He was a wonderful American, a great painter, and probably one of the funniest men ever. I recall a skit he did about a ship and there was a block-and-tackle hanging up to the right of the stage just out of reach. Someone had messed up, because each time Red tried to grab it, he couldn’t. Finally, a hand came out and swung it to him. He started that giggle. So he swung it back up where it caught on the hook again. The hand came out again and swung it to him. So he got real close, hooked it a third time and when the hand grabbed it, somehow he grabbed the guy’s hand and pulled him onstage as the audience absolutely cracked up. I’m sure it was a union violation, but funny as heck.
Today the only way these people can get a laugh is to talk about sex. Guys like Jackie Gleason, Jack Benny, etc really were talented and they didn’t have to go into the gutter to get a laugh.
My sister-in-law came to visit us this weekend in Manhattan, Kansas. We took her to K-State Union where several of Skelton's autographed clown paintings hang after he donated them to the university. Of course, she was of the age that the Red Skelton Show was part of her childhood.