4 - Friday, December 17, 1893 - North Shore News The lost art of comic Spouse haranguing GARDEN OF BIASES PRAY, have we not had encugh of the petty fiddle- : faddie of village politics late- _ ly? Should we not turn to . grander, more wniversal themes of the human condi- tion? So today the ‘opie, is spouse- haranguing. — ; Actually, the topic is comic “spouse-! haranguing, which naturally couldn’t exist without the wide- spread | existe! nce of the serious thing.” : Comedy is the banana cil that “_Tedtices thy friction of life’s frustra- tions and pains, from paltry to pro- * found... 2° | “At least that’s been comedy’ s traditional role. But the phenome- non of so-called ‘political correct- "ness hus severely banished such comedy to the outermost darkness and to the comedy clubs, where all ‘the relaxed audience seem to enjoy theifiselves and the only social con- cern'is whether a line gets a laugh. _. These thoughts, such as they are. carne to the fore the other day ~ with the news of the death of actor - Don Ameche. . _Ameche had a very wide-fang- ing career, including an Oscar for f best supporting actor in Cocoon . But, as Leonard Maltin, resident historian for Enteriainment Tonight, boldly said, indifferent to the wrath of feminists: “People for- get what a great actor Ameche was on radio, particularly on The . Bickersons.” '. Ah, The Bickersons. ae | doubt whether any mainstream radio station dares play these clas- sics nowadays, when we are preoc- cupied by stories and endless sur- veys of men abusing women and children. ’~ For there is no doubt that George Bickerson — played by Ameche — would end up in stir today for violence against his wile, Blanche — played with equal per- fection by the singer Frances Langford. The violence was strictly verbal in fact nothing as overt as Jackie Gleason’s et uply threats of “To the moon, Alice!” in The Honeymooners in the 1950s. But you'll have noticed that the feminist ideologues cunningly incorporated early on in their define ition of male violence against women any spoken threat, or any- thing said that might make the woman feel victimized or fearful, or something, ‘Thus that famous pioneering “study” by the Status of Women declared that a million Canadian men heat their spouses. By this definition the traditional spousal argument is caised, or low- ered, to the condition of criminali- ty. Only a matter of degree sepa- rates the real monsters — danger- ous sociopaths — from men who shout at their wives for not tuming off the lights in unoccupied rooms, or leaving a stove clement on after the pot’s removed — which, in my case, would give me at least 200 years of hard labor in prison. Not to discount the nastiness of . chronic male bullying and nagging, The Bickersons, like The Honeymooners, couldn't have attained their enormous popularity if they hadn't so accurately reflect- ed the reality: in most marriages the wives give as good as they get. Blanche Bickerson could be hard-boiled, wheedling, cajoling, evasive; she used tears and “women’s wiles” — a phrase that would infuriate the stonier branch of the feminists, the sort who on _ principle believe there can'be noth- ing amusing about the relations between the sexes (cops, “gen- ders”). ; Again, The Bickérsons couldn't have been as funny as they were had not Blanche pretty well got round George — exasperated, frus- trated, always worrying about money and how Blanche was airily spending i it— any. ‘time she set her mind to it. i Nor could the s show have suc-- ceeded without its superb profes- sionalism. © The scripts were tight, word-per- fect. Frances Langford’s vocal qualities were equal to Ameche’s. The build-up from one point of argument to the next, the escalation . of exasperation, was delicious. And each segment — about 10 minutes long, as I remember —. ended with a resigned “Good night, Blanche” and “Good night, George.” These end-of-the-day in-bed arguments sounded absolutely authentic. Save 25% to 50% on designer frames, sunglasses and contact lems fittings. © ‘Douglas Optical Dispensary Ltd. 1685 Marine Drive In West Vancouver 925-2110 The Bickersons must have reas sured millions that their marriages were perfectly normal, And im among those who feel that it was such a sense of humor that kept them that way. Returning, briefly, to Greater Tiddlycove matters: Speaking of humorlessness, Mayor Mark Sager good-naturedly laughed orf my stuffy view, as he might sve it, that it was unwise of him to run an ad before the Nov, 20 municipal elections applauding, by nae, the six incunbent council- lors. That was no endorsation, he declared. It was only thanking them for their genuine contribution tu our town, I won't go into my response, on the ground that a columnist shouldn't abuse his power to have the last word. I simply accept his explanation as sincere, As for the more serious matter, as J sec it, of the two ads placed by unnamed citizens who supported the existing council, I’ve beer put in touch with one of three men whu placed one of the ads, and he’s cheerfully open about it and defi- nitely non-conspiratorial. PALLISER . ITALIAN STYLING LEATHER SOFA $ 100% top grain leather solid hardwood Irame.* Lifetime warranty on flame consruction, Marching faveseat and chair available, LEATHER SOFA ON SALE NOW ITALIAN STYLING LEATHER SECTIONAL Contemporary styling leather seattonal, hisrmer warranty an feamie comet ttt Unalindes ats A piiewes Cl “haces of colcrars available. EC TIONAL ON SALE NOW nse ee. 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