In the late 1950's, a duo of brothers were making the scene in bohemian clubs and coffee houses in New York with a funny musical act. Eventually, they attracted the attention of TV talent scouts. Appearances on Hootenanny, as well as variety shows presented by Sullivan, Bing Crosby, Steve Allen, and Andy Williams made them household names.
Dick was the "serious" one, and Tom was the dork. That was their act, one that played the same through a sitcom (Tom was a dorky angel) and a series of variety shows.
In 1967, CBS launched The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour. It wasn't long before they wished they hadn't.
What was lacking in their sitcom was any political views. These two folk musicians had plenty to say once they were thrust into a comedy-variety show format. And say it they did. And a half.
The Vietnam War was starting to get very unpopular with the nation's youth. And Tom and Dick, to CBS's chagrin, became the voice of that dissatisfied youth.
Guest stars included fellow folk singers like Joan Baez, Pete Seeger, rock acts like Jefferson Airplane, The Doors, and The Who. Interestingly, guests showed up who would prove pleasing to an older generation, as well. Jimmy Durante and Kate Smith come to mind.
Pat Paulsen would throw a diatribe at LBJ that was so whacked out that it should have never been taken seriously, but it was. Not by Johnson, who would write a nice letter to the duo after the show's cancellation saying he was never offended by the banter. But the rumors run rampant that Richard Nixon would later pressure CBS to get the show off the air so he wouldn't have to put up with the criticism.
Years before SNL, humorous references were made to smoking pot. They also poked fun at The Establishment, the military, and the police. This certainly rankled the CBS execs. Eventually, they demanded a tape of each episode be presented to them in time for their "editing." Tommy later claimed that they censored 75% of their episodes.
The censor's axe got, among many others, these incidences: A 1968 Mother's day message that ended with the words "Please talk peace." Harry Belafonte singing before a backdrop of footage from the 1968 Democratic National Convention unrest. Joan Baez's spoken introduction to a song where she mentions her draft-evading husband David's being in prison. And of course, the most notorious: Pete Seeger's protest song Waist Deep in the Big Muddy.
In 1969, the BIG axe fell. CBS claimed that they didn't receive a tape of the season's final show for their "approval" and prevented it from being shown. They also canceled the well-ranked show shortly afterward.
What's hilarious is what slipped PAST the censors. Goldie O'Keefe's weekly "Share a Little Tea with Goldie" was never assumed to be referring to a slang term for marijuana. Not even her opening "Hi! and glad of it!" rang a bell.
The Smothers filed a lawsuit against CBS over censorship that they lost. Needless to say, they never worked for them again. Here's hoping someday those few episodes of one wild and crazy show will be released on DVD.
Thanks to http://www.museum.tv/, http://jumptheshark.com/, http://www.tvparty.com/, and http://www.tvacres.com/ for the help in researching this piece.
Comments (4)
I believe that Pat Paulsen may be one of the funniest comedians ever to appear on TV.
The presidential candadacies(more folks than you may think actually wrote him on the ticket)were some of the funniest stuff ever. The stump speeches were beyond hilarious, and still hold up today....remember all the "Pat Paulsen for president" stickers and t-shirts around then? Pat, you won't be forgotten for a long time!
Posted by scott | July 20, 2007 6:21 AM
Posted on July 20, 2007 06:21
I remember the show from that period. I wasn't interested in it! My parents thought they were funny, but I am sure they didn't like the politics. Looking back in Retro, they were funny! The acts were classic and their record album the Smothers Brothers was funny!
Posted by Rivers End | May 29, 2009 8:10 PM
Posted on May 29, 2009 20:10
I see some interesting things in the Smothers Brothers show down. The CBS execs did not like the direction the Bros were going in. It was too threatening to the status quo establishment. So the execs thought they could cancel, suppress, and end it. But They could not stop it, any more than radio programmers could stop heavy metal from selling and becoming popular.
Maybe the S Bros were stopped but their style lived on. SNL and many others would press on. Society and the world was changing. Network execs could not accept or handle that but it happened with or without them. They had to give in, with time.
Its funny how comedy was often done using the smart guy playing off the dumb guy routine. George and Gracie Burns, Rowan and Martin’s, Sonny and Cher, Donnie and Marie. It was a common format. Dick and Tom used it. Long live an under rated show and a couple of great guys who were ahead of their time and speaking the new mind of a new generation. The old guard had lost credibility and lost control. The times, they were a chang’in. The Smothers Brothers were a sign of those times. Such so they were with us so short a time.
Posted by Scott Irv | May 29, 2009 11:00 PM
Posted on May 29, 2009 23:00
Just saw the Smother's Bros documentary again tonight and it struck me how obvious and evident it was that oversight and vigilant censorship was exercised at all times by a number of networked interests such as advertisers, network execs, government, and who knows who else.
Also interesting was/is that really, the 60s was sort of a showdown at OK Coral. Somehow, I think it was the "people" who lost that showdown. I am even thinking they may have shot themselves in the foot as much as someone was shooting at them. It was quite the decade in the later 60s. I can't express enough how much I loved that time.
I never really understood what the Smother's Bros was doing at the time. I remember watching it with my parents and maybe grandparents and aunts, too. I forget when we switched from going up there on Sundays to Thursdays and then back to Sundays, but I remember Pat Paulsen for president vividly and and really liked him. I could enjoy what he did at my age then, about 9.
It was the warmth of the family, the time, the place (Maine), many things. If I had maybe one wish for the young, it would be that they could go back and experience that time and see and feel what I saw and felt. I really believe it was the most unique time in the modern age, a crossroads of so many things.
My best wishes to the young and the new who never got to see what I did.
Posted by Scott Irv | November 4, 2009 11:53 PM
Posted on November 4, 2009 23:53