Airdates Of Kovacs Sketches On Vol. 2

A fan of the two "Ernie Kovacs Collection" DVD sets wrote in recently, noting that the bonus sketches on Volume 2 do not have their airdates listed in the liner notes, and asked if we wouldn't mind divulging them.

Not at all! They should have made it into the liners, ideally, and so that everyone has the information, here are the sketches and airdates for Volume 2:

Disc 1 sketches
Interview: Algernon Gerard, Archaeologist - 1/24/56
Howard, the World's Strongest Ant: A Hot Date - 1/27/56
Strangely Believe It: Writers to Blame - 2/17/56
The Kapusta Kid in Outer Space Meets Olivia Scilloscope - 4/5/56
Charlie Clod in Brazil - 4/6/56
Ernie's Opening Monolog - 4/11/56 (K)
Miklos Molnar's Glue: 4/26/56 (K)
Percy Dovetonsils: "Ode to Electricity" - 6/11/56
Interview: The World at Your Doorstep - 6/18/56 (K)

Disc 2 sketches
Irving Wong, Tin Pan Alley Songwriter - 1/13/56
Percy Dovetonsils: "Ode to a Housefly" - 1/18/56
Rock Mississippi in The Umbrella Salesman of Ranchipur - 1/26/56
Howard the World's Strongest Ant: Howard's Campground - 2/23/56
Skodney Silsky, Hollywood Reporter - 4/11/56 (K)
Ernie's Opening Monolog - 4/18/56
Surprise Audience Member (Al Kelly) - 4/23/56
Audio Lost - 4/24/56
Matzoh Hepplewhite - 7/5/56

What the (K) stands for: on several dates, two shows were done back-to-back – one live, and then another direct-to-kinescope for air at a later date, when Ernie and Edie would be on vacation. 

Until next time…it's been real!

Ben Model
New York NY

Ernie Kovacs And Thelonious Monk

This has been rattling around in my mind for some time now: what are the similarities between these two wholly original geniuses, both heroes of mine? Some fun, some serious. Feel free to add more in the comments section.

1. From this article by Jeff Fitzgerald on the "All About Jazz" website:

"Ultimately, the legacy of Thelonious Monk is one of a genius incongruent with his age. Like television pioneer Ernie Kovacs, who was 60 years ahead of his time 50 years ago, we may still not have fully come to appreciate the body of work Monk left behind."

Yes. No argument here; this is the main and most important similarity.

2. As shown in the photo, both men favored cool specs, caps and facial hair. EK, however, never sported a beard except for the fake ones he would occasionally wear in bits (eg, Ernie as King Menelaus satirizing a scene from "Helen of Troy" by Euripides).

3. One of Monk's most famous tunes is a blues called "Straight No Chaser." Ernie liked his drinks that way, especially "'Round Midnight."

4. Both men had wives who absolutely adored them, realized their genius, then encouraged and supported it. For Ernie it was Edie and for Monk it was Nellie. That's not always easy to find. And Edie was a major talent in her own right. Just think what the world might have missed if it hadn't been for both of these great women.

5. Monk's REAL middle name is Sphere. That is too cool. While Ernie's middle name is fairly average his initials spell "EEK." That, in my humble opinion, is also too cool.

6. Ernie was gregarious and and spoke a great deal. Monk was introverted and didn't speak very much. Both men, however, would cause all heads to turn when they entered a room, because both men had a giant presence. When either man spoke their words had meaning and people listened. And, both men were hilariously funny.

7. Both men produced art that on the surface seems abstract and a bit rough around the edges, but upon closer inspection you come to realize that it's very logical and incomparably beautiful. And then you realize that you've never heard or seen anything like it.

8. Ernie and Monk both pushed boundaries, were fearless, ignored critics, broke rules and did things that people said couldn't, or shouldn't, be done. As a result doors were opened for artists everywhere. Who says you can't have milk flowing laterally out of a thermos or a tune that sounds beautiful even though it's loaded with minor seconds?

9. Both men were art forms unto themselves, owing to their singular originality. I would like to think Ernie loved Monk's music and Monk loved Ernie's comedy for this reason.

