SID CAESAR: Nan's Birthday [THE COMMUTERS] (CAESAR'S HOUR, Feb 28 1955)

A funny and unexpectedly touching installment of the Commuters. It's Nan's birthday, and Victor has an unusual gift planned for her. Special appearance by Henny Youngman.
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[@caroler01]

This made me cry.

[@sidcaesaryourshowofshowsca2250]

It's a good example of Sid's ability to play it straight--very effectively--within a comedy sketch. After watching a lot of Your Show of Shows and Caesar's Hour sketches, I'm always impressed by his facility at moving from comedy to straight and back again. IMHO, there were very few in the '50s who could match him as a comic actor. ---kjh

[@sidcaesaryourshowofshowsca2250]

@Corno di Bassetto Alas, I wish we had it. It was a "bonus" sketch on some of the DVDs Sid put out. They're no longer being issued, but you can still get them on eBay, Amazon occasionally, etc. The only problem is that you usually can't find out if they have a bonus sketch! "The Longest Show on Earth" came out that way, i.e. as a bonus sketch. I keep hoping I'll find "Shane" aka "Strange" some day, but it will probably be by sheer luck. I've seen it (digitized from a kinescope) and it's a classic parody. ---kjh

[@Gypsyqueen-lt7tq]

In addition to being a first-class comedian & a fine musician, Mr. Caesar was a wonderful dramatic actor -- he could deliver any emotion (including tears) on cue. There's a radio interview w/ him & Marlon Brando & Marilyn Monroe that should not be missed -- unfortunately, the static loses some of the dialogue, but Sid & Marlon engage in a highly intelligent discussion of "new wave" European film and method acting -- it's clear they both knew & respected one another well. At one point, Marlon actually asks Sid if he'd "like to do a straight part" -- and Sid rather wistfully admits that he *would*, but then demurs that he's "not really an actor." I only wish he'd had more opportunities to develop his talent -- which was enormous. Thanks so much for posting!!

[@utube658]

just like some of you , i never saw that ending come and i am deeply touched!

[@PorkChopJones]

What a nice touching ending. I never saw the song coming until Sid got up to sing it. I thought it was just a passing bit. But in the end it turned out to be the best present of all. It's so sad that we used to know how to be romantic but not anymore. The club songstress and Henny Youngman was a nice work up to Sid's song to Nan. Happy Birthday Nan!

[@sidcaesaryourshowofshowsca2250]

I may have mentioned this before, but two things about this sketch ending always impress: first, that he wrote the song for his real-life wife Florence as a birthday present for her when he was in the Coast Guard; second, that Sid was, besides being a superb comedian, a very good straight actor. I've seen a number of YSOS sketches that aren't on easily accessible video and he was excellent in moving seamlessly from comedy to playing it straight and then back to comedy. ---kjh

[@savethetpc6406]

I just love it when Sid gets "sweet"! ---And he had a pretty good singing voice, too! (I'd be thrilled if my husband wrote a song for me for _my_ birthday! He's been writing songs for years, but he hasn't written one for me yet! :/ )

[@Gypsyqueen-lt7tq]

So delighted to have stumbled upon these great clips! I have been a fan of Sid Caesar's since childhood -- "Mad Mad World" is my favorite film -- but just recently got re-interested in his career. Never knew much about his celebrated TV work, and can't get enough of either this or YSOS! He was not only a great comedian, but a wonderful actor -- this skit in particular is so poignant; I was in tears at the end! Who wouldn't have loved to have been married to such sweet, shy handsome fella -- "Nan" was a lucky woman :)

[@Gypsyqueen-lt7tq]

This clip really made me cry. I've loved classic comedy my entire life, and grew up watching "Mad Mad World." But I only recently discovered Mr. Caesar's YSOS and CH sketches - and I now regard him in an entirely different light. He was not just a great comedian, but also an incredible actor -- and I'm sorry that he's not better remembered. Thank you for keeping his spirit -- and incomparable talent -- alive! . . . .

[@utube658]

thank you for sharing these remarkable videos, they're priceless! these group of comedians really set the precedent of future comedy skits on television!

[@gailjarvis2592]

Lovely, natural and moving singing, totally touching and in character. What a great man he was.

[@sidcaesaryourshowofshowsca2250]

What probably gave it some additional emotional depth for Sid was that he wrote the song, back when he was in the Coast Guard, for his real-life wife Florence. --kjh

[@mortalclown3812]

@@sidcaesaryourshowofshowsca2250 Oh wow - and they were married for a very long time. Back together in heaven. Thanks for adding this and posting this awesome sketch

[@Gypsyqueen-lt7tq]

Sid got his comedic start as a "straight man" & you can really tell in this sketch. He gives away all the "good" lines to Carl Reiner, Nanette Fabray and Henny Youngman. But then he quietly steals the show by not attempting to be funny at all. The song for his wife is one of the most moving scenes I've ever seen. Thanks so much for posting!

