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What happened to Jack Paar

cooby Oct 26 2006 03:33 PM

Before this gets out of hand, what happened to Jack Paar?

MFS62 Oct 26 2006 03:37 PM

Jack Paar ,when host of the Tonight Show, told a joke. He knew he couldn't use the word "bathroom" due to censorship rules in thise days, so IIRC he used "WC" (for water closet) instead. And he got slapped by the network for doing it. I don't remember all the details. It may have even been bleeped. Later

ScarletKnight41 Oct 26 2006 03:40 PM

MFS62 wrote: Jack Paar ,when host of the Tonight Show, told a joke. He knew he couldn't use the word "bathroom" due to censorship rules in thise days, so IIRC he used "WC" (for water closet) instead. And he got slapped by the network for doing it. I don't remember all the details. It may have even been bleeped. Later Wikipedia provides these details - ]Paar was often emotional and unpredictable. The most salient example of this kind of on-screen behavior was demonstrated in 1960. One of his jokes was cut from a broadcast by studio censors. The joke in question involved a woman writing to a vacation resort and inquiring about the availability of a "W.C." The woman used that term to mean "water closet" (i.e., bathroom), but the gentleman who received the letter misunderstood "W.C." to mean "wayside chapel" (i.e., church). The full text of the joke[1] reveals multiple double entendres that are tame by today's standards, but too much for the network to bear in 1960. NBC replaced that section of the show with news coverage and failed to inform Paar of their decision.

Yancy Street Gang Oct 26 2006 03:41 PM

From Wikipedia: ]Paar was often emotional and unpredictable. The most salient example of this kind of on-screen behavior was demonstrated in 1960. One of his jokes was cut from a broadcast by studio censors. The joke in question involved a woman writing to a vacation resort and inquiring about the availability of a "W.C." The woman used that term to mean "water closet" (i.e., bathroom), but the gentleman who received the letter misunderstood "W.C." to mean "wayside chapel" (i.e., church). The full text of the joke[1] reveals multiple double entendres that are tame by today's standards, but too much for the network to bear in 1960. NBC replaced that section of the show with news coverage and failed to inform Paar of their decision. The decision to censor the joke so angered Paar that the next night, February 11, he announced on the air that he was leaving the show, saying "I've made a decision about what I'm going to do. I'm leaving The Tonight Show. There must be a better way to make a living than this, a way of entertaining people without being constantly involved in some form of controversy. I love NBC [...] But they let me down." [1]After finishing this monologue, Paar abruptly walked offstage, leaving his flustered announcer Hugh Downs to finish the show for him. Less than a month later, Paar was convinced to return; on March 7 he opened his monologue with the now-famous line, "As I was saying before I was interrupted...I believe the last thing I said was 'There must be a better way to make a living than this.' Well, I've looked...and there isn't." He then went on to explain his departure with typical frankness: "Leaving the show was a childish and perhaps emotional thing. I have been guilty of such action in the past and will perhaps be again. I'm totally unable to hide what I feel. It is not an asset in show business, but I shall do the best I can to amuse and entertain you and let other people speak freely, as I have in the past." [1]

cooby Oct 26 2006 03:42 PM

Okay, thanks! :)

Yancy Street Gang Oct 26 2006 03:42 PM

And here's the joke: ]"An English lady, while visiting Switzerland, was looking for a room, and she asked the schoolmaster if he could recommend any to her. He took her to see several rooms, and when everything was settled, the lady returned to her home to make the final preparations to move. When she arrived home, the thought suddenly occurred to her that she had not seen a "W.C." [water closet, a euphemism for bathroom] around the place. So she immediately wrote a note to the schoolmaster asking him if there were a "W.C." around. The schoolmaster was a very poor student of English, so he asked the parish priest if he could help in the matter. Together they tired to discover the meaning of the letters "W.C.," and the only solution they could find for the letters was letters was a Wayside Chapel. The schoolmaster then wrote to the English lady the following note: Dear Madam: I take great pleasure in informing you that the W.C. is situated nine miles from the house you occupy, in the center of a beautiful grove of pine trees surrounded by lovely grounds. It is capable of holding 229 people and it is open on Sunday and Thursday only. As there are a great number of people and they are expected during the summer months, I would suggest that you come early: although there is plenty of standing room as a rule. You will no doubt be glad to hear that a good number of people bring their lunch and make a day of it. While others who can afford to go by car arrive just in time. I would especially recommend that your ladyship go on Thursday when there is a musical accompaniment. It may interest you to know that my daughter was married in the W.C. and it was there that she met her husband. I can remember the rush there was for seats. There were ten people to a seat ordinarily occupied by one. It was wonderful to see the expression on their faces. The newest attraction is a bell donated by a wealthy resident of the district. It rings every time a person enters. A bazaar is to be held to provide plush seats for all the people, since they feel it is a long felt need. My wife is rather delicate, so she can't attend regularly. I shall be delighted to reserve the best seat for you if you wish, where you will be seen by all. For the children, there is a special time and place so that they will not disturb the elders. Hoping to have been of service to you, I remain, Sincerely, The Schoolmaster."