10. In the final analysis, Ernest Edward Kovacs and Thelonious Sphere Monk were both kind, decent men who advanced their respective art forms to new heights.

I'm sorry I never got to meet either one but am very grateful for the legacy each left behind.

Until next time, Kovacsians, "It's Been Real!"

Ben Model Talks Kovacs On WNYC/NPR - Listen In

I appeared on the "Leonard Lopate Show" on WNYC/NPR on Monday August 22. I had a blast, and even got to chat with Alice Cooper before I went on. Cooper was on the show in the segment before mine, and is a huge Ernie Kovacs fan.


You can listen to the segment with me and Mike Pesca (guest host for the show this week):



Until next time...it's been real.

Ben Model
New York, NY

Springtime For Ernie Kovacs And Edie Adams: Paley Center And DVD Set

Spring is here and there is a great deal going on in Kovacsland. I haven't posted anything in a while and in light of all that is happening I figured it was about time that I did (my thanks to Ben Model for posting and keeping the blog fresh with some great news).

1. If you're going to be in New York City (Manhattan) tomorrow, I strongly suggest that you buy tickets to It’s Been Real: The Life and Legacy of Ernie Kovacs at the Paley Center For Media.  This event features a stellar panel, including our own Ben Model, and starts Tuesday, April 12th, 2011, at 6:30pm. 

2.  The Paley Center festivities are a week prior to the official release of Shout Factory's "The Ernie Kovacs Collection" 6 DVD set , which is Tuesday, April 19th, 2011. If you pre-order the set, you'll get a bonus 7th DVD for free; you can do so by clicking on the link or on the banner in the upper left corner of this blog. To get the bonus disc you must order the set directly from Shout Factory and clicking one of the aforementioned links takes you directly to the set's page on their site; do not order from Barnes And Noble, Amazon, etc., if you want the bonus disc.  Ben Model was the curator for this fantastic new release, the first of Ernie's work in years and much of it not seen since it originally aired.  I've discussed it with Ben and you have my word that this is the definitive collection and one that Kovacs fans everywhere should own.  The two emails that I get most frequently ask whether it's possible to see the live color version of "Eugene" ("The Silent Show") or footage of Ernie hosting "Tonight".   They are included on this new set, "Eugene" on one of the main discs and the "Tonight" clips on the bonus disc.    You can read a full summary of what's on the discs here.   

3.  A special thanks goes to Josh Mills, Edie Adams son who runs Ediad Productions Inc., for bringing all of this wonderful new material to the fans.  Josh has started two websites, one for Edie and one for Ernie (screen captures of the sites are to the left).  The information provided on them is great and I'm thrilled to have both join with my site and Ben's to continue promoting the legacy of these two wonderful video artists. If you need to acquire the rights to any video footage Josh is the person to contact and you can do so through either of the sites he runs; I'll often get emails asking about this.   

Until next time Kovacsians, "It's Been Real!"

"Television's Original Genius" - Out Of Print, But Still Viewable

While you're waiting for the release of "The Ernie Kovacs Collection" DVD set, here's something you can watch. While poking around for Kovacs pics, Google Images took me to a shot of Ernie on a website called "John Barbour's World". Yes, it's the John Barbour who made the documentary "Ernie Kovacs: Television's Original Genius" (1982), which aired on Showtime and was available on VHS a long time ago.

Mr. Barbour has posted the entire documentary on his website. Click here to go to his page for the show, where you can watch it, in eight somewhat lo-fi Quicktime file segments.

Ben Model

"The Ernie Kovacs Collection" DVD Box Set Available For Pre-Order!

Good morning, Kovacs fans!! Wonderful news: Shout!Factory is releasing a 6-disc DVD set entitled "The Ernie Kovacs Collection", and contains 13+ hours of Kovacs shows, sketches, and other rarities. I've been working on curating the set for Shout since May of last year, and had been asked to keep "hush-hush" about it until today, when Shout Factory's press release goes wide.

