Not cutting was an essential technicality of the show because of the live audience. It was very difficult to create a laughter track at the time, and retaking a scene wouldn't get the same reaction the second time around. What you're really watching is a live play filmed for broadcast... It would be nice if modern sitcoms went back to this,,, but then they'd have to actually be funny 😅
Joe E Ross's Car 54 partner, Fred Gwynne, appeared in two excellent Bilko episodes - The Stomach and It's For The Birds. Love That Guardhouse is one of my all-time favourite episodes, along with The Twitch and Bilko's TV Pilot (where Buddy Bickford's team are looking for a new sitcom idea for him).
As I look learn about the newest acts of the day, I enjoy going as well into acts from before my time. I only just now Googled Phil Silver bloopers because on over-the-air Sgt Bilko that crept on my TV had wondering if Silvers wouldn't have made some of his cast laugh out loud. I guess this is about all I will find, since they apparently filmed live. Glad I could find this out. BTW, the episode I am just catching is His Highness Doberman. Wow, Silvers is a tornado of comedic energy.
I don't know how the other actors kept a straight face! From what I learned at the BFI evening, Nat Hiken used to write such long scripts very quickly that the show had to be completed very quickly and those comedy genii did. They could have edited it out I guess and filmed it again but it was lucky for us that they left it in? I looked up corpsing how you described and it said this: unintentionally breaking character by laughing so it isn't since they didn't break character?
E Trac Well - they came damn close (a couple DID laugh). Unlike modern sitcom recordings, the director of this show (filmed with multi-camera, in New York) didn't CUT every time something wasn't perfect - thus allowing free flow. So as the actors kept going here and didn't COMPLETELY break character, this gem survived.
Does anyone know which episode this is from? I would love to see the episode to put it into context when they are talking about picking a car....Any help is much appreciated! Thanks for the great clip!
If you're still reading these...at the start of the episode, Bilko was tired of Ritzik always losing, so he suggested he take his money, go to Vegas bet on roulette, and he would be done for the year. Ritzik's response: "What number?" Bilko's reply? "The number of your IQ - Double Zero!" Guess what? Ritzik takes $50, drives to Vegas, bets on double zero...and wins $1750; now he's convinced he's a gambling expert, and all he needs to do is to get into a poker game.
I saw that too, it’s Joe E Ross playing Sgt Rupert Ritzik, he’s unconsciously mouthing the other actors lines to get to his line. I have seen other actors do this, most notably Matt Le Blanc as Joey in Friends who tended to do it quite often.
Hey, does anyone notice that the guy with the black hair getting out of the cell is the short cop on "CAR 54 WHERE ARE YOU?". He's the guy that always goes "oooo oooo.
+andy lenow He's mess sergeant rupert ritzik he became a regular in this season replacing harry clark who died in the middle of the show's inaugural season.