seawolf17 Oct 26 2006 03:57 PM

And incredibly, he may or may not have been related to John Paar, who sang one of the coolest songs of the 80's, "Man In Motion (Theme From St. Elmo's Fire)": Growin' up You don't see the writin' on the wall Passin' by Movin' straight ahead you knew it all But maybe sometime if you feel the pain You'll find you're all alone Everything has changed Play the game You know you can't quit until it's won Soldier on Only you can do what must be done You know in some way You're a lot like me You're just a prisoner And you're tryin' to break free CHORUS: I can see a new horizon Underneath the blazin' sky I'll be where the eagle's Flyin' higher and higher Gonna be your man in motion All I need is a pair of wheels Take me where my future's lyin' St. Elmo's Fire Oooh... Burnin' up Don't know just how far that I can go (Just how far I go) Soon be home Only just a few miles down the road I can make it I know I can You broke the boy in me But you won't break the man (CHORUS) I can climb the highest mountain Cross the wildest sea I can feel St. Elmo's Fire burnin' in me Burnin' in me Just once in his life A man has his time And my time is now And I'm comin' alive I can hear the music playin' I can see the banners fly Feel like you're back again And hope ridin' high Gonna be your man in motion All I need is a pair of wheels Take me where my future's lyin' St. Elmo's Fire (CHORUS) I can climb the highest mountain Cross the wildest sea I can feel St. Elmo's Fire burnin' in me Burnin' Burnin' in me I can feel it burnin' Oooh, burnin' inside of me

Yancy Street Gang Oct 26 2006 04:00 PM

And that song reminds me of this one: Baby, baby Baby don't leave me Ooh, please don't leave me All by myself I've got this burning, burning Yearning feelin' inside me Ooh, deep inside me And it hurts so bad You came into my heart So tenderly With a burning love That stings like a bee Now that I surrender So helplessly You now wanna leave Ooh, you wanna leave me Ooh, baby, baby Where did our love go? Ooh, don't you want me Don't you want me no more Ooh, baby Baby, baby Where did our love go And all your promisses Of a love forever more I've got this burning, burning Yearning feelin' inside me Ooh, deep inside me And it hurts so bad Before you won my heart You were a perfect guy But now that you got me You wanna leave me behind Baby, baby, ooh baby Baby, baby don't leave me Ooh, please don't leave me All by myself Ooh, baby, baby Where did our love go?

SteveJRogers Oct 26 2006 04:56 PM

seawolf17 wrote: And incredibly, he may or may not have been related to John Paar, who sang one of the coolest songs of the 80's, "Man In Motion (Theme From St. Elmo's Fire)": And people call me a thread killer

Johnny Dickshot Oct 26 2006 07:43 PM

You didn't kill a thread you killed a whole season. No matter what you think of John Paar's alleged rockingness, it's hard to make a song any lamer than the movie it accompanied. Note how there's no sax player all the chix go crazy for who stands in the center of the stage and leads John's band. That's because such a thing doesn't exist.

Elster88 Oct 26 2006 07:51 PM

="Johnny Dickshot"] sax player all the chix go crazy for who stands in the center of the stage It happened in The Lost Boys, too. Maybe a lot of those 80's screenwriters were sax players.

Vic Sage Oct 27 2006 02:19 PM

i think marilyn monroe was hot for sax players in SOME LIKE IT HOT.

Willets Point Oct 27 2006 02:34 PM

cooby wrote: Before this gets out of hand, what happened to Jack Paar? What prompted this thread/question?

metirish Oct 27 2006 02:36 PM

Something silly I posted I think.... http://cybermessageboard.ehost.com/getalife/viewtopic.php?t=4953&start=120

cooby Oct 27 2006 02:39 PM

What's really strange is, I didn't start this thread.

metirish Oct 27 2006 02:40 PM

You might not have Cooby,but you inspired it.....

seawolf17 Oct 27 2006 07:29 PM

Everybody! Buuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuurnin' Burnin' in me I can feel it burnin'

Johnny Dickshot Oct 27 2006 10:26 PM

I remember very well hearing that song for the fvery irst time. It was the summer of Doc (85) and I was getting ready to go to my job cleaning swimming pools. The DJ (I can't recall who) gave a nice long explanation of what St. Elmo's Fire was, making it seem like a high concept and all, at the same time making it seem like St. Elmo's Fire was a sophisticated, terrific movie too. I'm sure in retrospect they were just reading aloiud from the press notes, and doing so as convincingly as Rob Lowe would in the movie. Then they played the song, which I thought was pretty good at first too. I mean, its overwrought-ness was matched with a certain excitement. The upshot is it made me go see the movie which was abut the dumbest most insulting thing ever.

Edgy DC Oct 28 2006 07:19 PM

I posted on this two days ago, but it didn't take or wound up on another thread or somethin'. Parr was from rural England but had a US flag imprinted on his guitar, for Pete's sake. As if his handlers saw the Springsteen sales and decided to coopt the imagery and who the Hell cares if it makes sense? Kaching, they were right. Shame on the record-buying public. Ugh. Someday I'm going to publish a doctoral thesis on how that film and it's title song we're direct contributors to the Mets coming up short of the Cardinals in the 1985 division race. I'm sure this can be supported by other academic writing. And JD paid to see the film? Ugh. That just had to be a big rolling turd in the swimming pool of his freshman year.

