I’ve been watching “Malcom in the Middle” lately, and thinking about what a fantastic physical comedian Bryan Cranston (Hal, the dad) is. Not only is he often getting clobbered in some way (by both people and inanimate objects), he also manages to pull off roller skating, power walking and “Dance Dance Revolution” in over-the-top ways. That, and his girlish screams make me think he’s somewhat of a genius.
Being a huge fan of Rick Mayall and Ade Edmonson (The Young Ones, Bottom, etc) made me realize how much I truly love “slapstick” and really good falling on television. You don’t see that too much, do you?
I’m thinking of writing a blog post about other modern (let’s say post-60’s) television physical comedians, but I need my memory refreshed for the list.
So far I have Bryan Cranston, Michael Richards (Kramer), Don Knotts, John Ritter*, Andy Dick and Rick Mayall/Ade Edmonson (they really shine most as a duo).
Anyone else?
(remember, TV only. I don’t care about Jim Carey.)
*I have not seen any of Ritter’s performance on the show he did right before he died. Did he do any physical comedy there?
I just wanted to add people who do it week after week, as opposed to in movies. Jim Carrey just happened to be the first one who came to mind for movies. I shall add him.
To me, the biggest appeal of My Name is Earl is watching Jaime Pressly’s character, Joy – she seems totally unafraid to look silly. Much of her physical comedy involves Joy being drunk (which Pressly does very, very well) – but Pressly can also make some hilarious facial reactions.
Great call on Laverne & Shirley. I really wanted to add more women - and most of the responses so far are women!
I was thinking Dick Van Dyke too after I posted it. I’d add him, yeah, since one of my favorite Dead Milkmen songs is “I Tripped Over the Ottoman.”
Annie-Xmas I’ve only watched a smattering of “The Nanny”…you think Fran Drescher does a lot of physical comedy in that? What’s the premise - stuck in a lot of weird situations? Falling down?
Tim Allen and Home Improvement had a well deserved reputation for excellent physical comedy, usually in the form of some do-it-yourself repair gone terribly awry.
I always thought Mclean Stevenson was great. I’ve only ever seen him in MASH (which is still a bit before my time). I can remember one scene when he was supposed to be sick and trying to work anyway. He sits in his chair and just melts all the way to the floor. Cracks me up every time. This was the only decent clip I could find for him right now.
When Ol’Gaffer pointed out that Jim Carrey was on In Living Color, I tried to think if there were any other good physical comedians from the realms of sketch comedy, and I came up with Chevy Chase and Chris Farley.
Alas, I can’t think of any modern Stooge-ish slapstick teams other than Mayall & Edmonson, unless you want to count animation.
Although obscure, Jay Johnston definitely deserves a mention here. He’s probably best known for HBO’s Mr. Show, where he was the only cast member predominantly used for physical comedy. He also appeared in Anchorman, but it was not a real role, just a cameo in the anchorman battle scene.
