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IBM-RowlfIn

IBM presents the OPD "Rowlf-In."

Pigsdance

"At the Dance", a recurring Muppet Show sketch inspired by Laugh-In.

Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In was a comedy variety series that debuted on NBC in 1968 and ran until 1973. The series, hosted by Dan Rowan and Dick Martin, featured a troupe of character comedians, whose ranks changed over the years, and featured oddball topical humor and swinging 60s decor and costuming. In addition to introducing several previously unknown comics who would become stars and placing an emphasis on creating catch phrases (ranging from "Sock it to me" to "Is that a chicken joke?"), the series influenced many subsequent sketch comedy shows, from Saturday Night Live to The Electric Company, and including the Muppets.

As Lewis Bernstein recalled, the series influenced the initial format of Sesame Street, in particular the emphasis on short, fast-moving sketches: "At the time, we were competing with cartoons, so we kept everything very short and varied, like 'Laugh-In,' which was the best show on TV then."[1]

The Muppet Show also showed signs of Laugh-In influence. A Laugh-In mainstay, "the Cocktail Party," in which assorted eccentrics from gurus to poets to parsons gathered at a swinging party to drink and exchange one and two-liners, was reworked to become "At the Dance."

References[]

  • A 1969 IBM industrial film starring Rowlf the Dog lampooned the program as "Rowlf-In," a quick-cutting sketch and musical variety show.[2] Rowlf plays the Gary Owens-esque announcer and also fills in for Rowan and Martin themselves, as host and anchoring a spoof of the "Laugh-In Looks at the News" segments. The piece also features parodies of the show's regular party segments, Judy Carne's NBC telephone operator, Wolfgang the German soldier, Jerry Nelson as a guru paralleling Arte Johnson's Rabbi Shankar, and quick pantomime bits.
  • An early Sesame Street animated insert, "J Commercial," featured the line "Here comes de judge," which was popularized on Laugh-In.

Muppet Mentions[]

  • Guest star Carol Channing, in the November 2, 1970 broadcast, sings about "Thoroughly Modern Mothers" (referencing her movie Thoroughly Modern Millie) with the female cast. A lyric states that "There's a teacher hard to beat." "Who?" An elegantly aloof Channing replies "Sesame Street."
  • In the December 7, 1970 broadcast featuring Phil Silvers, the guest is repeatedly drenched with water after saying the "Sock it to me" catchphrase. At the end, Silvers remarks, "I could've worked Sesame Street like a gentleman."
  • The Laugh-In news segment on January 31, 1972 has news anchor Dick Martin claiming "Sex education has even affected Sesame Street. After years of teaching preschoolers how to count, the producers have announced a new segment, Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Six, But Were Afraid to Ask."

Appearances[]

Several Laugh-In regulars have appeared in Muppet/Henson productions, reprising their roles from that series.

Connections[]

Cast and Regular Guest Performers[]

Guests[]

Sources[]

  1. Ryan, Suzanne C. "Sesame Street Marks 35 Years on the Block." The Boston Globe. April 4, 2004
  2. Jim Henson's Red Book: 2/20-21/1969 – ‘Shoot IBM, Rowlf-IN’
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