Flashback for some classic laughs

As Bill reminds us every year in Cheers & Jeers, today is the anniversary of the death of comedian Paul Lynde. Since both funny men hail from Mt. Vernon, Ohio, Bill often quotes Paul and shares links to fan sites. There is no doubt that Hollywood Squares was at it’s best when Paul was the center square. No one could deliver a double entendres zinger like him. And at a time when being out and proud was verboten, he was artfully flamboyant and dropped hints whenever he could. Click Mr Readmore for some classic center square zingers and also for an…um..embarrassing story about a trip to a mall…

Peter Marshall: In the “Wizard of Oz,” the lion wanted courage and the tin man wanted a heart. What did the scarecrow want?
Paul Lynde: He wanted the tin man to notice him.

Peter Marshall: What do you call a man who gives you diamonds and pearls?
Paul Lynde: I’d call him “darling”!

Peter Marshall: Paul, can anything bring tears to a chimp’s eyes?
Paul Lynde: Finding out that Tarzan swings both ways!

Peter Marshall: A current movie is being described as “the story of a love that changed the world forever.” What movie is it?
Paul Lynde: Oh, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid.

and just one more:

Peter Marshall: Nathan Hale, one of the heroes of the American Revolution, was hung. Why?
Paul Lynde: Heredity!

You can find the full collection here.

Alright, I promised a story. So, per that year in review quiz that many of us did, I now know that a lot of you watch American Idol. Even if you don’t, I think you would have had to be hidden under a rock back in 2004 when season 2 began and the classic bad audition was broadcast launching the D list celebrity career of William Hung. 2004 really was the year of Hung (get the connection now between this and honoring Paul Lynde? Ok, good!) Season 2 was also the year of Ruben vs Clay and my household watched every week. Sportsboy was into it, my friend Jax came over nearly every Tuesday night to watch the performances with us – and to eat cheeseburgers 😉 It was an Event for us. That summer, I even bought tickets for the three of us to see the first stop of the American Idol tour up in Anaheim. Thanks to Claymania that concert was essentially a huge scream-fest and the three of us are still not sure if our hearing is right.

Anyhoo…as embarrassing as ANY of that may sound, I can top it. The local radio station morning show is at fault here. They arranged to have William Hung come do an appearance..no no..it was a live performance! Oh yes, a live performance. Free! At the mall!! Now, how could I pass that up, right? I think this must have happened when SB was in Sweden because he was not with me – no, it was Jax who happily came along. There we were, two 39 year old women without a child with us going to the local mall to see an American Idol reject. Yes folks, this is the glamorous life I lead! However, given that it really was at the height of his popularity, we really had a battle ahead of us. First we had to park like waaaay far away. Then as we walked the length of the mall to reach the staging site, we just kind of soaked in the crowd. It was quite a bit..umm..younger? As we got closer we started murmuring of a crowd gathering. Now, my memory is kind fuzzy, but I am pretty sure we got there at least an hour ahead. The stage was setup in the kind of multiple story open area that most malls have – you know the place where the escalators are? At North County Fair its a large round area. We ended up on the upper story somehow jammed up just behind some kids who were sitting against the railing dangling their legs. There were people just stacked up against each other for multiple levels and then streaming out like wheel spokes from every possible entry area. It was insane!!! I am pretty sure it violated every safety regulation written. Jax and I just stood there, waiting for this guy and laughing at the spectacle. And at our ourselves 😉

When he did finally appear I swear the hysteria especially in the crowd down in front of the stage was almost like Beatlemania. The radio station had bribed convinced Charger girls to be backup dancers. I think that is why there were those 3 guys who were in the audience with their kids. Ok, maybe there were 4. Seriously, it was all moms with kids and lots of kids without parents in site. Older kids, yes. 20 and under. So William comes out and does his karaoke version of She Bangs. And that was it! We fought for parking, walked all over, jostled and jammed ourselves into the crowd (I swear a couple of times we wanted to smack some pushy teen girls) and then *stood* waiting for 45 mins for that??? Yep. At least we did recognize the absurdity of it all and giggle most of the time. So yes folks, I can die happy because I got to see WIlliam Hung perform Live and In Person. At the Mall. At least it was free. I’m so hip.