tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post6843696994821705545..comments2023-11-03T06:02:02.128-07:00Comments on By Ken Levine: My all-time favorite sitcom sceneBy Ken Levinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17305293821975250420noreply@blogger.comBlogger38125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-61831639947467527132010-12-18T08:33:09.733-08:002010-12-18T08:33:09.733-08:00"Frustrated, Mary tells him to shut up on the..."Frustrated, Mary tells him to shut up on the air. The show had a funny ending tag, too. When Ted finds out Mary's going to get a raise, he complains to Lou, 'You're going to give a $20raise after she told me to shut up on the air?!' Lou's reply: 'It was all I could afford Ted.'"<br /><br /><br />Oh, I never saw that episode...! Just knowing the characters, Lou's line had me splitting my sides laughing right here at the computer!<br /><br />I miss that show. I miss Ted Knight, who I understand actually loved playing Ted Baxter.David K. M. Klaushttp://davidkevin.livejournal.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-17588651225794730592010-12-13T20:19:15.301-08:002010-12-13T20:19:15.301-08:00I've always been a stickler for proper grammar...I've always been a stickler for proper grammar and punctuation (I was brought up by a British mother who was brought up by a governess, so "proper" was the rule of the day), except when writing dialogue.<br /><br />If the character isn't well educated, or is someone who didn't put a lot of stock in school, chances are he or she will screw up the "I vs. me" thing occasionally, or say "sister-in-laws," rather than "sisters-in-law," or, "Me, Dave and Ken," rather than, "Dave, Ken and I " (or "me" if the sentence calls for it - but you get the gist). To have, say, Brit on "Terriers" speak in proper American English all the time would not fit his character. He didn't finish high school, and he's rough around the edges. Now, if Frasier or Niles on "Fraiser" were grammatically incorrect (unless to prove a point) well, <i> that</i> would be wrong, too. <br /><br />I've always believed serving the character comes before grammar lessons. I have yet to find an exception.Carsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07350118087248640188noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-18661413249201759772010-12-12T13:29:50.707-08:002010-12-12T13:29:50.707-08:00Hello Ken
I was wondering if you could name a few...Hello Ken<br /><br />I was wondering if you could name a few of your favourite British sitcoms? And why you like 'em.<br /><br />[And have you ever seen "Rising Damp", written by Eric Chappell -- Leonard Rossiter's Rigsby is possibly the greatest sitcom star performance ever!]<br /><br />Best,<br />Dene.Denenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-59953805598497817362010-12-12T09:21:04.743-08:002010-12-12T09:21:04.743-08:00http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oBuPQgV8yBM
Just f...http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oBuPQgV8yBM<br /><br />Just for fun.Mr. Snrubhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13343511203178580690noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-72860783824205646012010-12-12T09:19:50.289-08:002010-12-12T09:19:50.289-08:00Love the Gleason scene. It's up there for me, ...Love the Gleason scene. It's up there for me, too. <br /><br />But, I have traditionally given the nod to Barney Fife "reciting" the Preamble to the Constitution. <br /><br />Perfect interplay with Griffith and Knotts. They don't make them like that anymore.Mr. Snrubhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13343511203178580690noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-25688409999626649672010-12-12T07:08:13.399-08:002010-12-12T07:08:13.399-08:00@Mike: ah, I see your point now. Fair enough. I ...@Mike: ah, I see your point now. Fair enough. I still don't agree that the subject pronoun is used when it's the object of 'be', but as I noted above, I don't care that much either :)<br /><br />@jbryant: That's an artificial construction in any case, using the 3rd person personal pronoun instead of 1st.<br /><br />Consider: "Is that Bob?" "That's he."<br /><br />Actually, I'm more concerned about the fact that a show called Frasier made everybody spell and say my name incorrectly. Damn you, highly successful and witty sit-coms!Frasernoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-13180817205019469772010-12-11T22:02:16.453-08:002010-12-11T22:02:16.453-08:00Room Service was far better than The Honeymooners&...Room Service was far better than The Honeymooners' clip. I found the live TV sketch fairly contrived and predictable. Room Service was a fine piece of writing, wholly original with sharp touches, and genuinely funny.Michael in Vancouvernoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-31306881898588169222010-12-11T15:44:09.454-08:002010-12-11T15:44:09.454-08:00Fraser: When you answer the phone and someone asks...Fraser: When you answer the phone and someone asks for you, do you say "This is he" or "This is him"? Same rule Mike is talking about.jbryantnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-293316395006680432010-12-11T15:36:45.765-08:002010-12-11T15:36:45.765-08:00@Fraser
You're missing my point.
