The Gow “Gets” Me

Yeah . . .read my blog, sheee . . .nyeah

I’m an odd duck. It’s OK. I rather enjoy it. I’m unique and I have reached a point in my life where I am not so concerned with who finds me to be entertaining or just a big old dork with an absurd sense of humor. I refer to my style of humor as “Dadaist” because I’m pretentious too.

The Gow “gets” me. That is one of the many reasons she is my best bud. Today for example the music station at work was tuned to some kind of soft rock crap. I was suddenly seized with an impulse to call the Gow and sing along to a Michael McDonald song in my spot on Edward G. Robinson impression. Maybe “spot on” is an inaccurate description, but I like doing it, and the Gow likes listening to it, so that’s all that matters. Lots of people today don’t know who Edward G. Robinson even is. He was a famous actor in old black and white films, often playing a gangster. He was also a common impression at the time. Every half-assed comedian or MC would do Edward G, Jimmy Durante, James Cagney, Humphrey Bogart and maybe James Stewart.

Yeah, def-definately good at impressions. Yeah

In the ’70s everyone did Archie Bunker and in the ’80s everyone thought they had Jack Nicholson down pat. The voices I am proficient with are Bill Clinton, Elvis Presley (which is actually similar to Billy Jeff Clinton) movie characters like Tony Montana from Scarface, Ray from Rain Man, and Forrest Gump. I’m sure there are other voices I am adept at, but I can’t think of them at the moment. There are also voices I desperately wish I could do like Christopher Walken, Don Knotts and William Shatner.

Now a solid impression is one thing, but to really get a good reaction (i.e. laugh) is to have the character say something funny, clever or decidedly “out of character.” One example is my Mr. Magoo impression. Mr. Magoo was an extremely near sighted cartoon gentleman whose voice was provided by Jim Baccus who also played Mr. Howell on Gilligan’s Island and stars in Rebel Without a Cause. With the exception of Youtube it is very difficult to find Mr. Magoo cartoons as they were yanked for making light of blind people. I’ve often wondered who the asshat was who told the blind people and had to go and ruin a wonderful cartoon for everyone. To be fair, it might not have just been the blind who were offended. Mr. Magoo had an Asian man servant named “Charlie” who was the most racist Asian stereotype ever. Charlie wore an Asian “coolie” hat, had squinty eyes, HUGE buck teeth and called his master “Mistah Mah-gloo”.

The only picture of Charlie I could find. Gee, I wonder why.

My favorite out of character moments to lapse into these voices are lovemaking, ordering food at a restaurant and the jury selection process.(Haven’t been chosen yet!!)

So today while listening to soft rock, something in my funny little brain clicked and I decided to call The Gow and sing along to the Michael McDonald song in Edward G. Robinson’s voice.

And she giggled with glee as I went through much of Mr. McDonald’s catalog ending each lyric with Edward G’s patented “Yeah…sheee?”

She gets me.