Lunedi Lunacy

"Italy is Democratic Repbulic, founded by a nation of workers....."*

We just won't use this guy as an example.



*A free translation of the first paragraph of the Italian Constitution of January 1, 1948.

21 luglio - San Prassede

Lunedi Lunacy

As with most British comics Catherine Tate can play a bit on the edge but I love some of her characters.

Here's Janice and Ray - they're adventures in exotic cuisine remind me of a couple people I knew in my younger days in Toronto.



And we may have all worked with an annoying co-worker like this one:



And I agree - it really is the most offensive swear word I know. But the tag line is a zinger.

26 maggio - San Fillipo Neri

Lunedi Lunacy

BBC World seems to want to give us senseless reruns of old comedies - though I must admit in the drama department Silent Witness (a literate CSI) and Spooks have a hold of me - when they could be giving us Mitchell and Webb. I wasn't all that familiar with them until Faustus at The Search for Love in Manhattan posted this sketch. Typically British - typically funny.



28 aprile - San Pietro Chanal

Lunedi Lunacy

I first saw the work of Emanuele (Lele) Luzzati back in 1963 in a programme book for the Glyndebourne Festival. It would be another 6 years before I saw his magical designs on stage but in the meantime, through a few children’s and music books that were available in Canada, I became enamored of the child-like exuberance and musicality of his imagination. He was known throughout Europe as a stage designer, book illustrator, muralist, film director, animator (with partner Guilio Gianni) and designer of fantastic children’s parks and playgrounds. Still actively creating at the age of 84, his death in January 2007, left the world with one less source of joy, wonder and lunacy.



It's questionable if Rossini actually wrote the Cat Duet but god knows he heard enough caterwauling sopranos to give him inspiration.



Lele and Gianni were nominated several times for Oscars and amongst their noted animations where the titles for Brancaleone alle Crociate (Brancaleone at the Crusades) second in a series of Italian comedies featuring Vittorio Gassman as a hapless knight who becomes the leader of an army of rogues, cheats and liars. The first movie gave rise to the expression - often applied to Italian politicians: They're as bad as Brancaleone's Army!

11 febbraio - Nostre Signore di Lourdes

Lunedi Lunacy

There appears to be a Hippo theme running through these posts. However Pat et Stanley are very Gaelic while the humour of Flanders and Swann could be nothing but British. I recall seeing them in Toronto - first in At the Drop of a Hat and then in At the Drop of Another Hat - back in the 1960s.




Michael Flanders began their revue by saying:

It's small wonder to us that Satire squats hoof-in-mouth under every bush. The purpose of Satire, it has been rightly said, is to strip off the veneer of comforting illusion and cosy half-truth - and our job, as I see it, is to put it back again

And they did - they did.

21 gennaio - Sant'Agnese

Lunedi Lunacy

A few posts back I put up a Pat et Stanley video as a way of saying thank you to all off your for the notes, e-mails and comments we got about our Reese. Elizabeth mentioned that led her to spend a good hour or more with her children watching Pat et Stanley on You Tube - they're a hoot and actually a good teaching tool for French.

Here's the one that got me hooked:


I remember hearing The Weavers sing "Wimoweh" at a concert my brother took me to more years ago than I care to remember.

And because it brings back memories and what I so wanted to do with Steve Guttenberg (okay I had strange taste in men back then):



14 gennaio - San Felice

Lunedi Lunacy

Last week Auld Hat - she of the Naught Nibbles, and I'm sure my label of "Naughty nipples" last week was just a typo not a Freudian slip - posted a bit from Kids In The Hall. She reminded me of all the inspired Lunacy out there in the world so I thought why not - lets search, see what I can find (that's why God in her wisdom gave us Google) and see if I could come up things for a regular Monday (Lunedi) post.

First up, in honour of the country of my "Residence Elective", Ennio Marchetto from Venice:





07 gennaio - San Raimondo