The reason t...@Fraser<br /><br />You're missing my point.<br />The reason the scene stood out was because Frasier was trying to be a prescriptivist, and was wrong.<br />I'm not insisting that people begin saying "It is I". The point was that the writer (not Ken, I hope) had Frasier correct Martin, when Martin was right. If Martin had said "It's you and me", and no one had corrected anyone, it wouldn't have been noticeable.<br />My gripe is that it wasn't in character for Frasier to correct someone about grammar and be wrong.<br />Now I'm sorry I brought it up.Mike Schryverhttp://www.live365.com/stations/o_t_r_comedynoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-34586904818540431972010-12-11T15:24:30.087-08:002010-12-11T15:24:30.087-08:00...and this time with a tag. D'oh!
Funniest s......and this time with a tag. D'oh!<br /><br />Funniest scene ever? Any one that has Niles with a giant white bird clamped to his head. A little bit of wee came out with that one.Davenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-65268766382857337232010-12-11T15:23:30.338-08:002010-12-11T15:23:30.338-08:00Funniest scene ever? Any one that has Niles with a...Funniest scene ever? Any one that has Niles with a giant white bird clamped to his head. A little bit of wee came out with that one.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-20487403702448789302010-12-11T13:55:46.943-08:002010-12-11T13:55:46.943-08:00Citation needed. Every time a prescriptivist insi...Citation needed. Every time a prescriptivist insists on a usage that is not, in fact, ever used, God kills a kitten.<br /><br />What do you have against kittens?Frasernoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-72693822085604638562010-12-11T11:52:36.021-08:002010-12-11T11:52:36.021-08:00No, Martin is correct. Correct usage is that when...No, Martin is correct. Correct usage is that whenever using forms of "to be", you use "I" and not "me", such as "It is I" (not that most people talk that way). It's irrelevant that the word "you" is also in there. If it were any other verb, Frasier would probably be correct.Mike Schryverhttp://www.live365.com/stations/o_t_r_comedynoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-77459610171205606502010-12-11T11:51:58.654-08:002010-12-11T11:51:58.654-08:00For me, the funniest Mary Tyler Moore is not the f...For me, the funniest Mary Tyler Moore is not the famous episode where Chuckles the Clown dies, but an earlier show where WJM attempts a happy-talk newscast. Ted Baxter is paired with Gordy the Weatherman. When Ted finds out he's meant to play straight-man for the more easy-going Gordy, he attempts to turn the tables by telling jokes on his own, all of which fall flat. He further keeps interrupting Mary's editorial about overpopulation with some even more stupid jokes ("I better invest in the diaper business"). Frustrated, Mary tells him to shut up on the air. The show had a funny ending tag, too. When Ted finds out Mary's going to get a raise, he complains to Lou, "You're going to give a $20raise after she told me to shut up on the air?!" Lou's reply: "It was all I could afford Ted."<br /><br />All the above leads me to a Friday question. Is there any particular sitcom episode that you feel is underrated, not as well-known as more famous ones (like Chuckle's dying).<br /><br />For that matter, are there are any ENTIRE series that you feel are underrated?<br /><br />(If you only want to answer one of those questions, it's fine with me.)Kirkhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02155991693956178030noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-54702295235901907132010-12-11T08:08:53.743-08:002010-12-11T08:08:53.743-08:00@Mike: Frasier was correct -- try the sentence aft...@Mike: Frasier was correct -- try the sentence after removing "you and".<br /><br />But this whole peeve is nuts. Language evolves and changes. I want to shoot myself whenever I read "could of" instead of "could have", but maybe that will be correct in 20 years.<br /><br />What would Shakespeare think if he heard you saying "twenty-five" instead of "five and twenty"? Or using that horrible contraction in "I don't like it" instead of "I like it not."Frasernoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-31925424974244665652010-12-11T07:06:49.488-08:002010-12-11T07:06:49.488-08:00I *do* watch "Raising Hope." It's ve...I *do* watch "Raising Hope." It's very funny, and the characters talk, um, in character. But it's different on "higher-brow" shows. When those characters speak solecistically, it's almost never a character choice made by a writer who's trying to make a point. It's just a mistake.Jon88https://www.blogger.com/profile/16908049871851563389noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-21434686326042937182010-12-11T04:27:20.561-08:002010-12-11T04:27:20.561-08:00>My question is have you ever noticed when a st...