| The Mad, Mad, Mad Comedians | |
|---|---|
| Genre | Animated television special |
| Directed by | Jules Bass Arthur Rankin, Jr. |
| Produced by | Jules Bass Arthur Rankin, Jr. |
| Written by | Romeo Muller |
| Starring | (See article) |
| Music by | Maury Laws |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Original channel | ABC |
| Release date | April 7, 1970 |
| Running time | 30 min. |
| Preceded by | Mad Monster Party |
| Followed by | Santa Claus Is Comin' to Town |
The Mad, Mad, Mad Comedians (1970) is an animated half-hour ABC television special produced by Rankin/Bass Animation, best known for their stop-motion Christmas special Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer. The show aired on April 7, 1970 before the airing of that year's Oscars. It was a tribute to early vaudeville, and featured animated reworkings of various famous comedians' acts.
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Most of the comedians provided their own voices for their animated counterparts, except for W. C. Fields and Chico Marx, both deceased, Zeppo Marx who had left show business in 1933, and Harpo Marx also deceased, but no voice was needed since his stage persona did not speak. Voice actor Paul Frees narrated the show and filled in for those actors who weren't able to do their own voices.
The show included such segments as a Marx Brothers skit, which was a reworking of a scene from their Broadway play I'll Say She Is (1924). The skit included their famous Napoleon parody, with Napoleon played by Groucho. The sketch featured animated representations. Romeo Muller is credited as having written special material for the show in addition to the original scripts that came from the various comedians' sketches.
Although not really remembered now by the general public, at the time it gave Rankin/Bass their highest TV ratings ever, notably even higher than the high-rated Rudolph. In recent years, Behr Entertainment was in talks to produce a similar show that would feature cartoon renditions of Jack Benny, George Burns, Abbott & Costello, and Bob Hope. 13 half-hour episodes were proposed.