Live on Tape (Show #21)
“ATTACK OF THE MISSISSIPPI MUD-CARP”
Airdate: December 12th 1987
(23:10)
SYNOPSIS - Guy and Arnie giggle their way through several pointless news stories only to be interrupted by an imported news bulletin. Zippy Spamhammer reports on location in Rock Island where Loren Bowdie and his family have just been victims of the legendary Mississippi Mud-Carp! Zippy discovers that this man-eating fish isn’t as bad as it seems...or is it?
“The thing flopped out on the shore and came at us like a rooster in a hen-house!”
- Loren Bowdie, Mud-Carp witness
SKITS AND BITS
•Robert Munsing #3 - (The Pre-Columbian Da Vinci) Robert interviews Dr. Arthur Binker about his latest book, but the Doctor’s exploits turn out to be too raunchy and offend our host’s sensibilities.
(Written by: Brandon Lovested)
•Between the Lines - Arnie reports about a diaper disaster at a toddler toilet training competition and Guy fills the seat next to him at the desk sucking air.
•The NOISE! (second showing) - Boy, this one just gets better and better the more times you see it....Heaaaak! Cough! Cough! Sputter...
•Bobo ‘n Binkie - These amazingly lifelike hand-puppets make their debut appearance at the newsdesk, and we’re still wondering...why?
•Sport of the Week “Hunting the Wild Mime” - Chuck Griswold does an in-depth report on a major problem facing many city people...mimes! After a brief history lesson, Chuck enlists the aid of Chip Redale, an Aussie who has a solution to the mime problem - hunting them for sport.
•Next on “Live on Tape” (second showing) Again, we entice viewers to watch next week with the promise of more excitement, mystery, romance, advice and sex! It’s all a lie.
•NOTES AND “LIVE ON TAPE” FACTS
-This is probably the stupidest show we did. After writing and producing 21 half-hour shows in 24 weeks I was getting burned out. I had reached a point where I was looking for anything that would make for an easy topic. The Mississippi Mud-Carp was that easy topic. The whole thing was centered around a silly face that Dianne Johnson (the Mud-Carp) liked to make... so I used her and her face for the show, I must have been really desperate.
-While we were taping the stuff with the street mime out in front of what was then the Davenport Bank Building; I was verbally accosted by a little old lady who thought we were trying to rob the bank. Last I saw of her, she was heading off to the police station to get help. The police never showed up.
-The scene with Zippy knocking on the front door and trying to get Loren Bowdie to answer took us forever to shoot. Again the “actor”, Rob Humphrey could not remember his lines--- if you recall he had the same trouble way back in show #12-- anyway, Rob could not say “Mississippi Mud-Carp”. I don’t know how many takes we did, all I remember is that it was daylight when we started and dark when Rob finally got his line right.
CREDITS
Costumes Provided By: Circa ‘21 and the Show Business
Producer - Thomas Hart
Directors - Greg Baldwin, Thomas Hart
Writer - Thomas Hart
Robert Munsing Written By: Brandon Lovested
PLAYERS
Greg Baldwin
Larry Brennan
Tom Burns
Pat Flaherty
Patti Flaherty
Jennifer Hanson
Thomas Hart
John Horvath
Rob Humphrey
Dianne Johnson
Mark Lewis
Mark McLaughlin
Merlin Nelson Jr.
James Peterson
Kai Swanson
and
Larry Cross as “Buzz”
Video-Tape Editor - Thomas Hart
Studio Camera Operators - Steve Elliott, Kori Skinner
Audio - Denise Hollmer
Prompter - Sue Passe
You’re watching entirely too much television!
©Copyright 1987, 2006 Thomas Hart
OUT TAKE #3 (Zippy trying to interview Loren Bowdie)
Zippy: “What was it? What did you see?”
Loren: “Oh why...it was...the Mississippi Mud-Crab! Ooooooooo!