So, we met with the the troupe who were doing a 1/2 hour comedy show called "Big B's Traveling Sideshow" (Or "Travelling." We never quite settled on that). They had a sponsor. They had four people who could do characters, impressions and seemed to be able to perform comedy. They had a music guy who wrote them a theme. They had head shots. And they had moxie! So, they used two of our sketches in the previous show, then they went "on hiatus."
We were invited to continue submitting. Then we took it a bit further. We started writing ourselves into the show. The guy who introduced us knew us as writers, but the show was very much DIY, different friends and actors would drift in and out from show to show, so we took advantage of that opening. And we had begun writing new material specifically for them. They had characters they wanted to repeat and bits they wanted to make running.
But here's the thing...they had recorded all of 2 shows and because they lost the original studio they were shooting at, the group was forced to keep repeating the same two shows over and over in their time slot until they could secure a new space. And that was how we shook things up, both by writing material for them and about them, but also, acknowledging the long delay between shows by "adding" new people. It was something that I had learned (probably from John Rawlins) to work with what you had and to address the situation you were in. We had used it for a comedy revue with did in college. I've used it ever since in PHC sketches, Style without Substance shows, and in comedy packets submitted over the years. Meta is my favorite thing to do.
But here's the thing...they had recorded all of 2 shows and because they lost the original studio they were shooting at, the group was forced to keep repeating the same two shows over and over in their time slot until they could secure a new space. And that was how we shook things up, both by writing material for them and about them, but also, acknowledging the long delay between shows by "adding" new people. It was something that I had learned (probably from John Rawlins) to work with what you had and to address the situation you were in. We had used it for a comedy revue with did in college. I've used it ever since in PHC sketches, Style without Substance shows, and in comedy packets submitted over the years. Meta is my favorite thing to do.
A new studio was secured. They were going to record a new show. And the writers talked the troupe into addressing the lengthy hiatus the show had been on. We wrote a "cold opening" dealing with that. We then cast our writer friends and friend-friends into the "cold opening". The premise (which is explained in the sketch) was the people have been watching the repeats over and over and now had become a fanatics about the show, going all "Rocky Horror Picture Show" on it. We begin with one of those "Previously on..." openings, showing clips with the characters we'd be dressed as, so people would understand what we were dressed as AND the lines we were going to quote and reference. Then a friend walks into the viewing party and the fans introduce him (me) to the show. Very meta. And super weird, considering no one was probably watching, really. Then an announcer comes on to "explain" what happened and state that there will be an all new show tonight. It turns out the cult doesn't want new material. After writing it up, we have to make the argument to Farley and Bea, that they couldn't be in the cold open because they couldn't play their own "fans." And THEY BOUGHT IT!!! Crazy, right?
The sketch is a mix of actors and non-actors, me being one of the bigger non-actors. We wrote up cue cards on filing folders. We made costumes. I had a Halloween Frankenstein make-up kit we utilized. We brought props. We rehearsed a bit. If you watch me (the new guy) I am literally moving my lips reading everyone else's lines along with them. It was a long night.
I worked on this with my sometimes co-writer, the late John Rawlins, (Frankenstein) who had the driest delivery this side of the Sahara. My then girlfriend (and present wife) even got roped into it. It was our first toe-dip into show business.
And then things petered out. No one was happy with the new studio. As noted previously, you could hear the control room mics on the soundtrack. I'm pretty sure there were additional issues, but I no longer recall. They got the 3rd show aired and then...nothing. Farley and Bevis were a couple, and we think they were having relationship problems. There was mention of personality disorder. We met with Farley once or twice after (I remember him living in the actor apartments over on 10th) and things were considered but nothing became of any of it. No more Big B's. No more sketches. We didn't stay in touch with the actors and the writers I was friends with I remained friends with for some time after.
The last time I really thought about the show was when I was digitizing all my VHS tapes and then posting them to YouTube. We were young and any chance could be THE chance, so we would do what we could with what we had. And that would fall away, and we'd look for something else, a writer's workshop, a stand-up school, a Village Voice "Help Wanted" ad. It was a lot of journeys and a lot of cross fingers in those years. Which is probably why I have arthritis in my fingers now.
Anyway, the Cold Opening from Manhattan cable TV in 1981! And again, sorry about the picture ratio.
The sketch is a mix of actors and non-actors, me being one of the bigger non-actors. We wrote up cue cards on filing folders. We made costumes. I had a Halloween Frankenstein make-up kit we utilized. We brought props. We rehearsed a bit. If you watch me (the new guy) I am literally moving my lips reading everyone else's lines along with them. It was a long night.
I worked on this with my sometimes co-writer, the late John Rawlins, (Frankenstein) who had the driest delivery this side of the Sahara. My then girlfriend (and present wife) even got roped into it. It was our first toe-dip into show business.
And then things petered out. No one was happy with the new studio. As noted previously, you could hear the control room mics on the soundtrack. I'm pretty sure there were additional issues, but I no longer recall. They got the 3rd show aired and then...nothing. Farley and Bevis were a couple, and we think they were having relationship problems. There was mention of personality disorder. We met with Farley once or twice after (I remember him living in the actor apartments over on 10th) and things were considered but nothing became of any of it. No more Big B's. No more sketches. We didn't stay in touch with the actors and the writers I was friends with I remained friends with for some time after.
The last time I really thought about the show was when I was digitizing all my VHS tapes and then posting them to YouTube. We were young and any chance could be THE chance, so we would do what we could with what we had. And that would fall away, and we'd look for something else, a writer's workshop, a stand-up school, a Village Voice "Help Wanted" ad. It was a lot of journeys and a lot of cross fingers in those years. Which is probably why I have arthritis in my fingers now.
Anyway, the Cold Opening from Manhattan cable TV in 1981! And again, sorry about the picture ratio.
