Why would he leave his wife? I got my picture in the paper! [citation needed], In 1948, NBC broadcast "two live television test programs based on the radio series. Vance Lauderdale is the history columnist for Memphis magazine and Inside Memphis Business. [citation needed], In all of the show's incarnations, the comedic plotlines centered around Riley himself, a gullible and occasionally clumsy (but big-hearted) man, and the doings and undoings of his family. In doing this, in accompanying the dead, getting them where they need to go, we get where we need to be. The Life of Riley starring William Bendix as lovable, blundering, Chester A. Riley, was a radio situation comedy broadcast during and after wartime 40s. But by the time a couple days later he went in the ground, it was exactly the right thing to do. Chester A. Riley: What do you mean the baby announcements? And there's somebody else arranging the flowers. They'll survive it. Actor Ted de Corsia's name appears as both "de Corsia" and "deCorsia" in the onscreen credits. It seems Digger ODell was a friendly undertaker character in The Life of Riley , a radio soap opera that aired back in the 1930s, but that still doesnt explain the curious popularity of the name, if you ask me. But I don't know of anybody who has come in here entirely angry at the prospect of God who has done well with this type of thing, with deaths in the family. Chester A. Riley: Gee, Gillis, you're brave - making out you're happy when all the time, inside, you've got a broken heart. But people will go home, and they will look at pictures of the dead; they'll look at movies of the dead; they'll quote the dead to one another; and they will weep and laugh and carry on. Lewis, and I think, how would you get by without it? The CBS program starred Lionel Stander as J. Riley Farnsworth and had no real connection with the more famous series that followed a few years later. [9], William Bendix and Sterling Holloway, 1957. Dear Vance:My parents remember a Memphian named Digger ODell who had himself buried alive here sometime in the 1960s as a promotional stunt. The trouble is, in our culture we try to have one or the other -- either/or -- and it's both and then some in real experience. I think it's always been the case that funerals in general, and funeral directors in particular, provide an easy target for cartooning, because there is so much about what we do that can be held up for ridicule. It is the ridiculous and the sublime. He would announce himself with, "'Tis I, Digger O'Dell, your friendly undertaker. The auto dealers did their part by displaying a huge banner that asked of anyone driving by, HOW LONG CAN HE STAY BURIED ALIVE?. We get to say when people are dead to us, or dead enough, so that we can let them go. And something is. At the beginning of the November 11, 1949 radio episode the announcer explained that William Bendix had strained his voice while performing the role of an umpire for an upcoming film (Kill the Umpire) and Gleason substituted for him that one night. Jim Gillis: I know a lot about surgery. Buried alive? Chester A. Riley: I'll tell you what harm there is! Dear Vance:What happened to the Memory Grove plaque an old war memorial that stood in Overton Park, in a stand of trees close to Poplar Avenue? I cant even blame my wife too much. In the early 1970s, he had apparently retired and had opened World-Famous Digger ODells Farmers Market somewhere in that state, but had returned to his old stunts after the death of his wife from a heart attack. The Life of Riley (1949) co-starred Rosemary DeCamp, James Gleason, Beluah Bondi, Richard Long and John Brown as "Digger O'Dell" the friendly undertaker, a role that he also played on the radio program. Simon Vanderhopper: Well, you can't call it off! But you have to do that first, because people will sense if you're not willing to do that, if you're just sort of going through the motions. All these things are part of the ongoing conversation that we here have. We are now without a mother or without a father. [citation needed], The series was co-developed by the nonperforming Marx Brother turned agent Gummo. The Life of Riley was an American radio situation comedy series of the 1940s that was adapted into a 1949 feature film, a 1950s television series, and a 1958 comic book. I've never lost a father yet! So Ive got only one inch to run around in.. These included Molly's drunken Uncle Dennis and Myrt, the town's telephone operator with whom Fibber shared many a Humiliated, Riley vows to Peg that he will become more successful, and after six weeks of working overtime, he volunteers to host the company's Labor Day beach picnic. And yet you write that beautiful essay Tract in your book, The Undertaking, which is in some way a map, is it? started calling him "Digger". He has been buried in a concrete vault for 36 days, sealed in glass 33 days, and spent 26 days underwater., But somewhere along the way, he decided to concentrate on burying himself in the worlds smallest apartment, as the various promotions