[78-L] Close the door, Richard

[David Lennick]

The song was so pervasive, it didn't matter whether stations played it or not. 
I even have Wayne & Shuster singing a bilingual version from CBC radio. My 
parents were in a production of Macbeth that they performed for a student 
audience, and in the scene where the Porter is taking forever to respond to a 
knocking on the door, two guesses what someone in the audience shouted.

And then there's a Bugs Bunny classic, explained hare er here:

http://forums.techguy.org/random-discussion/722827-extremely-obscure-comedy-references.html

Extremely obscure comedy references
This one is for anyone who grew up watching Bugs Bunny cartoons.

In the classic cartoon titled High Diving Hare, Bugs is running some kind of 
talent show where the main act is a high-diver named Fearless Freep. Yosemite 
Sam comes to see 'his boy' and the show. Freep is unable to perform, Sam gets 
'upset' and demands that Bugs perform the stunt.

Throughout various gags, Sam plummets from the diving platform several times. 
At one point, Sam climbs the ladder to the platform and finds a locked door.

After pounding on the door, Sam shouts 'Open up this door!' then turns to the 
camera and says 'Did'ya notice I didn't say "Richard"?'

Okay, now you may find yourself asking: WHO IS RICHARD? And what the heck does 
this mean?

Well, I was asking that same question for a long time, and after seeing the 
cartoon the other day, I was renewed in my curiosity.

After an exhaustive search (about 5 minutes) on the internet, LO! I have found 
the answer:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Open_the_Door%2C_Richard

Now you can all sleep well.

Cheers!
__________________
___________________________

david.diehl at hensteeth.com wrote:
> Actually, WOR banned ALL versions Open The Door Richard. Management was just tired of it and the endless jokes about the title.
> Bob Theile probably hadn't pressed a great many of the Walter Brown sides and the notoriety would gaurantee that the last few sold out quickly. Having too many suggestive records in your stock would earn you a visit from the New York Society for the Prevention of Vice. Radio stations would never knowingly allow it to be broadcast as there were sure to be complaints to the FCC and the DJ would have to be fired to demonstrate that such music was not regular policy.
> DJD
> Visit the Blue Pages: the Encyclopedic Guide to 78 RPM Party Records
> http://www.hensteeth.com
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Royal Pemberton [mailto:