The Muppets Perform "The Reindeer" On The Ed Sullivan Show, December 22, 1968

Today on the Countdown to Christmas, I present an appearance of the Muppets on The Ed Sullivan Show from December 22nd, 1968.

Here, lead reindeer Dasher is concerned that he and the other reindeer won't be able to deliver Christmas presents around the world because there's no snow in the North Pole just three days before Christmas. The other reindeer, however, don't take the threat seriously and instead make jokes and sing Christmas carols. In the end, the reindeer decide to dance a "snow dance" to make it snow. The usual Muppet humor permeates the entire sketch.

The Muppets had performed this same sketch back in 1965 on The Kraft Music Hall hosted by Perry Como in black and white, but I prefer this later color performance better. The Sullivan version is embedded below; you can check out the Como version here and make your own decision.

Enjoy!

 

Welcome to the 2023 Countdown to Christmas!

Hello everyone! I hope you all had a fantastic Thanksgiving! Welcome to the 2023 Countdown to Christmas!

Despite my participation in, and love for, the Countdown to Halloween, Christmas is in fact my favorite holiday. It's my favorite anything! And I love to share holiday joy with all of you via this blog. This year, I have a lot of great stuff to show you. Please stay tuned all December long, Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, for delightful holiday joy.

But that's not all. On some of my social media pages, I'm presenting Brian's Musical Advent Calendar, in which I'll post a holiday song every day starting today and through at least Christmas Day, perhaps even after. The Calendar will be available on my Facebook, X/Twitter, Tumblr, Threads, and Bluesky accounts. Please check it out!

Once again, Happy Holidays, and stay tuned!

The Beatles Performing Live on Blackpool Night Out, August 1st, 1965

 

Today is a big day for Beatles fans. Today sees the reissue of two popular compilations, The Beatles: 1962-1966, known commonly as The Red Album, and The Beatles: 1967-1970, known as The Blue Album. These were collections of Beatles hits first released in 1973. They are being re-released today with new mixes of many of the songs as well as songs that were not made available on the original 1973 releases. The most notable addition is the "brand new" song "Now And Then," made with a cassette demo from John Lennon's pesonal collection. As well as being released as a single, "Now and Then" is being made available on the 1967-1970 collection.

In celebration of these releases, I present a short television concert the Beatles performed on the British program Blackpool Night Out on August 1st, 1965. The band performs six songs, including "Help!" The Beatles were on the program to promote the release of the film of the same name. The footage here is in color, but I assume this was done in later years by computer rather than from the original broadcast.

Enjoy! Have a great weekend!

Saturday Night Live, "The Contestant," starring Martin Short (1984)

 

As promised this past Monday, I have a fun clip of Martin Short from his one and only season as a cast member of Saturday Night Live. In fact, I believe this was his first starring skit on the show!

In "The Contestant," his original character Ed Grimley is present to audition as a contestant on the legendary game show Wheel of Fortune in front of a dispondent (to say the least!) producer, played dryly by the great Christopher Guest. I love Short, I love Ed Grimley, and I love this season of SNL--one of my favorite seasons of the series.

Enjoy!

On Location Starring Steve Martin Live at the Troubador, October 31, 1976

 

Hello all, and welcome back! I hope everyone had a great Halloween season--I certainly did! But now it's time to cleanse the palate and move on. Today we do so with hilarious style!

On Friday night, October 27th, I had the honor of seeing Steve Martin and Martin Short live at their Philadelphia stop on their current comedy tour, and it didn't disappoint! My wife bought the tickets for me nearly a year ago as a Christmas gift, but unfortunately she fell ill the week of the event and couldn't make it. Better luck next time, hon, and thank you!

Still, I had an amazing time watching two of my entertainment heroes, so in honor of that, I present an old HBO comedy special starring Steve Martin in all of his "wild and crazy" 1970s glory. This was an installment of HBO's On Location series of comedy specials in the service's infancy, and Martin's star was very much on the rise. This was recorded October 31st, 1976 (hey, a Halloween event of sorts!) at the Troubador nightclub in Los Angeles, and it aired on HBO November 19, 1976.

This special is available on a multiple DVD set called Steve Martin: The Television Stuff, and it is available here.

Enjoy below, or see the special directly on YouTube here! I hope to feature a Martin Short post soon.

Happy Halloween 2023!

 

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!!!!!!

Thank you, thank you, thank you for spending your Halloween season with me! It means so much to me you don't even know. I hope you've had as much fun with this blog as I've had. And be sure to check out the other great blogs of the Countdown to Halloween. Many thanks once again to Dex and Naila Moon for keeping this great tradition alive, especially to Naila (Michelle), who is stepping down as the prime showrunner after this year. Thanks again, Michelle!

Tonight is of course the finale, which is trick or treating. Please make sure you give out great candy or have great costumes, because no one wants to experience the "Trick or Treat Blues!"

Be safe, be healthy, and once again, Happy Halloween!

Coming soon!

The Last Halloween with Richard Moll and clip from Friends Halloween Episode with Matthew Perry

 

Hello one and all! It's almost over! We have but two days left of the Halloween season (although I think November 1st and 2nd are Halloweenish enough to celebrate). 

Today's post is a bit of a sad one. We lost two TV comedy greats this weekend, Richard Moll of Night Court and Matthew Perry of Friends. I have two offerings in their honor.

The Last Halloween is a 1991 TV special about adorable aliens who befriend two young Earth children as the aliens search for candy. Richard Moll plays a henchman to a villainess (Rhea Perlman) out to destroy the local candy factory. It's intended for young children, but it's wholesome fun.

Next is a fun clip from a famous Halloween episode of Friends. Here, Chandler, already humiliated by having to wear a pink bunny costume given to him by Monica, is doubly humiliated by seeing Joey's costume--as Chandler! 😂

These two great actors will be sorely missed, but at least we have their outstanding work to enjoy forever.

See you tomorrow for the grand finale of the Countdown to Halloween! Thanks!