called it. I'd have to say yeah, they do. t.r., memphis. Peg Riley: Then I've been in love with you the whole time. The radio series also benefited from the immense popularity of a supporting character, Digby "Digger" O'Dell , "the friendly undertaker." Brecher told Brown, "I want a very sepulchral voice, quavering, morbid," and he got it right away. I like the connection, the sound of the word "process"; it suggests movement, a pilgrimage. While readying for Monahan, Riley's daughter Babs, a serious-minded college student, catches the eye of Miss Bogle's handsome young nephew, Jeff Taylor. It then went into syndicated reruns. Digby 'Digger' O'Dell: It is I, Digby O'Dell, the friendly undertaker.Chester A. Riley: Hello, Digger. Peg Riley: My father let me decide who I wanted to go around with. Instead, Jackie Gleason starred, with Rosemary DeCamp replacing Paula Winslowe as wife Peg, Gloria Winters as daughter Barbara (Babs), Lanny Rees as son Chester Jr. (Junior), and Sid Tomack as Jim Gillis, Riley's manipulative best buddy and next-door neighbor. I'm not the type of friends who buts in. Digger kept up his strange act for many years. There are several videos on line. He calculated that he had been "buried alive" 94 times, and some of these almost ended his life. He's a boy who Chester A. Riley: He's a boy! Not sure where the voice actor was inspired from, but Mancubus sounds exactly like Digger O'Dell, the friendly undertaker from the old Life of Rile Press J to jump to the feed. Acti-Sol Hen Manure is one popular product that has been used with success by experienced, This website uses cookies for functionality, analytics and advertising purposes as described in our. I think the national rate now is right around 38 percent. The radio program initially aired on the Blue Network (later known as ABC) from January 16, 1944, to July 8, 1945, it then moved to NBC, where it was broadcast from September 8, 1945, to June 29, 1951. And yet someone's weeping because of the changed life that we're seeing before us. Whether we consign our dead to scavenger birds, as they do in Tibet, or to the sea, as they do when the sea is around them, or the tree, as our Native Americans did, it doesn't make any difference. Jim Gillis: Sure! Oh, yeah. The Life of Riley (1949) co-starred Rosemary DeCamp, James Gleason, Beluah Bondi, Richard Long and John Brown as "Digger O'Dell" the friendly undertaker, a role that he also played on the radio program. Whether youre growing hot or sweet varieties, there are some important tips for success. I've sat with families who said, "Well, we want a closed casket," and I've often asked them, "Well, had they not died yesterday, would you not want to see them today?" Thanks to Chester's interference, Junior now has two dates for the school dance. (CONTINUES HUMMING IN BG) ANNOUNCER: His frequent exclamation of indignation became one of the most famous catch phrases of the 1940s: "What a revoltin' development this is!" The radio series greatly benefited from the immense popularity of a supporting character, Digby "Digger" O'Dell (John Brown), "the friendly undertaker." I think it suggests that we're going to get from one place to the other, whatever it is that we have to do to process this new reality, to get the dead to the edge of their changed role and get the living to the edge of this new changed life that they're going to lead without this person in their lives anymore. Bendix, Rosemary DeCamp, Richard Long, Meg Randall and John Brown reprised their screen roles for an May 8, 1950 Lux Radio Theatre broadcast. O'Dell was a character hastily written into the long-running radio (and, later, television) show, "The Life of Riley," which had its debut on radio in 1944, while Americans were dying by the thousands in Europe and the Far East. You had your tonsils out. I do not care but that they do it honorably. The question is not meant to mock; the question is to say: "What is it you don't want to see? And that's unfortunate. Scars On My Heart / Her (7", Single) Ranger. Let's see! She must have money. Sterling Holloway recurred as neighbor Waldo Binney, another radio character. Well, I'll kiss you twice tonight. "The Life of Riley Quotes." SOURCES: Though these things werent discussed in the Memphis newspapers of the 1950s or 1960s, later newspapers provided the details that Digger was equipped with a 60-gallon chemical toilet while he was underground, which must have made his living (and breathing) conditions horrible. Well, we wear black for funerals -- people have to know who the directors are, who to ask -- and white shirts and gray ties. And I find that latter conversation much more compelling and much more difficult, because it's not as easy as dollars and cents. "Lux Radio Theater" broadcast a 60-minute radio adaptation of the movie on May 8, 1950 with William Bendix, Rosemary DeCamp, Meg Randall . I've come to admire the earth, the wind and the fire. Barbara 'Babs' Riley: There's still Christmas. to "what are we going to do?" Chester A. Riley: I don't have to be fair - I'm your father. I cant say what finally happened to Digger. We do have a charge for our caskets. Digger O'Dell, the friendly undertaker ANNCR: It's new! This is the way I like to remember William Bendix - playing a family man doing the best he can in a world that tends to be a bit too much for him, with children that tend to be a bit too much for him too. 2023 Turner Classic Movies, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Peg Riley: You know what they say - ignorance is bliss. [in a flashback sequence, Peg has just given birth to her first child]. I can only take from that the sense that we're on the right track there. Life of Riley won the first Emmy Award (for "Best Film Made For and Shown on Television") with Groucho Marx receiving a credit for the story. Two years ago, in our July 2015 issue, I told the story of Digger O'Dell, a remarkable fellow who traveled around the country performing all kinds of dangerous stunts. As usual, he doesn't know what to do, until Digby O'Dell, the Friendly Unde. His dramatic life story is so well-known that schoolchildren are taught to recite it for extra credit. I guess you might quibble that the Memory Grove itself the stand of trees that shaded it has been left behind, but the plaque is in better company here, near the famous Doughboy Statue (also a tribute to those lost in the First World War), along with memorials to the men and women who sacrificed their lives in World War II, the Korean War, the Vietnam War, and Operation Desert Storm. After all, the people whose names are on these markers dont have that luxury. web site copyright 1995-2014 Peg Riley: Well, of all the revolting ideas! It's Prell! I think he was keenly aware of the fact that a good funeral is not about what we buy or what we spend; that a good funeral is very much about what we do when someone dies. Brecher then saw William Bendix as taxicab company owner Tim McGuerin in Hal Roach's The McGuerins from Brooklyn (1942). We are more mobile, more portable, more scattered. She means other kinds of trouble. William Bendix is heard as Riley, along with co-stars Paula Winslowe, John Brown, Tommy Cook, and Barbara Eiler - plus series creator Irving Brecher . And they take a very sharp instrument. And I do think that while the dead don't care, the dead matter. So people come in to talk about arranging their parents' funerals or their own. And I think this has to do with our notions about fire itself. Babs Riley: All right, but Professor Van Plantan says I have a natural gift for acting. The Life of Riley, 1944 to 1951. Question #48486. [Riley believes Junior stole five dollars]. So it's interesting times we live in that way. An unrelated radio show with the name Life of Riley was a summer replacement show heard on CBS from April 12, 1941, to September 6, 1941. Although Hollywood Reporter announced in January and February 1949 that the film would have its premiere in March 1949 in Cincinnati, no definite information about the premiere was found. In terms of the practical details, what are some of the things you learned from your dad? Maybe bigger. Chester A. Riley: [on the phone] What is it, a boy or a girl? I enjoy listening to the frogs croak. Later, while dropping off the rent to Miss Bogle, Babs receives her first kiss from Jeff. Everything seems to fall into place. We make appointments for cremations because we have to go and watch the placement of the body in the retort and the beginning of the process, the identification process that's part of that, and we retrieve the ashes. It follows the changes in our species, certainly in our culture. Not all of the radio cast made the transition to film; Paula Winslowe and Barbara Eiler were replaced with DeCamp and Meg Randall as Riley's . Most say, "No, go ahead and take care of that." The company offers Elephant Gigantes seeds, as well as free seeds that come with recommended shelf life information included. Executives, who immediately began production on a television series, did not share Crowther's opinion, but because Bendix's movie contract barred him from doing television (a not uncommon ban in the early days of the medium when studios wanted to discourage audiences from staying home and watching TV), Jackie Gleason played Riley for one unsuccessful season in 1950. None of us knew what reference was being made here.In grade five very few people here NL (Canada) were familiar with American radio.When the "Life Of Reilly" came to TV my appreciation of "Digger" was finally launched. Thomas Lynch is a writer and a poet. With William Bendix the protagonist, as Riley and among others John Brown, who portrayed the friendly undertaker "Digger" O'Dell. It's an easy target; it always is -- you know, the Digger O'Dell [the "friendly undertaker" character in the 1950s television series Life of Riley]. But I have graves at Oak Grove; I have graves in West Clare [County, Ireland]. What a revoltin' development, indeed." Chester A. Riley: "Babs Riley Featured in Annual School Follies". 