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Title: The Stuntman

Title: The Daredevil

Description: A couple of death defying—DISASTERS!

Date: 1983

Comments:

It’s a good thing no group exists ensuring the ethical treatment of puppets for I’m sure I’d be on their watchdog list.  I’ve always treated my puppets as if they were three-dimensional cartoon characters, and like characters in cartoons, they often suffer extreme physical abuse for a laugh.  Wallace & Ladmo gave me the opportunity to exploit the slapstick possibilities in a way I never had before. 

Diving into a LADMO BAG was a theme I returned to many times (mostly with Cassandra), but it all started with The Stuntman.  Preceding my part in this clip, a downtrodden Marshall Good laments all the bad things that happened to him on his vacation.  Wallace adds insult to injury (his specialty) by telling MG that I have replaced him on the show.  (Insert dejected sigh here.)

The Daredevil was one of the most elaborate (“contrived” might be a better word) bits I ever devised for a puppet to crash-land on the floor.  The premise was preposterous: supposedly, there was a cannon in the studio; the daredevil was going to soar “two to three hundred feet up into the air” indoors; and he was going to float to safety using an umbrella.  During the setup, you can see Boffo lurking outside the set’s window, and when he finally enters, it’s hard to know if his contemptuous remarks aren’t really from Pat.  But, that’s exactly what saves the whole bit from suffering a crash-landing. 

Fasten your seatbelts, strap on a helmet—and enjoy!

Dan Horn