The Stan Freberg Show

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Stan Freberg's short-lived (15 episodes) Sketch Comedy radio series from 1957, featuring the voices of Daws Butler, June Foray and Peter Leeds. Greatly influenced The Firesign Theatre in their audio recordings.

Episodes can be (legally) downloaded here.

Tropes used in The Stan Freberg Show include:

• Affectionate Parody: so many of these, including the "Lawrence Welk" sketch ("Stop with-a the bubbles!"); the "St. George and the Dragonet" parody of Dragnet; a Film Noir parody, which has a Femme Fatale and no plot, just a private eye getting knocked unconscious every two minutes; "Bang Gunley: US Marshall Fields", parody of radio westerns like Gunsmoke and Tales of the Texas Rangers; "The Lone Psychiatrist", a satirical parody of The Lone Ranger and the power of psychoanalysis.
• Amusing Alien: Miss Jupiter. She's only two feet tall.
• Bad Bad Acting: the "real-life" spokesperson for the Puffed Grass Parody Commercial, a monotone, robotic-sounding test pilot named Jet Crash:

"Believe you me, I couldn't break through the sound barrier every morning if I didn't start off my day with a stomach.... (long pause) ....full of Puffed Grass"

• Bigfoot, Sasquatch, and Yeti: The abominable snowman interviews
• Bizarre Alien Biology: Miss Jupiter has "shapely wheels"
• Doom It Yourself: The build-it-yourself piano
• History Marches On: History is deconstructed humorously in the "Great Moments in History" sketches with "the real stories" behind those moments, including Washington crossing the Delaware and the ride of Paul Revere.
• Mickey Mousing: As a tourist attraction, a "lover's spat" between Elizabeth Taylor and Mike Todd is portrayed with trumpets in one short segment.
• No Reprise, Please: In the Lawrence Welk sketch, the song "Thank You For All Those Cards and Letters..."
• Parody Commercial: "Puffed Grass" ("Bang Gunleigh, U.S. Marshal Field"); "Food" ("Gray Flannel Hat Full of Teenage Werewolves"); "Stan Freberg" (the second-to-last episode).
• Running Gag: In several "Great Moments in History" segments, some historical figure like Barbara Fritchie or Paul Revere would say "First give me the money, then I'll _____ (get on the horse, stand on the burning deck, etc.)"
  • Also the nonsensical soundscapes that began a number of episodes.
  • "He's Swiss- that way we don't offend anyone."
• Say My Name: A Soap Within a Show parody:

"John..." "Marsha..."

• Shameless Self Promoter: Freberg did an entire episode near the end (when the show itself failed to attract a sponsor) about advertising himself.
• Sketch Comedy
• Soap Within a Show: John/Marsha routine; also Say My Name.
• Translation: "Yes": Mousier Touler (and his Tuned Sheep) has a couple of "French" phrases, just a few syllables long, that are translated in English as long run-on sentences.