The Physicality of Television Comedy
Bob Newhart died recently and I mourn the amazing artist who gave me so many smiles throughout the years. Whether it was The Bob Newhart Show or Newhart or his last tv part as Professor Proton on The Big Bang Theory, he was one for the books. He’s remembered for so many contributions to the success of American television, but rarely do people remember him for his physical humor. For that, he was a genius in that he took subtlety to a whole new level on television.
He was the epitome of physical comedy. The rapid eye blinking, the shifting in his stance when the character was uncomfortable. The stuttering speech in his dialogue. All of it might go unnoticed, but, in my opinion, all of those traits were just as significant as other physical comedy contributions throughout television history. For that, Bob Newhart will never be replaced and always missed like so many other favorites.
Lucille Ball in a vat of grapes while stomping or in a candy factory or locked in a freezer turning to ice were all examples of tremendous physical comedy, particularly for a woman at that time. Female characters on television possessed a certain grace like Donna Reed and Barbara Billingsley. Even when Wally and Beaver needed some disciplining, June never had a hair out of place. But, for Lucille Ball, to be both elegant and zany in her physicality, that commitment to comedy paved the way for actresses like Suzanne Somers, Julia Louis Dreyfus, and Sofia Vergara to be both beautiful and hysterical at the same time. Anybody remember how Vergara as Gloria Pritchett twirled her wrist and made a funny sound to describe the flight of a helicopter?
The single greatest influence on my writing personally when speaking to physical comedy, without exaggeration, was the late, great John Ritter as the energetic Jack Tripper. Can you believe that 40 years ago it was not okay on television for a straight man to live with two single women as per the plot of Three’s Company? Probably a blog post for another time…but, I digress…
John Ritter made me laugh until my insides hurt. His physicality was unparalleled and he never seemed to tire of taking chances as the character by using his physical frame to elicit the most raucous of laughter from the audience. Falling down? No problem. Getting limbs twisted into the funniest of human pretzels? Bring it on! John Ritter delivered even when it came to bawdy humor. He never came off as lecherous in the way he kissed his love interests or moaned his attraction loudly towards the opposite sex. And, most importantly, that tremendous talent taken too soon opened the door for so many other memorable physically funny characters in television history. I can even name a few (his co-horts and those who came after make the list)…
Sherman Hemsley in The Jeffersons - He was so small, but he was more Goliath than David in how he postured, danced, and was willing to take on anybody who irritated him.
Robin Williams (RIP to him and all the rest) in Mork and Mindy - Sure, the character was an alien, but for a human actor, he certainly possessed an outer worldly ability to make the audience laugh through his person in a red spacesuit.
Tom Hanks and Peter Scolari in Bosom Buddies - Their turn as women harkened back to moments as memorable as Tony Curtis and Jack Lemmon’s in drag a la Some Like It Hot.
Bea Arthur and Betty White in The Golden Girls - The former used her height to her advantage when putting her arm around the neck of her roommates or her hand over her mother’s mouth when Sophia had something offensive to say!
Michael Richards and John O’Hurley in Seinfeld - The latter had fewer opportunities to show off his physical abilities the way Kramer always showed up for every scene, but a viewer need only look as far as The Shower Head episode to see the magic those two characters generated bouncing off of each other in the same scene.
Alfonso Ribeiro in The Fresh Prince of Bel Air - Carlton’s penchant for dancing to Tom Jones was unlike anything seen before. Even the character as an ethnic, preppy Westside snob was the first of its kind.
David Schwimmer in Friends - The Ross character had a million moments where he could entertain through the funniest of actions. To me, the most memorable? When he chooses to wear leather pants on a date and couldn’t ease them back up his legs after using the bathroom. He resorts to everything from powder to lotion as per the character Joey’s instructions.
Will Arnett in Arrested Development - Gob Bluth danced frequently to a song called The Final Countdown when introducing his magic show and each performance was memorable and hysterical.
And the list goes on and on! There’s nothing like humor in all of its forms (especially when it is intentional) and I look forward to laughing more, whether looking back on great television or creating my own as my writing takes me…FWA