Joan Davis on The Steve Allen Show "Teleprompter Sketch" 12/7/1958

Note: This becomes really funny. Please stay with it through the set-up and the payoff will be great. I saw it when it first aired LIVE on December 7, 1958. I have always remembered it , and have been searching for it for a long time. It's topical for the time, in that it suggests what might have happened to a live soap opera if the teleprompter (the device from which the actors read their lines) malfunctioned. They run through this innocuous sketch once with a "perfect" teleprompter, then do it a second time with the teleprompter out of control. No holds were barred, slapstick at its best. Joan gets to play the first time totally straight and schmaltzy, resisting the temptation to be funny. This restraint pays off big time the second time through, when she uses her physical expertise to the max. The support of the other actors is amazing, they looked like they were all having a great time. In fact, if you look closely at this thumbnail, you'll see Joan stifling a laugh! Along with Joan, it features Steve Allen, Louis Nye, Tom Poston, Don Knotts, Pat Harrington Jr., and John Meyer. Again, stay with it and you will LOL!

Click Like on the Joan Davis facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Joan-Davis/148556851896661

Category:

Comedy

Tags:

• Joan Davis
• the steve allen show
• live television
• classic tv
• tom poston
• louis nye
• don knotts
• slapstick
• variety show
• comedy
• vaudeville
• pat harrington jr
• sketch comedy
• TV
• NBC
• TV Shows
• film
• televison
• 50's
• 50s Televison
• Golden Age of Televison
• 50s classics
• 50's Physical Comedian
• 50's Sitcom Stars
• Television clips
• 50's TV Comedy
• 50's Comedy Shows