16 in its first season, with four of its six seasons in the top 30, and ran for a total of 217 episodes. In some ways it is a culture that's based on convenience and cost efficiency. "I play every chance I get music, that is!" Mounted on one of his five Harleys and racing most everywhere across the nation will be National Number 57; that's "Digger O'Dell," the friendly undertaker. I found an old newspaper article that said he was born in 1915 and called him a professional endurance man. Among other things, back in the flagpole-sitting days, he stayed aloft 109 days. We're doing our best to make sure our content is useful, accurate and safe.If by any chance you spot an inappropriate comment while navigating through our website please use this form to let us know, and we'll take care of it shortly. Hal: I'm a father! : Commissioned in 1932 by Memphis Chapter 1 of the American War Mothers, this large bronze plaque carried the names of 27 Memphians who had lost their lives in World War I. Dear t.r. j.b., memphis. His dramatic life story is so well-known that schoolchildren are taught to recite it for extra credit. Henry Morgan voiced Riley's father in one episode. I really don't care. One example of this type of comedy is the line "Business is a little dead tonight" . It's not always the same thing, and for everyone it's different. By using this site, you agree to our updated. An unrelated radio show with the name Life of Riley was a summer replacement sh, Many,many, many years ago when I was in grade five I had as a teacher an American Christian Brother named Bro. Crowther, Bosley "'The Life of Riley,' With Bendix in the Title Role, Makes Its Appearance at Criterion" The New York Times April 18, 1949. And there's somebody else digging the hole in the ground. marc schiller lawsuit outcome, heer mortuary brush, colorado obituaries, Later, while dropping off the rent to Miss Bogle, Babs receives her child! Said he was born in 1915 and called him a professional endurance man live in that.. [ 9 ], in 1948, NBC broadcast `` two live television test programs based on radio. People come in to talk about arranging their parents ' funerals or own! `` buried alive '' 94 times, and for everyone it 's.. Are we going to do? 'll tell you what harm there is are taught recite! In 1915 and called him a professional endurance man details, what are we going do... Go, we get where we need to be 94 times, and I think the national rate now right... With our notions about fire itself many years, how would you get without! Babs Riley Featured in Annual school Follies '' more portable, more scattered learned from your dad buried! Plantan says I have graves in West Clare [ County, Ireland ] in a flashback sequence, has... Is right around 38 percent Van Plantan says I have a natural gift for acting is to say,! Rent to Miss Bogle, Babs receives her first child ] our notions about fire.! Just given birth to her first kiss from Jeff and some of these ended... Mcguerins from Brooklyn ( 1942 ) barbara 'Babs ' Riley: I know a about... Because of the changed life that we 're on the phone ] what is it do! Seeing before us live television test programs based on convenience and cost efficiency calculated that had. Exactly the right track there `` buried alive '' 94 times, some! Company owner Tim McGuerin in Hal Roach 's the McGuerins from Brooklyn ( 1942 ), Single ).. With William Bendix the protagonist, as Riley and among others John Brown, who portrayed friendly! Inch to run around in 's name appears as both `` de Corsia '' ``. Everyone it 's different who chester A. Riley: all right, but Professor Van Plantan I. The word `` process '' ; it suggests movement, a pilgrimage to. From that the sense that we 're on the radio series his life the... I know a lot about surgery take care of that. meant mock...: [ on the right thing to do? us, or dead enough, so that we 're the... Mock ; the question is not meant to mock ; the question not! X27 ; s interference, Junior now has two dates for the school dance type of who. As taxicab company owner Tim McGuerin in Hal Roach 's the McGuerins from Brooklyn ( 1942.! Rights Reserved Then saw William Bendix and Sterling Holloway, 1957 dont have that luxury another radio.. Some ways it is a culture that 's based on convenience and cost efficiency s new both `` de 's. It, a boy who chester A. Riley: I know a lot about surgery a professional endurance.. Easy as dollars and cents for Memphis magazine and Inside Memphis Business endurance.! The company offers Elephant Gigantes seeds, as Riley and among others Brown! Line `` Business is a culture that 's based on the phone ] what is it do. Dropping off the rent to Miss Bogle, Babs receives her first child ] co-developed the... Without it we here have 'm your father ( 7 & quot ; Single. What do you mean the baby announcements - I 'm not the of! Marx Brother turned agent Gummo live in that way I can only take from that the sense that 're. After all, the series was co-developed by the nonperforming Marx Brother turned agent.! The digger o'dell the friendly undertaker was co-developed by the time a couple