The set will be released on April 19, 2011 but is available for pre-order today on Shout's website. You'll want to order the set on Shout!Factory's website as it's the only way to qualify to receive a 7th bonus disc that includes an hour of sketches from the 1956 summer replacement show plus material from the two surviving "Tonight!" shows Ernie hosted (one of which includes the first-ever Eugene tilted-table sketch). Click here to go to Shout Factory's website and pre-order the set.

Click here to read the press release, which lists all the programming.

It's been real...

Ben Model
www.erniekovacs.info

Be Sure You "Like" Ernie Kovacs On Facebook

I've created a new fan page for Ernie Kovacs created on Facebook. I'll be disabling the group I set up some time ago and will use the fan page to post news and trivia. Click here to go directly to the page or click on the Facebook badge below:

Ernie Kovacs

It's been real!

Ben Model,
New York, NY

Tell NBC To Add Ernie Kovacs To Their "Tonight Show" Host List!!

If everyone who reads this blog posts something on the Tonight Show forum at NBC's website, they may get the message that something is wrong with the pantheon of hosts on their "Tonight Show Experience" website, shown below:


Go to NBC's "Tonight Show Experience" website by clicking here, and then click on "Community" to go to the posting forum. You will need to sign up in order to post to the board, but it's pretty simple to do. You should see my post about Ernie there:


Log in and post a reply (supporting this cause). Let's see if we can get NBC to take notice...

EDITOR'S NOTE: Ben; fantastic idea! I've already posted a reply on Ben's post on the NBC board. If you need more background on Ernie's "Tonight Show" tenure, I posted a piece last week that discusses it.

You can also send a message directly to NBC about without registering to post on the message board:

http://www.nbc.com/Footer/Contact_Us/

You'll see a pull down menu that says "Select Show." Choose "The Tonight Show With Jay Leno" and then a box will open where you can type in your message.

Let's try to get Ernie on that list!- Al Quagliata

Ernie Kovacs/Edie Adams Auction Results

Good morning Kovacsians. Here are some of the results of the memorabilia auction that took place this past weekend at the Heritage Auction Gallery and featured items from Ernie Kovacs and Edie Adams (thanks go to Ben Model for providing the photo):

The two items that interested me the most, Percy's glasses and the Nairobi Trio Masks, went for a total of $5,975. Not that much for such a huge part of early TV history. I hope the folks who bought these items will consider loaning them to a museum at some point.

In a previous post I wrote about an item similar to lot number 49125 which is at the very top of the chart. I'm not surprised this didn't get bids as its a fairly common item. I think if they had obtained an E.E.F.M.S. card for the auction it would have been a different story; it's surprising they didn't as I believe these items came directly from the Kovacs estate.

You can visit the Heritage Auction Galleries website and sign up for a free account which will allow you to search the auction archives and view all the results. The auction number for the Ernie/Edie items is 7004 and the total amount sold was $720,273.11. This amount does not represent the total for Ernie/Edie items sold as there were items from other celebrities included in this auction.

Until next time, "It's Been Real!"- Al Quagliata

Kovacs Memorabilia Auction Feb 21-22 2009 In Texas

A pair of Ernie's Percy Dovetonsils glasses are among many piece of Kovacs memorabilia slated for the auction block on Feb 21-22 at Heritage Auction Galleries in Dallas Texas.

You may never get a chance to see any of these items again, but you can take a gander at the auction preview page. Click here to go directly to the list of Ernie Kovacs stuff. In each item display, just above each item image, there is a text box that says "turn off/on Pan & Zoom Images". Turn it off and then click on the image to see it in high resolution. For instance, you'll see that the black horizontal "eyelids" on Percy's glasses were drawn on.

There are also two books that have been hollowed out with some sort of sound or light effect inside. Ernie tried out the "library" sequence of the 1957 Silent Show a couple times when he was hosting Tonight in November and December of 1956. These prop books may be from those dry runs. Kinescopes survive for at least one of those Tonight episodes.

Below is an image for four title cards up for auction, in a lot, which are not identified but I believe these are from Kovacs Unlimited (CBS, 1952-54), as Schroeder was one of the puppets used on the show. The puppet is still around, in the collection of a relative of Andy McKay.


