The False Ducks Blahg This Blahg is about me and other things.

     I have known for a week or so what would be the subject of this blahg.  It’s Phyllis Diller.  Why?  I have to be honest but I really liked Phyllis Diller.  I’m not one of the band wagon jumpers who say nice things after an artist passes.  I’m a true fan.  I have some history with Phyllis Diller or rather I wished I had history with Phyllis Diller  Confused?  Relax, here comes the story.  Did you doubt for even a moment that I had a story? 

     When I was in grade 7 I had a friend named Steve Bailey.  There was nothing really significant about Steve except he had me convinced he was rich.  I never questioned why a rich kid was going to a public school nor why a rich kid wanted anything to do with me.  He had elaborate stories about his family’s wealth which included fancy cars and a mansion in Hollywood.  Again, I never questioned any of it.  Maybe I should have been suspicious when he said his mansion in Hollywood was next door to Phyllis Diller’s.  Who would make that up?  He even promised to take me down there in his family’s helicopter.  I waited and waited but that never happened.  Eventually I saw him cutting the grass outside an apartment building in the neighborhood.  He tried to tell me his family owned it as an investment property.  I didn’t question that either until his cousin told me he lived in the building and his father was the superintendent.  My dreams of meeting Phyllis Diller were shattered…but hey, I now had a friend who had a father who was a superintendent.  Cool. 

     Over the years, my enthusiasm for Phyllis Diller has not waned.  She was someone who was over the top and under-appreciated.  She had three great pairings with Bob Hope in, “Boy, Did I Get A Wrong Number!”, “Eight On A Lam”, and “The Private Navy of Sgt. O’Farrell.”  Maybe Phyllis Diller is an acquired taste and certainly pairing her with Bob Hope, although in my mind a stroke of genius, might not seem significant to most viewers.  Throw in Jonathan Winters on “Eight On The Lam” and you’re cooking with comedy gold.  Luckily, all three of these funny films are available on DVD. 

     Click on any of the images for a larger viewing of the pictures in this blahg and check out this clip from “Eight On The Lam” with Jonathan Winters & Phyllis Diller.  You don’t get to see that kind of pairing every day.

      Funny stuff, right?  But you’re probably wondering what Ben Affleck has to do with Phyllis Diller.  Let me back up a little bit.  I have spoken before about my friend Bryan and his penchant for movies.  Bryan and I both share one thing in common when it comes to Phyllis Diller and her movies:  “Did You Hear The One About the Traveling Saleslady?”  This 1968 forgotten comedy gold has been an elusive film that Bryan and I have been trying to find.  I remember that the last time I saw this film was over the Christmas holidays during 1984.  I don’t know when Bryan saw it last but it’s been just as many years since his last viewing.  It has never been released on video nor DVD and we often talk about wanting to see this film.  About two weeks ago the subject of the film came up again between us.  Here’s an ad for that film: 

     The Internet Movie Database (IMDB) summary for this film reads:

Agatha Knabenshu arrives in a small town in Missouri to sell player pianos to the locals. She’s fired after her disastrous sales attempts nearly destroy the town. The stranded saleslady becomes friendly with an equally bumbling inventor and moves in with his family. The two then try to sell his automatic milking machine, but things turn sour when their demonstration causes a stampede.

It may not sound like much but I remember it being funny and also featuring Bob Denver who was infamous in the role as Gilligan from “Gilligan’s Island”.  It might not hold up well since the last time I saw it but it doesn’t deter me from wanting to see it again. 

     Cut to two weeks ago and the conversation Bryan and I had about this film.  Well, maybe not that far back.  Jump instead to about a week and a half ago and Jeanette and I finally get away to the movies again.  I had seen numerous films recently with Noah and I thought it was time I take my wife.  I had wanted to see “Argo” since I first started seeing the trailers for it.  If you haven’t seen it, I won’t spoil anything for you but I will again quote IMDB with this movie summary:

In 1979, the American embassy in Iran was invaded by Iranian revolutionaries and several Americans are taken hostage. However, six manage to escape to the official residence of the Canadian Ambassador and the CIA is eventually ordered to get them out of the country. With few options, exfiltration expert Tony Mendez devises a daring plan: to create a phony Canadian film project looking to shoot in Iran and smuggle the Americans out as its production crew. With the help of some trusted Hollywood contacts, Mendez creates the ruse and proceeds to Iran as its associate producer. However, time is running out with the Iranian security forces closing in on the truth while both his charges and the White House have grave doubts about the operation themselves. 

I am a Canadian and I didn’t know that my country did not play the big role in getting those hostages out of Iran as my government would lead me to believe.  We just took the credit so the Americans wouldn’t get into more trouble over Iran.  Sure, put Canada in the target sites!  I digress.  “Argo” is a fantastic movie. 

     So, now to Phyllis Diller and the Ben Affleck connection.  In case you didn’t know, Ben Affleck stars in and directed “Argo”.  Ultimately, I give him most of the credit for what is seen in the film.  At one point, Ben Affleck’s character, along with the character portrayed by the brilliant John Goodman, go to visit a Hollywood Director portrayed by the also brilliant Alan Arkin.  They need the Director to help them pull off this phony film by advising them on how to put over a film that doesn’t exist.  At one point, in the Director’s home I spot this framed poster on the wall of his study.  I can tell from the face on the poster that it is Phyllis Diller.  Somewhere in my history I have seen a poster for “Did You Hear The One About the Traveling Saleslady?” but I can’t recall if this it.  I lean in close to Jeanette and tell her I want another shot of this poster.  A few minutes later we get another glimpse over Alan Arkin’s shoulder and I can spot the film’s title.  It is indeed, a poster for “Did You Hear The One About the Traveling Saleslady?” 

     Let me tell you, I let out a squeal of delight while watching “Argo” but the squeal was not so much for “Argo” as it was for the Phyllis Diller poster cameo.  Why was this poster featured in this film?  I don’t know.  I’m just happy it was there.  It was probably something the set dresser threw in there but you have to think that Affleck, as the Director, had to be okay with it.  How appropriate it was that this homage to Phyllis Diller was there.  She died in August of this year and the film didn’t come out until October.  Was it a last minute decision to include this poster as a nod to Diller’s passing?  Again, I don’t know.  If Ben Affleck reads this blahg, maybe he’ll send me an answer.

     I thought I would close this blahg with my own personal salute to Phyllis Diller.  When Byran and my other friend, Stephen Dafoe, and I were recording our infamous Dead From The Neck Up comedy show in the mid-90s, we would often have a canned comedy section where we would play a comic routine by a famous comedian or comedienne.  One week, I brought in my LP copy of “Are You Ready For Phyllis Diller?”  I don’t remember if I had listened to the full album but we were looking for something to fill the canned comedy slot so we chose a track called “Cheese and Turkey”.  We busted up rather raucously in the studio that evening.  I’d like to close with a YouTube video with audio of the whole album

Phyllis Diller, the original double bagger of comedy has left the building!