Borge

[White Fox]

Was just watching Victor Borge here. Amazing how many people think he was actually not really accomplished at the piano when it was just the opposite!

[ew19975]

Maybe it has something to do with doing both comedy and playing the piano. I have a couple of CDs of his, and enjoy some of the parts. \

Then again, it may be my sense of humor instead of the music...

[White Fox]

I think that part of it is that Borge and Skelton and Winters and Jimmy Durante and so many of these old comedians were from the old Vaudaville school. They understood humour far better than so many comedians today do in a way. Today, so often comedians rely on dirty words to make people laugh. The humour produced by being able to get away with such today. But these old folks never did that. Look at shows like Baby Snooks and Daddy. Or other such.

 

They make us laugh because the MATERIAL is funny as vs dirty words, where humour is the RESULT of using those dirty words. And I think maybe material is out trumping result very often when it gets right down to it.

[Worker 11811]

In order to make fun of something a comedian has to know the subject very well.

 

Too many comedians, today, don't know the subject they are lampooning very well, at all, and it is very apparent.

 

Even though Victor Borge was a musical comedian, he was a great pianist. He often joked that he never played a piece all the way through but that was only in his comedy act.

 

Check out this YT clip: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8-0sH720yYE

 

He plays "Czardos" in a duet with violinist, Anton Kontra. He plays it well, all the while, acting like his comedic self.

 

You can't play a song that well and ape it at the same time if you don't know the music cold!

And I might add... He played it without a score!