Johnny Dickshot Oct 28 2006 07:39 PM

It was a fun summer overall. Speaking of red, white and blue imagery. I was ordered today to get rid of ~half my record albums due to a home storage crisis. Among the things I came across, not literally, was a 1984 Born in the USA tour book from BS's show at the Spectrum 12/84. Anyone want it? Anyone want my old LPs?

metirish Oct 28 2006 08:08 PM

That sucks Dickshot..how will you manage to pick what to dump...if you put an ad on craigslist I bet you would have a taker in less than an hour.

cooby Oct 28 2006 08:28 PM

Johnny Dickshot wrote: It was a fun summer overall. Speaking of red, white and blue imagery. I was ordered today to get rid of ~half my record albums due to a home storage crisis. Among the things I came across, not literally, was a 1984 Born in the USA tour book from BS's show at the Spectrum 12/84. Anyone want it? Anyone want my old LPs? No, you can't start doing that! Have a yard sale and get rid of something else to make room.

Johnny Dickshot Oct 29 2006 08:22 AM

Eh, no biggie. I haven't owned a turntable for 10 years, and have no plans to get one. I just had to consolidate 2 boxes of records into 1 box. There's a few hipster used stores nearby, may try and drop 'em off but if anyone wants em, lmk. I'm sure dorks in search of irony will find something worth $$ among these. Not making the cut (*=hurts) Bob Seger -- Stranger in Town Sad Lovers & Giants -- Epic Garden Music Southside Johnny: --Trash it Up --Love is a Sacrifice --I Don't want to go Home* --The Jukes Todd Rundrgren --Back to the Bars --Hermit of Mink Hollow* Roger Waters -- Radio KAOS Bruce Springsteen --Born in the USA Steely Dan --Greatest Hits --Gaucho Rush --Moving Pictures* XTC --English Settlement* Robert Plant --Principle of Moments Television --Marquee Moon* Police --Synchronicity Shreikback --Care --Big Night Music Al Stewart --Year of the Cat Yaz --Upstairs at Eric's* Warren Zevon --Sentimental Hygeine Phil Spector's Christmas Album Buddy Holly --20 Golden Greats John Cougar Mellancamp --Scarecrow* James Taylor --Greatest Hits Utopia --Adventures in Utopia Paul Simon --There Goes Rhymin Simon --Graceland --S&G: Greatest Hits Smithereens --Green Thoughts Peter Wolf --Lights Out* Graham Parker --Look Back in Anger Molly Hatchet --Flirtin w/ Disaster Psychadelic Furs --Mirror Moves --Forever Now --Midnight to Midnight Eagles --Greatest Hits --Hotel california English Beat --Special Beat Service --What is Beat Joan Armatrading --How Cruel --Track Record --Show Some Emotion The Alarm --The Alarm* --Declaration Jackson Browne --Running on Empty Elvis Cistello --Blood & Chocolate --Best of Creedence Clearwater Revival --The Concert --Hey Tonight The Cult --Electric* DeLa Soul --3 Feet High & Rising Depeche Mode --People are People Dire Starits --Brothers in Arms --Love over Gold* Big Country --The Crossing Big Audio Dynamite --This is Big Audio Dynamite Jeff Beck --There and Back Billy Joel --52nd Street --Songs in the Attic* David Johansen --Live it Up King Crimson --Discipline The Kinks --Give the People What the Want Kiss --Alive!* Chaka Khan --I feel for You Little Steven and the Disciples of Soul --Voice of America* --Men without Women Fleetwood Mac --Fleetwood Mac* --Rumours* Godspell --original soundtrack Guns n' Roses --Appetite for Destruction* Hooters --Amore* --Nervous Night INXS --The Swing --Listen Like Theives Neil Diamond --12 Greatest Hits Doors --13 Doobie Brothers --Best of the Doobies Richard Rogers --Victory at Sea Tom Petty --Damn the Torpedoes* Emo Phillips --E=MC2 Men at Work --Business as Usual Propaganda --P-Machinery

cooby Oct 29 2006 08:51 AM

Todd Rundgren---I wish I still had a turntable...

Willets Point Oct 29 2006 12:16 PM

="cooby"]I wish I still had a turntable... Me too.

OlerudOwned Oct 29 2006 12:19 PM

Ahh damn I wish I had a turntable so I could take 3 Feet High and Rising off your hands. I can't find it on disc in any stores.

Edgy DC Oct 29 2006 12:32 PM

All the more reason we need to rent a space to serve as CPF archives.

seawolf17 Oct 29 2006 08:01 PM

An "Appetite For Destruction" record! Nice. That's a keeper. "Songs In The Attic" is a nice live record.

Johnny Dickshot Oct 29 2006 08:02 PM

It's not the original cover though.

seawolf17 Oct 29 2006 08:03 PM

Ah. Less impressive, then.