[@NuttyIsa]

The end of this sketch is so touching. It's so sad and yet emotional because he wrote this song for his wife Florence when he was in the coast guard and without money, and now that he was making money with the show he was throwing away his life for alcohol and pills. He became abusive to Florence, but she stayed anyway, It must have been hard for her. I like to think that he sang this song in public as a big apologize to Florence. I'm so glad they stayed together all their life and he quitted drinking and drugs.

[@nonenoneonenonenone]

Seriously? Sid wrote it himself?

[@NuttyIsa]

@@nonenoneonenonenone yes he did :)

[@nonenoneonenonenone]

What a marvelous song. I wonder who wrote it.

[@weirdbeard63]

I hope this wasn't Henny Youngman's best material.....😃

[@daniellack3559]

I was a bit too young at the time of YSOS and Caesars Hour but I know my parents were huge fans of both, and have watched as many kinescopes over the years as I could...something I wonder is, at the time, was there a lot of pressure on Nan Fabray, assuming the role originated by Imogene Coca, that being of course Sid's wife, partner, etc in all the different sketches/skits...I know that the chemistry between Sid and Imogene on the original YSOS and the very early Admiral Show, was legendary and helped in part account for the enormous success of the programs...and so I imagine a lot of folks must have compared Nan to Imogene (when Imogene was given her own show and departed Sid and Company)..it had to be a bit worrisome for Nan, filling those big shoes, and hoping to click with Sid...

[@giles422]

likely so! I think Nanette Fabray knew she had huge shoes to fill, in fact I read somewhere she had to be convinced to join the cast. On the other hand, she was able to bring a realistic and essential sexuality to the husband/wife scenes with Sid in a way that Imogene Coca could not. It brought a new flavor to the whole show, and I think Caesar's Hour profited. The show did not lose a step after Coca left, it picked up speed.

[@daniellack3559]

Very interesting points...and it really makes sense that Nan would not have tried to duplicate Imogene, but rather capitalize on her sexuality and physical attractiveness, and help take things in a somewhat different direction....One interesting point I learned about recently is, that Nan in fact didn't appear in the final year of Caesars Hour, due to her manager demanding a very large salary increase for the final season (unbeknownst to Nan)...and Sid blew his top and so Nan was out, and final year was filled by a rotating set of ladies playing off against Sid...

[@giles422]

yes, that was a real shame. I thought Caesar's Hour was really on a roll when all that went down, and what a loss for all involved. On the other hand, maybe it happened for the best... Sid may have been heading for an early grave had he not gotten out from under the pressure of that show.

[@daniellack3559]

When you say " I thought Caesars Hour was really on a roll when all that went down"...I would be interested to know, were you old enough at that time, to have watched and remembered YSOS and CH during the live tv showings?...thanks...

[@giles422]

me? lol naw. I was born in 1963. Just a big Sid Caesar fan, have watched a lot of the shows.

[@avival66]

👌💕🌺🎁❤💌💗

[@reinacoffee8557]

I imagined him singing this beautiful and romantic song it to Imogene Coca instead of to Nanette. Imogene deserved it more. Wonderful voice. RIP Great Sid Caesar.

[@sidcaesaryourshowofshowsca2250]

Well, taking nothing away from Nanette, a skilled comedian in her own right, Sid and Imogene did have a remarkable rapport. It was exhibited not just in sketches but in their unscripted interactions as "themselves" on Your Show of Shows (something you unfortunately can't see unless you have access to entire episodes at the Paley Center in NYC and LA). Maybe you can imagine Sid singing the song to his real wife Florence--he wrote it for her when he was in the Coast Guard. :) --kjh

[@blodgettshouseofinsanity]

This is great but why no Imogene coca?

[@sidcaesaryourshowofshowsca2250]

She and Sid were split off to different programs by NBC in 1954. This is from CAESAR'S HOUR, not YOUR SHOW OF SHOWS. [wgw]

[@blodgettshouseofinsanity]

Sid Caesar: Your Show of Shows / Caesar's Hour / Admiral Broadway Revue ok. Did she have a falling out with Sid or did they just decide to go separate ways?

[@sidcaesaryourshowofshowsca2250]

It was entirely the network's stupid idea, not theirs. Sid went on to three years of CAESAR'S HOUR, while Imogene never found any real success as a solo performer on TV. Sid and Imogene reunited to perform together time and time again throughout the rest of their careers, sometimes doing sketches that originally featured Nanette Fabray! [wgw]