Was listening to an interview with the late Mary Tyler Moore and she cited Nanette Fabray (who I was not aware of) as an influence, which led me to this vid. Ms. Fabray is so fantastic in this sketch. She and Sid have great comedic chemistry. Thanks for uploading this!
Hysterically funny; glorious song and comedy performance from Nanette. Sid steals the show with his pantomime antics. Priceless and a master class in comedy performance.
These were so funny. I am really enjoying all the old shows on RU-vid. Great writers wrote from life, as the writers for Lucy Ball said. The ones from today , well, I won't go there.
The conductor Artur Rodzinski paid her brief time at Julliard for classical voice training. She decided to stick with Broadway, instead. In her early performing career she created an act of singing "Caro nome" and tap-dancing simultaneously. She had so much natural talent.
One of Nanette’s signature strengths was her ability to commit completely to her part. She was completely convincing no matter how mad the comic action, because she only saw and felt what her character saw and felt. The other thing was her great energy. Did they mention she was Shelly Fabares’ Aunt.
It's a funny, funny sketch, which I first saw Sid Caesar perform with Carol Lawrence. I don't know which lady (Fabray or Lawrence) actually performed it first; but they were both beautiful, both talented... and they both made a good show of being long suffering and patient through their co-star's pretended clumsiness. Thank you for sharing this!
Nanette was an all-round trouper. In 1955 'Caesar's World' mounted a big number parodying 1930s movie musicals. The producers auditioned a hundred chorines, none of whom could do a plausible imitation of Eleanor Powell tap dancing. So Nanette did it. She disliked the conditions of movie-making, and despite her success in 'The Band Wagon' her metier was performing live and continuously to civilian audiences, on stage or in broadcast studios. The same applied to Sid and Nanette's predecessor, Imogene Coca.
This was originally telecast in 1955. Nanette sings "Shadow Waltz", written by Harry Warren and Al Dubin for "Gold Diggers of 1933"; music arranged and conducted by Bernard Green.
