Tag Archives: Monty Python

History Mystery

British cemeteries are fascinating. When I was staying at Graham Chapman’s house during my first Monty Python-inspired trip to London, he casually mentioned “Karl Marx is just up the road.” I was slightly confused, until he explained that Highgate Cemetery was about a five minute walk from the house, and Karl Marx was indeed one of his neighbors. “People are always blowing it up,” he added casually.

One of the reasons British cemeteries are more interesting than American ones is that they’re just so OLD. Take a walk through, and it isn’t hard to find tombstones that are older than America.

But British cemeteries also have more than their share of mysteries. Brompton Cemetery, near Kensington in London, has a time machine in one corner. Yes, you read that correctly.

When I was in the early stages of writing the book that became The Last of the Time Police,” I stumbled upon the story of this strange but true structure, and the people who created it. Why they created it, and how it got there, is still a mystery. Even stranger, the mausoleum/time machine almost looks like it was built by ancient Egyptians. In fact, it may have been built by a Victorian inventor called Samuel A. Warner, who also invented the first torpedo. When Warner demanded a huge sum for one of his inventions, some claim that he was murdered to prevent it from falling into the hands of Britain’s enemies.

Or, it might have been designed and built by Joseph Bonomi, an architect and Egyptologist who was part of the team that first deciphered the hieroglyphics found in Egypt’s Valley of the Kings. (Some people claim that the papyrus that he worked on included the secrets of time travel.)

Both Warner and Bonomi are buried near the mausoleum, which is allegedly occupied by a trio of Victorian spinsters, about whom very little is known for certain. The mother, Hannah Courtoy, is rumored to have been a royal mistress, and extremely wealthy; two of her three daughters are supposed to be buried with her. Nobody knows for sure.

The key to the 20-foot tall mausoleum was lost and no one has been inside in more than 120 years. Of course, that gave birth to rumors that the tomb is empty, and that some or all of them are traveling in time.

Some people laugh at that. What they can’t laugh at is the fact that the mysterious mausoleum is the only structure in the entire cemetery for which there are no plans (and this was at a time when the schematics for any structure proposed for Brompton Cemetery had to be carefully studied before approval).

We also know that all of these folks led extremely interesting lives, and that’s why I made them all characters in The Last of The Time Police. More on some of these folks later, but in the meantime, here’s a shot of the time machine/mausoleum to put everyone in a Halloween mood…

Stooges, Pythons, and Getting Paid for It, Part Two

It seems like almost every time I’ve done something cool, Monty Python has been involved in some way or another. And so, when I found out about Monty Python Live at the Hollywood Bowl, I began planning to drive to California. The story of my first trip to L.A. and appearing on stage with the Pythons will help me fill up a future blog or three. What is more relevant here is that I decided to look up the only non-Python-related star I knew. That’s right. Curly Joe.

I can’t remember if I was brazen enough to call him when I knew I’d be out there, or if there was another, more subtle reason for the call and subsequent invitation, but Joe and his wife invited me over to their house one afternoon. It was a nondescript house in a quiet neighborhood (Moorpark sounds right, for some reason). Joe answered the door, though it took him longer than I had expected. I wish I could recall more of the details, although I’m sure many of the stories he told me were the same ones he had told in our radio interview. I can recall that he was very detailed in describing the business relationship he had entered into with Moe when he joined the Stooges. Moe and Larry had died by that time, so he had resigned himself to retirement. His wife, a nurse, joined us for part of the time, and he happily autographed a few photos for me before I had to scamper off for the Hollywood Bowl. I was always a big Stooges fan, and although I had always wanted to be one of the lucky fans who had met Moe or Larry, I was delighted that Curly Joe proved a very nice brush with Stoogedom.

Stooges, Pythons, and Getting Paid for It

Long before I had met any of the Pythons, I did my first celebrity interview, and it was the first article I ever got money for writing. I was still in college at the time, working a couple of shifts a week at the college radio station, including a weekly comedy show which primarily consisted of playing album cuts by the Smothers Brothers and Jonathan Winters (this was before I had gotten my mitts on Monty Python albums. I discovered that a friend of a friend was running a convention in California, and he was bringing in several guests. One of them caught my eye.

