Ish Kabibble

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The origin of Mervyn Bogue's stage name can be traced back to the 1913 novelty song, "Isch ga-bibble," and this 1915 cartoon postcard which displays a spelling (Ish Ka Bibble) almost identical to that used by Bogue. Between the song and the card, Harry Hershfield introduced, in 1914, his character Abie Kabibble in his comic strip Abie the Agent.

Ish Kabibble (19 January 1908–5 June 1994) was a comedian and cornet player. Born Merwyn Bogue in North East, Pennsylvania, his family returned to Erie, Pennsylvania a few months after his birth.

He studied law at West Virginia University but his comedy antics soon found an audience. He performed with Kay Kyser on Kay Kyser's Kollege of Musical Knowledge (1939-49), and he appeared in ten movies between 1939 and 1950. In Thousands Cheer (1943) he is the band member who tells Kyser the joke about his friend receiving $250,000, and he sings "I Dug a Ditch" in that film. He's also a vocalist in That's Right - You're Wrong (1939), You'll Find Out (1940) and Playmates (1941).

In his 1989 autobiography Bogue explained his stage name which he took from the lyrics of one of his comedic songs, "Isch ga-bibble". ^[1] The song derived from a boy named Ben, who thought the word was cool, "Ishkabibble?", which was purported to mean "I should worry?", prompting a curious (and perhaps not coincidental) association of the comedian with the "What, me worry?" motto of Mad's mascot, Alfred E. Neuman. While this derivation has been widely quoted on the Internet and elsewhere, the expression "ische ga bibble" is not Yiddish and contains no Yiddish words at all. ^[2]

Although Bogue's stage persona was that of a dim-witted person, he was a notable cornet player and also was the business manager for the Kay Kyser Orchestra from 1931 to 1951. With the decline of the big bands, Bogue found a new career in real estate. He died in 1994 in Palm Springs. ^[3]

[edit] Influence

Kabibble's distinctive black hair in a bowl cut, similar to that used by Three Stooges member Moe Howard, is said to have been an inspiration for the hairstyle worn by Jim Carrey's character in Dumb and Dumber. Some maintain that Jerry Lewis lifted his comedic persona and look from Ish Kabibble, making an otherwise identical character more manic than Ish Kabibble's earlier presentation.

In 1975, Montreal magician Bob Shelley began using the word "ishkabibble" (one word) as his "magic word" when performing children's shows. Shelley recalled his mother telling him of Vaudevillian comedienne Fanny Brice using the word on stage whenever she made a mistake. She did this in lieu of cursing so as not to offend her audiences. Since Shelley's on-stage persona was that of a magician who failed comically, allowing the children to make the magic happen, the word "ishkabibble" seemed perfect. Children began to refer to Shelley by the magic word he had chosen and he soon took the word as his stage name. He later licensed the name "Ishkabibble" and his signature magic word "ishkabibble" and continues to perform throughout the United States and Canada. Shelley also uses the word "ishkabibble" as his magic incantation when performing his spoof of a 19th Century Medicine Show in which goes by the name Professor Marvel.

In 1985, the character's name was used as a plot-device on the animated series, The Thirteen Ghosts of Scooby-Doo. On this series, Scooby and the gang, along with an animated spoof of Vincent Price, are in search of the Amulet of Ish Kabibble.

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• Merwyn Bogue at the Internet Movie Database