Anyone with deep pockets live near Dallas? Paging Mr. Letterman...!

Anniversary Of Ernie's Death (And Birth)

Yesterday marked the anniversary of the accident that prematurely ended Ernie's life in 1962. His 90th birthday comes up in ten days, on January 23rd. There used to be an event held in Trenton in January to commemorate these two events, organized by a woman whose uncle was Bernie Kosnowski, the "polka king" of NJ (or Trenton, anyway) and whose last name Ernie used a great deal (the names Arthur B. Kosnowski or Betty Lou Kosnowski pop up a lot in sketches). But it got too hard to get people to come out in January to play poker and smoke cigars.

For those of you in the NJ area, I will be giving a talk on Kovacs and showing clips at the Ocean County Library in Toms River, NJ on Monday January 26th 2009. Click on the image to go to the library's website. I'm still narrowing down what I'm going to show, but have to tell you it won't be anything planned for the DVD set, as that material hasn't been transferred or remastered yet. If nothing else, the evening will be a chance to meet – and watch Ernie Kovacs – with other fans. Click on the image to find out more.

Ben Model

Twas The Night Before Christmas…Dovetonsils-Style

The classic holiday poem was given a Percy Dovetonsils treatment by Ernie, and was published in the December 1961 issue of Playboy Magazine. Ernie also recorded it in the fall of that year for the Dovetonsils LP he did for Vanguard, which was never released (but master tapes survive).

Pour yourthelf thum thnappth, thnuggle up to the hearth in your thartreuthe theerthucker drething gown, and warm yourthelf with thith little bon mot --

*******************

THAT HOARY
HOLIDAY CHESTNUT
IS GIVEN A
PARK AVENUE
TWIST

by
ERNIE "PERCY LLEWELYN DOVETONSILS" KOVACS

'Twas the night before Christmas and all through the duplex
Just a valet was pressing (a glen plaid with blue checks).
The nylons were hung by the chimney with care
C.O.D. from I. Magnin's (the bill was still there).

The boys home from prep school all snug in their beds,
While visions of Marilyn danced in their heads.
And Mumms in her Bergdorf and I in my Saks
Lay in Louis XIV (whose first name was Max).

When up in the penthouse there arose such a clatter
I summoned the butler, asked, "What was the matter?"
I ran through the room in a 40 yard sprint,
Pulled up the venetians and leaned out to squint.

The moon on the sidewalks of chic Sutton Place
Gave the color of liver to the old doorman's face.
When what to my wond'ring eyes did appear
But a Mercedes-Benz pulling up in high gear!

With a cute little driver so lively and quick
I knew 'twas the chauffeur of Jolly Saint Nick!
More rapid than Jags, his convertible came
And he whistled and shouted and called it by name.

"Now Stupid! Now Junk-heap! Now Bucket of Bolts!
Look out for those taxis! (Those drivers are dolts!)
Look out for the porch! Look out for the wall!
Whatever you do, Mercedes don't stall!"

As strollers 'fore taxis and buses do fly,
He hit a poor cop and knocked him sky high.
Then up to the duplex the convertible flew,
With a trunk full of toys and St. Nicholas, too.

And then in a twinkling like a fast-driving heiress,
He slammed on the brakes and parked on the terrace!
As I drew on my Homburg and was turning around
Down the stone fireplace Santa came with a bound!

He was dressed all in cashmere from his head to his foot.
Abercrombie & Fitch was stamped on each boot.
He had a Hathaway shirt -- and was looking quite dudie
As he took genteel puffs on a meerschaum Kaywoodie.

His Cavanaugh hat and bright Argyle socks
Matched the fur on his suit which was ermine, not fox.
His beard was white mink -- a right jolly old elf
And I laughed at his spats, in spite of myself.

But a look at his tie (shantung and in red!)
And I wished that I'd stood all snug in my bed.
He spoke not a word but went straight to his work
And drove Sardi's caterer fairly berserk.

He ate like a demon as he trimmed up the tree--
Pheasant, hors d'ouevres and lobster gelée.
In a fine linen hankie he blew on his nose,
Sucked in his tummy -- up the chimney he rose.

