Back in 1985 there was a short-lived television series called George Burns Comedy Week, with each episode starring different characters. There was one in particular I remember watching that really stuck with me as one of the most memorable pieces of prime time comedy from the 1980s. It was called "The Honeybunnies" and featured Howard Hesseman, Laraine Newman, and Casey Kasem.
Hesseman played a grim, existential playwright who enjoyed giving readings on plays about death and despair, but fate trapped him in a position where the only talent he had that could earn an income was writing scripts for an animated series about a bunch of insipid bunnies. The whole thing came across as sort of a cartoonist's Twilight Zone.
This was back in the days before Internet, and before VHS technology was commonplace enough for working Joes like me to record the thing, so the show resided in a favored place in my memory for quite some time without being actually revisited. Eventually, thanks to the kind help of Casey Kasem, believe it or not, I was able to locate a copy of the script about 15 years ago. If there was a commercial copy of the show itself out there, I could never find it and it was too obscure to show up in reruns.
But just recently some wonderful person posted the entire episode in two parts on YouTube. Any cartoonist who has felt a bit trapped by creating their own Tulpa popular character might enjoy this one:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pkV9cnaVOSw (part 1)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1vPidb_7N4E (part 2)
Well, unfortunately the YouTube vids have been pulled. And that is a shame. This televisual story deserves more exposure. If it was also available commercially I could understand it (I would happily buy the DVD!) but the story apparently remains out of reach for us all in any form. Sad. At least I got to refresh my memory of this great work for a brief window of time, so thanks to the YouTube pirate who pissed off some Big Bugs somewhere. I, for one, really appreciated and enjoyed your effort.
ReplyDeleteI remember seeing this when it originally aired, and I never knew what show it was from-- I actually thought it might have been from the '80s Twilight Zone. My memory of it is accurate to your description of the episode, so thanks for posting it. I remember thinking it was pretty funny-- Hesseman just looked like he couldn't have been happier to see those poor little bunnies get squashed! lol
ReplyDeleteThanks James! That photo of Howard I included in this post is his expression of savoring the moment when the rest of the world learns those little bunnies are killed.
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