That year marked the debut of “The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour,” which followed “Ed Sullivan” and despite the clean cut and unassuming appearance of its hosts, was as new school as you can get. TV, in fact, had never seen anything like it. The pointed political satire, counterculture humor and anti-war sentiments earned the ire of the network’s “beeping censors” as well as President Richard Nixon, who lobbied network execs to cancel the show, which they ultimately did in 1969.
Tom Smothers, who died Dec 26 at his home in Santa Rosa, Calif, was the “Comedy Hour’s” driving comedic force. Like Stan Laurel before him, Tom only played dumb opposite his brother Dick as one-half of the Smothers Brothers. Decades before “A Mighty Wind,” the brothers, consummate musicians—Tom on acoustic guitar and Dick on stand-up bass—affectionately lampooned folk music. Here for example, was their take on “The Ballad of John Henry”:
“John Henry got his first hammer from his daddy, he was just a little fella, about five years old. He grabbed that little hammer in hands and started hammering on things. Banging on the pots and pans. Banging on the back stairs. Banging the little girl next door….”
As comic folk singers, the Smothers Brothers were a fixture in nightclubs and on variety shows. In addition to their irreverent takes on America’s folk songbook, their between-song banter was informed by a combative sibling rivalry. “Mom always liked you best” was Tom’s catchphrase (and the title of their Grammy-nominated album).
After a failed sitcom, CBS offered the brothers their own variety show that would serve as counterprogramming for an untapped younger and hipper audience. Tom demanded and was promised creative control. That promise would be broken, but what they were able to get away with is still potent.
The writing staff included Steve Martin, Rob Reiner and Bob (Super Dave) Einstein. Leigh French portrayed the recurring character Goldie, a spacey flower child who, in one segment, literally just answered viewer’s unheard questions (“You just bury that in your backyard and don’t let them in unless you see a warrant”). Deadpan comedian Pat Paulson went the 1960s version of viral when he mounted a mock presidential campaign. One epic sketch went medieval on the 1968 presidential campaign with a nod toward the Arthurian legend of the sword in the stone.