Ironic, in retrospect, because his own eye had been caught by Moe on numerous occasions. By this time, though, Moe and Larry had both passed away. But Joe DeRita, “Curly Joe,” was still alive and well and apparently doing public appearances. Although I figured Jonathan Winters and the Smothers Brothers (to say nothing of the Pythons), would probably be too busy to deign to do a college radio interview, I had a feeling that Curly Joe might have a little more time on his hands. I was right. Using my radio show to justify my request, I finagled his number and made a call, and that very week I was interviewing Curly Joe. He couldn’t have been nicer, and answered all of my fanboy comedy questions with great patience and tolerance. Eventually, at the urging of Mr. Jewell, my former speech teacher, I transcribed the whole thing and sent it off to a nostalgia magazine, which eventually printed it. As a college kid stuck in the Midwest, I couldn’t believe I had spoken to someone who was part of a comedy legend, and to get paid for it? I couldn’t think of a better way to make money.

Forty-four years ago today, October 5, 1969, the first episode of “Monty Python’s Flying Circus” was broadcast on the BBC. Happy birthday, boys!

A Thoroughly Biased Look at “John Cleese: Last Time to See Me Before I Die”

An evening with John Cleese is like sitting down with an old friend and a cold vodka and tonic. You know you’re going to have an enjoyable evening–the only question is, how enjoyable?

Most of the audience for John Cleese: Last Time to See Me Before I Die will be familiar with at least some of his work, usually Monty Python, Fawlty Towers, or A Fish Called Wanda. And they will unquestionably get their moneys’ worth with stories and film clips featuring the best-loved bits and co-stars. But just as enjoyable are the stories and clips of lesser-known but just as hilarious shows and friends. Who knew that his mother Muriel would be discussed as much as Monty Python? And get just as many laughs?

John settles into a comfy chair as he discusses both his parents, growing up in Weston-super-Mare, which was inexplicably bombed during World War II, how he got into show business, touring New Zealand, beginning work at the BBC, and early friends and idols like Marty Feldman, David Frost, and Peter Sellers. He hits on all of the successes that one would expect, but also explains his love of black comedy (one of the few things he had in common with his mother). He gleefully relates several practical jokes played on Michael Palin (including one that backfires deliciously), and tries to explain the late Graham Chapman, his friend and writing partner. The show moves along at a rapid pace, and he packs in plenty of stories, seasoning it with just the right amount of photos and film clips.

I suppose a disclaimer is due here: I’ve known and been friends with John since the ’70s, so I am a bit prejudiced. However, after seeing it several times, I was delighted to see the virtually universal enthusiastic audience reaction.

At risk of being labelled a sycophantic fanboy (which, when dealing with John and the Pythons, is a badge I wear with honor), he deserves the adulation; he works hard to ensure that his performance is word-perfect, going into the theatre early to hone phrases and check photos and cues. The result speaks for itself.

After wrapping up the Canadian Tour, John Cleese: Last Time to See Me Before I Die will be touring Australia early in 2014. I’ll post more about it when it gets closer to the time.

Oh, and how enjoyable? Very enjoyable indeed.

A Good Month for Canadian Cleese fans

When I was working for John Cleese, I often urged him to put together a one-man show. He agreed it was a good idea, but never seemed to have the time to organize it. Eventually, faced with the need to pay out an atrocious amount of alimony for too many years, he found the time, and his fans and his ex-wife are the better for it. He’s performed it in various places, trying it out in New Zealand (where, as he put it, if it was a disaster, no one would likely ever hear about it)–and playing it in Scandinavia, Australia, even a few California dates. Now it’s Canada’s turn, where the Halifaxians and Torontons have seen it, and he’s working his way west even as I write this. The bad news: most shows are already sold out, so if you’re in that Great Northern neck of the woods and want to see it, you’d better move fast. But if you’re in Edmonton with nothing to do, try this, but do it quickly. And if you have a great deal to do, but can still get to Edmonton next week, cancel your plans and go see the show anyway. As of this writing, it looks like there are a few tickets remaining for one of the October 5th shows, which would be a great way to celebrate Monty Python’s 44th anniversary.

Why am I writing about it now? Because I finally, at long last, had a chance to see the show. It exceeded my expectations, which were pretty high to begin with. I’ll write a short, completely biased review soon, along with a backstage look at the show.