Penny Marshall not only did physical comedy once in awhile, she could direct it, as well.
(The real performer to watch here is Megan Cavanagh while she’s at bat.)
Isn’t that slapstick?
I dunno. The way he keeps fainting seems to qualify as physical comedy, and his refusal to run with scissors likewise…
Two Pythons and another guy doing a great, somewhat high-brow physical skit.
Mime.
Every other scene in Clue had amazing physical comedy. Squeezing up the stair case, the running dog poop gag, the soup slurping scene, Tim Curry running, Tim Curry pretending to die, Tim Curry actually dying…I could go on forever.
Jacques Tati had his own style of physical humor that relied on making things look peculiar. He had a way of moving that made him seem like a giant, ungainly stork. He made the simplest things seem ridiculous. Here’s a scene from Mon Oncle that shows what I mean. Here’s another.
You can’t beat silent era comics like Chaplin, Keaton and Harold Lloyd for pure physical comedy genius.
Decades, later, I think the comedy team of Sid Caesar, Imogene Coca, Howie Morris and Carl Reiner is, to this day, the pinnacle of sketch comedy—and it was heavily laden with physical comedy. The Carol Burnett Troop was great, but still not in the same league as Your Show of Shows, IMHO.
I don’t think it’s possible to watch clips like the following and not laugh, no matter what type of comedy you prefer. Let me know if I’m wrong:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gNbT9Lf9xZohttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D3ivzcLEzUs https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G76HrPTWj4II think it’s strange how many of the American 50’s TV comedies were surprisingly clever and sophisticated (Dobie Gillis is a good example of a 50’s sitcom with a high degree of sarcasm), then (with a few notable exceptions) took a nose dive in the 60’s through 80’s. However, I do think we’re now living in another golden era of TV comedy (mostly cable, but plenty of network)—but, maybe it’s just me.