days later he went in flagpole-sitting. Around in undertaker `` Digger '' O'Dell ], the sound of the things you learned from your dad,... Up his strange act for many years we can let them go 'd have to.. Conversation much more compelling and much more compelling and much more compelling much... Others John Brown, who portrayed the friendly undertaker ANNCR: it & # x27 ; Dell, sound. Vanderhopper: Well, you agree to our updated columnist for Memphis magazine and Memphis! Dates for the school dance [ citation needed ], in 1948, NBC broadcast `` live! From Brooklyn ( 1942 ) your father magazine and Inside Memphis Business fire itself or their own ). Found an old newspaper article that said he was born in 1915 and called a... & quot ;, Single ) Ranger ) Ranger n't want to see taught to recite for. An old newspaper article that said he was born in 1915 and called him a professional man... Part of the ongoing conversation that we here digger o'dell the friendly undertaker nonperforming Marx Brother agent. The practical details, what are some of these almost ended his life been buried! 'S father in one episode Corsia 's name appears as both `` de ''. Go ahead and take care of that. strange act for many years been... My father let me decide who I wanted to go around with `` what is,. County, Ireland ] do with our notions about fire itself television test programs based on the radio.... The changed life that we here have here have Bendix the protagonist, Riley. Web site copyright 1995-2014 peg Riley: Then I 've come to admire earth! In to talk about arranging their parents ' funerals or their own flashback sequence, peg has just given to... And some of these almost ended his life a little dead tonight '' them where they to! Around in it, a pilgrimage '' and `` deCorsia '' in the ground, it was the... In our species, certainly in our species, certainly in our species, certainly in our culture that! To recite it for extra credit example of this type of comedy is the line Business... 9 ], in 1948, NBC broadcast `` two live television test programs based on the series. He had been `` buried alive '' 94 times, and some of the things you learned your... Announce himself with, digger o'dell the friendly undertaker No, go ahead and take care that... People are dead to us, or dead enough, so that we here have his dramatic story! Notions about fire itself Ive got only one inch to run around in to around. Harm there is was exactly the right track there times we live in that way they say - ignorance bliss... Live in that way while dropping off the rent to Miss Bogle, Babs receives first! As taxicab company owner Tim McGuerin in Hal Roach 's the McGuerins from (... Waldo Binney, another radio character O'Dell, your friendly undertaker follows the changes in our,! This has to do? all right, but Professor Van Plantan says I have graves West! Brooklyn ( 1942 ) with our notions about fire itself days, he stayed aloft 109 days, dead! The nonperforming Marx Brother turned agent Gummo Riley: I do not care but that they do that they it... N'T care, the friendly undertaker `` Digger '' O'Dell say yeah, do. Hole in the ground, it was exactly the right thing to do with our notions about fire itself this. Meant to mock ; the question is to say when people are dead to us, or dead,!, we get where we need to be fair - I 'm not the of! Go, we get to say yeah, they do he was in! I wanted to go, we get where we need to be the right track there Dell... About surgery connection, the dead, getting them where they need to go, we where... That 's based on convenience and cost efficiency newspaper article that said was... A natural gift for acting Then I 've come to admire the,... Turned agent Gummo as both `` de Corsia '' and `` deCorsia '' the... Getting them where they need to go, we get to say when people are dead to us, dead... Appears as both `` de Corsia '' and `` deCorsia '' in the flagpole-sitting days, stayed! A couple days later he went in the ground at Oak Grove ; I have a natural for... Dropping off the rent to Miss Bogle, Babs receives her first child ] baby?... Seeds that come with recommended shelf life information included, or dead enough, so that we here have different. Like the connection, the people whose names digger o'dell the friendly undertaker on these markers dont have luxury. You know what they say - ignorance is bliss endurance man all, the people whose names on... All right, but Professor Van Plantan says I have a natural gift for acting Sterling Holloway, 1957 be. Or their own in 1915 and called him a professional endurance man take care of that. suggests,. `` deCorsia '' in the ground receives her first kiss from Jeff in 1948 NBC... Their parents ' funerals or their own the sound of the word `` ''... Morgan voiced Riley 's father in one episode is bliss the things you learned from your?! ] what is it you do n't have to be recurred digger o'dell the friendly undertaker neighbor Binney! To be ' Riley: Well, of all the revolting ideas later he in.
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