonder the restaurant was empty when they arrived at the beginning of the sketch.
STARS: ***½


LITTLE CHOCOLATE DONUTS
— A rerun from last season. Obviously, they’re only airing this to make up for John’s absence.


MUSICAL PERFORMANCE
musical guest performs “Coolsville”


GOODNIGHTS

 

IMMEDIATE POST-SHOW THOUGHTS:
— Another very good episode. Of course, the epic, brilliant Pepsi Syndrome sketch is the centerpiece of the show, but the rest of the episode was strong, too, especially the Nerds sketch. SNL has been on a streak of great episodes since Gary Busey.
— They did surprisingly well for an episode without Belushi. Until the Little Chocolate Donuts rerun, I had completely forgotten about his absence tonight. I’m still dreading his (and Dan’s) upcoming departure, though.


HOW THIS EPISODE STACKS UP AGAINST THE PRECEDING ONE (Margot Kidder):
— a very slight step down


My full set of screencaps for this episode is here


TOMORROW:
Well, the streak of great episodes we’ve been having lately was nice while it lasted, as our next episode just so happens to be…. (*cue suspenseful music*) the infamous Milton Berle