I saw your post in “invisible characters” and I burn to know more of this show of the 1950’s. The Continental is the most wonderful SNL character in a long time. What kind of show could have so impressed the writers?
How utterly marvelous. I must see this show.
It was also pardied in MAD Magazine, back in its earliest days (possibly back when it was a comic book). I think it’s in the Mad About the Fifties anthology.
People who’ve seen it say Walken’s take was pretty dead on. There are no known tapes of the show; archiving videotapes of unpopular TV shows was practically unknown back in 1953.
Seeing as the first practical videotape wasn’t invented intil 1956, there would be no videotapes of the actual show. I imagine the show was broadcast live. But if it was done on film there may be some shows out there.
For some reason, it just makes me happier to know it existed. A film will surface eventually.
There aren’t any tapes in existance, but I do know of at least one surviving episode on kinescope, in the hands of a private collector.
The Museum of Radio and Television in New York has a kinescope film of The Continental.