Sid Caesar - "Big Business" with Carl Reiner and Howard Morris

[From "Kovacs Corner" on YouTube.com] - He is perhaps not considered as "avant garde" as Ernie Kovacs, nonetheless Sid Caesar (along with co-stars Imogene Coca, Carl Reiner, Howard Morris, and Nanette Fabray) created two of the most popular and funny comedy shows during the 1950's, "Your Show of Shows" and later "Caesar's Hour". It is ironic that Sid was chosen by director Stanley Kramer to replace Ernie as the character "Melville Crump" in the movie "It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World".

Category:

Comedy

Tags:

• Sid
• Caesar
• Carl
• Reiner
• Howard
• Morris
• Classic
• TV
• kinescope
• lunch
• sandwich
• pickle
• business
• meeting

[allforjoy]

I actually played this in a meeting. Everyone had tears rolling down their eyes they were laughing soooo hard.

[rolko52]

@allforjoy - This comedy will never grow old.

[bigdbc]

Legendary. I fall on the floor laughing every time, every single time.

[rowbyrowby]

Oh my god how funny.  I had the pleasure of working with Sid Cesar (see my rowbyvideos website). I was writing an ABC variety show where Sid was a regular guest star. Sid would sit in with us writers and collaborate on his sketches. He treated us young writers as if we were his writing team on his Show of Shows. We wrote some funny stuff together. What an experience.

The Howie Morris bit with the pickle here was hysterical. Fall down laughing. ...Rowby

[rolko52]

@Snapepet Sid paid $6.20 for the entire order, but he then turned around and charges "$5.00 a head." That $5.00 would equal $40.08 in 2010 dollars.

[Snapepet]

@rolko52 I am pretty sure that's $6.20 for ALL of the sandwiches. When you compare it to today's prices, that's probably about right. BTW, that was really clever of you to figure out 1956 dollars compared to today's. When I watch old shows and movies, I often wonder what their prices for things come out to in today's dollars!

[R4t10n4L]

Well, the censors sure fell down on the job over this one - guess they were laughing too hard at the dialogue to notice Sid Caesar trying to wrap his lips around Howard Morris' pickle

[rolko52]

@rolko52 - Perhaps in Yonkers during Sid's period of working in his father's take-out diner, a "Quadtrillion Sandwich" was what we would now call a "Club Sandwich?"

[rolko52]

BTW, $6.20 in 1956 dollars would be equal to $49.70 in 2010. Each executive paid $40.08 in 2010 dollars for their sandwiches!

[rolko52]

Consciously or not, Sid's writers are tipping their hats to director Howard Hawks' "His Girl Friday" with the overlapping dialogue. In think that the dialogue, if spoken separately, would not lend itself to the level of comedy that it is presented in this clip.

[rolko52]

@yogafan6500 - Even after search on Google, I have no idea what a "Quadrillion Sandwich" is!

[yogafan6500]

" Miss Devonshire, Where in wide world is my Bacon & Rasin sandwich?''' XDDDD