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tommy and dick

            Globetoppers    says:
(here's the "reader review" I wrote for the paper):

He said they weren’t the original Smothers Brothers.

“Tommy and Dick actually died in 1969” Tommy joked from the stage of the Sunrise Theater last night. The constant laughter and applause from the audience though confirmed this was not a tribute duo. It’s been 40 years since we watched them on their TV show but the freshness, timing, and musical ability reveal Tommy and Dick Smothers are the real deal. And maybe things on this planet haven’t changed all that much. 

The Sunrise Theater in Fort Pierce (which the brothers talked about) was the perfect venue for their 90 minute show. Larger than the Lyric, but intimate. The Smothers Brothers stood alone on stage, two spotlights; Tommy on the acoustic guitar and Dick on his bass. Their act was full of the familiar repartee we expect between the brothers but it was current and very funny. When Tommy rambled on about “flying over the small town of Port St. Lucie” , Dick kept reminding him he was a liar. “We didn’t fly. And, You are NOT a pilot!” Tommy replied “I don’t recall not being a pilot?” 
Even the comedic dialogue about Tommy “fueling up his Cessna” threaded back to the theme of Truth. and maybe, Tommy observed “truth is getting people to believe you!” . 
Our current administration was the featured -fodder for several of these bits. The Smothers Brothers are not fans of Bush. They were cancelled in 1969 for offending Nixon. Being provocative is who they are. When asking the audience “How many of you are republican?” , Tommy responded to the (small) clapping with “don’t you read the papers?”. But the humor is more about humanity. Family. Appreciation. 

And of course, the YO YO MAN made his appearance! While Dick narrated, 
the Yo Yo Man shared his Chaplin-esque charm with masterful athleticism!

Dick Smothers introduced a wonderful video after the Yo Yo Man- 
Full of loving tributes to their family (Tommy is the oldest, then Richard, and the youngest, a sister. They lost their father in the Pacific in WW2), the 15 minute movie spanned the career of the Smothers Brothers, giving a nod to those that helped their journey (their dear mother, Jack Paar, Steve Allen, George Burns , Steve Martin) and ending with that famous CBS variety show that was inevitably censored to death then cancelled.
“But we’re still here” was the song they were singing in 1969 , and as the lights came up, Tom and Dick joined in. I don’t think we could imagine their humor would transcend this long. I wonder if they thought they would still be around and relevant? 
Did any of us? 
Thanks for a great warm wonderful funny show. I am glad they went the distance. 

Lisa J. Sohl

   

Taken on: March 5, 2008

Tags:

55yearsofshowbiz

Smothers Brothers

censorship

political

humor

SunriseTheater

FortPierce

FUNNY

review

reviewed

comments

Stuart/Port St Lucie News

Scripps

tcpalm

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Camera: Canon PowerShot S3 IS, f/3.5, 1/50 sec, 72mm (more info) (hide info)

Camera:	Canon PowerShot S3 IS
Aperture:	f/3.5
Exposure Time:	0.02 sec (1/50)
Focal Length:	72mm
Exposure Bias:	+1 EV
Flash:	Off, Red-eye reduction
Exposure Mode:	Manual
Metering Mode:	Multi-segment
White Balance:	Manual
Color Space:	sRGB
Software:	Adobe Photoshop Elements 5.0 (20060914.r.77) Windows
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