>My question is have you ever noticed when a staff writer on a show uses the same plot device repeatedly<br /><br />David Kelley is the master of this. If he does another lawyer show, within a few episodes, expect a scene of the judge calling both sides in, 'the jury is asking me if they can assign manslaughter, which tells me they don't want to let him go, but they also don't want to convict. So the question is who will blink first.'<br />Also, a lawyer for a rapist is having a friendly chat at some retail establishment, when the person he is chatting with turns out to be the rape victim, and he feels bad.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-83429860692372851942010-12-10T19:51:10.193-08:002010-12-10T19:51:10.193-08:00great Frasier ep. "Food? In the bathroom?&q...great Frasier ep. "Food? In the bathroom?" (x2)Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-1760253588664916242010-12-10T15:39:08.410-08:002010-12-10T15:39:08.410-08:00I was delighted to see Ken mention "Chef of t...I was delighted to see Ken mention "Chef of the Future" - it's of the funniest things I've ever seen, especially the way Carney leads up to the line "There. I am done."<br /><br />Grammar errors don't bother me much, but there was one Frasier episode where Martin said something like "Then it'll be you and I", and Frasier corrected him. "You and me, Dad." Martin was right, though, and it seemed very odd that the Frasier character would get something like that wrong.Mike Schryverhttp://www.live365.com/stations/o_t_r_comedynoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-64213886754442636252010-12-10T14:53:26.274-08:002010-12-10T14:53:26.274-08:00@ thevidiot and Chalmers: I got my local grocery s...@ thevidiot and Chalmers: I got my local grocery store chain (QFC, for you Seattle-area types) to change its express lane signs from "8 items or less," e.g., to "8 items or fewer." I told them they were setting a bad example for the kids and that sealed the deal.D T Nelsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09941048254755346238noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-14781469599124468592010-12-10T14:46:16.556-08:002010-12-10T14:46:16.556-08:00Grammar pet peeves:
I seen it at the mall.
Or us...Grammar pet peeves:<br /><br />I seen it at the mall.<br /><br />Or using "down", "up" incorrectly when referring to geography. Such as being in Canada and "I went up to the States for a visit."<br /><br />My ears bleed.Corinne Coles-Mohnsnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-34882742067701703732010-12-10T13:03:32.027-08:002010-12-10T13:03:32.027-08:00I like that comedy show too.. :-)I like that comedy show too.. :-)ttvhttp://www.thetvstream.info/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-68788316022182031882010-12-10T12:58:39.553-08:002010-12-10T12:58:39.553-08:00Though not a big fan of the series, I'll never...Though not a big fan of the series, I'll never forget the final scene in Happy Days when Richie had missed a free throw in The Big Game. Leaving the gym, his father says a few consoling words and adds, "Want a Life-Saver?"<br /><br />Grammar? TV commercials are some of the worst offenders, like the beer with less calories? In real life I find almost no one who knows when to use the pronouns ending in "self" properly.Cap'n Bobhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11783977137812876489noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-71477695191755938572010-12-10T10:40:27.660-08:002010-12-10T10:40:27.660-08:00That is probably one of my very favorite 'Fras...That is probably one of my very favorite 'Frasier' episodes of all time. We live in Arkansas and every time something goes wrong, my mother and I always fall back on our favorite line.<br /><br />"These things happen. They happen everyday. Everyday in ARKANSAS!"<br /><br />Brilliant.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-43560977145889185882010-12-10T10:33:17.375-08:002010-12-10T10:33:17.375-08:00I just finished reading Robert McKee's Story, ...I just finished reading Robert McKee's Story, about screenwriting for film. One of the interesting things he instructs is about how in each scene there must be a change of value, from positive to negative, or vice-versa. Do sitcoms follow the same rule? Is that something the writing staff keeps in mind when constructing the layout of each episode? How closely do sitcom writers follow the guidelines for writing for film?paulhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03026449270698972947noreply@blogger.com