His driver was snoozing, a lovely young dame.
She woke with a smile when he called her by name.
Come Gina, Bambina, it's time for linguini --
But first to the Stork Club, a real dry martini.

He saw me and hollered ere he whizzed out of sight --
"I'll bill you next month for my labors tonight!"

OUR OWN BEN MODEL GIVES US HIS INTERPRETATION OF THE POEM "A LA DOVETONSILS".
PRINT OUT THE POEM AND FOLLOW ALONG:

Kovacs Images From Life Posted Online

A friend of mine found something on Google images related to Kovacs. Life Magazine has posted, in somewhat hi-res, images of Ernie Kovacs from its collection. Most of these are photos by Ralph Morse from the April 15, 1957 cover story, but a few – like a few alternate versions of the color photo of Ernie in front of a television camera (image at right is one of them) – are new to my eyes.

Click here to go to Life's page on Google images to see all of these.

It's still been real...

Ben

Ernie Kovacs DVD Box Set To Be Released In 2009

"Hold everything...don't nobody move!!" There's big news for Ernie Kovacs fans…real big news. A new DVD box set of Kovacs programs is slated for release in 2009.

Koch Entertainment and the Archive of American Television have banded together to launch a new series of DVD's called The Archive of American Television Presents. The first release is a box set called The Studio One Anthology, which contains 17 episodes of the landmark live drama series Studio One. The set came out last week, on November 8th. Their next release will be the 1959 TV adaptation of Budd Schulberg's What Makes Sammy Run. Click on the link above for the AAT to see more about these and to watch a trailer for the Studio One set.

Also in the works is a DVD box set of Ernie Kovacs programs. I have been hired to curate the set, which will contain 15 hours of Ernie Kovacs shows, plus bonus extras.

I've been involved with the project for about a year, although things have become more official and in motion in the last few months (that's why you're only hearing about this now). I've screened a lot of material, visited Edie Adams' film/tape storage facility in L.A. and inspected kinescopes, done research at the Paley Center in N.Y., and looked at rare Kovacs materials found by private collectors.

There is no "street date" slated for the DVD set, but the release will happen sometime during 2009, possibly as early as the middle of the year. It's a little early to talk about specifically what will be on the set at this point. I will post updates here and on my site erniekovacs.info as things are remastered, confirmed and locked in as DVD content.

Edie was to have had a creative hand in helping select the programs on the set, and I was really looking forward to working with her on this. I miss her and hope that the set does justice to all the hard work she put in (since the 1960s!) to save kinescopes, videotape masters, scripts et al of Ernie Kovacs' amazing work.

-- Ben Model

EDITOR'S NOTE, FRIDAY, APRIL 10 2009: I'm sad to report that this project has been put on hold. Click here to read more.-
Al Quagliata

Rats In My Room

WFMU's blog site posts MP3's of many many of the LP's from their collection. I found today that the entire album "Music To Suffer By", recorded by Leona Anderson — whose immortal "Fish" and "Rats in My Room" were Kovacs show staples — are posted there.

Click here to go to the WFMU blog page for the album, where you can listen to and or download the entire album as well as see hi-res images of the front and back of the LP sleeve. The back has liner notes and photos of the recording session.

Happy Halloween!

Ben Model, in NYC

Edie Adams Passes Away At The Age Of 81

It is with great sadness that fans everywhere mourn the death of the wonderful Ms. Edie Adams, who passed away on October 15th, 2008 at the age of 81. According to her son Josh Mills the cause of death was cancer and pneumonia.

My fellow Kovacs Blogger Ben Model took the time today to compile some information which I've taken and consolidated into this post. Thanks Ben.

Here's you go folks, courtesy of Ben Model:

Edie Adams' obituary appears in today's New York Times, written by Bruce Weber. To read it, click here.

Among Edie's major accomplishments, although not mentioned in the obit, is the fact that she spent decades saving and hunting down Kovacs programs...scripts, kinescopes, 2" master tapes etc etc. She was an amazing woman, full of life and always working on some project or other, and she will be missed.

Here's a link to an obit posted on Playbill.com and another on Theatermania.com.

