The 5 worst characters on radio sitcoms

As a general rule, I enjoy most radio situation comedies.  However, there were some characters that I just can't stand:

5. Waldo Binney on the Life of Riley (Dink Trout) - I guess the main reason I don't like him is that he's annoying to me rather than being funny.  The show survived fine without him so we know he wasn't crucial.

Another thing, he seemed to steal his character from the Irene Ryan character on the Jack Carson Show.  The characters could be twins (male and female.)  Besides, who wants to listen to someone complain all the time?

4. The Happy Mailman on Burns and Allen (Mel Blanc) - Mel Blanc was a man of 1000 voices and one of those voices was as the Mailman on the George Burns, Gracie Allen Show.  While Mel Blanc was a superb imitator and original voice artist, he (generally) wasn't much of a comedian.

Of course, he seemed to flourish in that role on the Jack Benny show but I digress.  As the mailman, he was one of many annoying, unneeded characters who would show up on the show in the early 1940's.

3. Margaret Davis, the landlady on Our Miss Brooks (Jane Morgan) - Jane Morgan always played the same kind of character, an elderly advice-giver; usually a maid or a landlady.  It really matters not to me on what show or what what role she was in, I thought she was annoying.  She is one of several reasons why Our Miss Brooks is low on my listening totem pole. 

Her voice is grinding, but not near as bad as Portland Hoffa, who would easily make this list, except she was on a variety show (the various Fred Allen shows) and not a situation comedy.

2. Gloria the housekeeper on the Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet (Bea Benaderet) - By far Bea Benaderet's worst role.  She seems to portrays Gloria as having some sort of speech problem, perhaps a cleft lip.  Sorry, but that's what it sounds like to me.  Ultra annoying, unfunny, unneeded character.

1. Herman the Duck on Burns and Allen (Clarence Nash) - Clarence Nash was actually the voice of Donald Duck (and Daisy) at Disney for years.  I suppose someone on the Burns and Allen show didn't think the Happy Postman was torture enough to listen to so they decided to bring in something more ridiculous and worse-sounding.

The fact is this: the show was one you could really immerse yourself in, even with the Happy Mailman but the stupid talking duck on the show simply ruins it for me.  The duck and the Mailman were on during the same years.  WHAT WERE THEY THINKING?

©Jimbo 2010/2011

The lodge: a staple in many sitcoms

Anyone who follows the show, Vic and Sade will know that Vic is not just a member of a lodge, he's wrapped up in it.  His lodge is like a religion to him.

Since the lodge is full of very stupid rituals and yet it's treated with such reverence, there is this comedy yin-yang that makes it almost impossible not to laugh along with Sade, who sees the lodge as a money pit and waste of time.

I've been thinking, "the lodge" shows up quite a bit on other old-time radio (as well as early television):

Amos 'n' Andy - We know that George Stevens is the "King Fish" because he is the head of the "Knights of the Mystic Sea" lodge.  I really don't remember hearing about anything much that goes on there, but we know the lodge is a large part of the show.

Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet - Close listening will show that Ozzie is a member of an unspecified lodge.   It's rarely mentioned.

Fibber McGee and Molly - Fibber is an Elk and the lodge comes into play in 3 or 4 episodes.  He seems to take the lodge seriously but it doesn't seem to control Fibber's life.

Lum and Abner - Almost every male on the show (excluding Cedric) seems to be a member of the lodge.  The lodge name is never mentioned (or at least, I've never heard it in the many episodes I have listened to.)  For the most part, the lodge seems to be a place to borrow chairs from, more than anything else.  Squire Skimp is a big muckity-muck in the lodge.

Mel Blanc Show - Mel belonged to the lodge and greeted other members of the lodge with secret, silly stuff concerning, "ugga bugga boo" or something similar.  I haven't heard the show in a while but I seem to recall his prospective father-in-law was a lodge muckity-muck and Mel was always trying to impress him and work his way up in the lodge.  (By the way, I hate the show.)

As I mentioned earlier, early sitcom TV had it's share of lodge members.  On the Honeymooners, Ralph and Norton were devoted to the lodge.  Fred and Barney on the Flintstones (which was a knockoff of The Honeymooners) were also lodge devotees.  And I know there were others.

©Jimbo 2010/2011