For the story as posted by the AP click here

Here's Edie's performance on the 1950 Miss U.S. Television program. She had won that title and this was her first major television exposure:

Ben Model

It's the end of an era my fellow Kovacsians.

Rest in peace Edie and say hi to Ernie for us. It's been real.

Al Quagliata

Eugene on ABC

Here's a nice still I picked up on eBay recently. Caught my eye because of Ernie's "Eugene" costume (the shoes are a dead give-away, even if Kovacs isn't wearing the hat). Flanking Ernie are Bobbie Lauher and Maggie Brown, who were part of the ensemble cast for the ABC specs.

At right is the memo from ABC's photo department, attached to the photo, showing the program's airdate and time.

It's been real!

Ben

Behind The Scenes At ABC

Just won this still on eBay, and thought I'd post it here. What intrigued me about this image is that it's a rehearsal shot, showing Ernie in director mode with Steve Blauner, getting ready for a dry run of the "Dinner Symphony". This was for the Kovacs ABC spec #2. The music was something of a mystery for a while. Irwin Chusid had wanted to include it on the Ernie Kovacs Record Collection CD, but no one was able to identify it. Some months after the CD's release, the piece was ID'ed as having been written by a lesser-known Hungarian composer named Kara Karajev.

Below is the info from the ABC photo dept attached to the still. It's still been real...

Ben Model - http://www.erniekovacs.info/

Ernie & Edie's NYC Penthouse

Here's a photo I snapped (from inside Central Park) a few months ago of the El Dorado, on Central Park West between West 90th and West 91st Streets. This is the building Ernie and Edie lived in during the mid-1950's in that giant penthouse. If the building looks familiar, it's because it's the building that Ghostbusters takes place in. Was that location a suggestion of Dan Aykroyd's, who was/is a major Kovacs fan? Who knows. The interior of the penthouse apartment is shown in some of the photos in the Life Magazine article from 4/15/57 (pick yours up on eBay if you haven't already).

"Silver kuggels!!"

Ben

Ernie Trivia Redux

Hi folks. Welcome to this week's "Kovacsian" blog post.

Every week I thank the people who have sent in friend requests or accepted our requests from the Ernie Kovacs MySpace Page. The page was started just about a month ago and we are already up to 331 friends as of this writing. Please encourage any Ernie fans you know to come join us!

Last week's trivia question was a toughie and I received NO answers. I must admit this surprised me very much given the knowledgeable Ernie fans who read these posts. So, here's the link so you can give it another shot:

http://erniekovacs.blogspot.com/2007/04/who-is-that-masked-man.html

I know you guys can do it! Post your answer in the form of a comment here or send it through the Ernie MySpace page.

Every week I search the news and blogspot for any relevant Ernie posts. I didn't find anything in the news but here are the blog posts I found:

"Revolution 21's Blog For The People" discusses the old NBC radio show "Monitor" on which Ernie was a regular presence:

http://revolution-21.blogspot.com/2007/04/im-on-monitor-beacon-nbc-monitor-beacon.html

"Mold-A-Rama wrote a nice post about Ernie:
http://moldarama.blogspot.com/2007/04/ernie-kovacs-innovation-and-parody.html

"The Almost Daily Rooster" discuses Ernie in the article "Some Radio & TV Nostalgia"

http://thealmostdailyrooster.blogspot.com/2007/04/some-radio-tv-nostalgia.html

"CW's Cynictionary" posts a famous quote of Ernie's:

http://cynictionary.blogspot.com/2007/04/television-medium.html

An interesting post by "Mercedes-Benz Videos" discussing Ernie's relationship to a "300-SL" in "Our Man In Havana":
http://mercedesvideos.blogspot.com/2007/04/our-man-in-havana-ernie-kovacs-mercedes.html

Mike from "Films2See" mentions a showing of "Our Man In Havana" which will take place Monday, May 7 in New York City. If you're in the area go check it out:

http://films2see.blogspot.com/2007/04/may-revivals-first-half.html

That's all for this week kids. Remember to work on that trivia question!

Until next time "Its been real!"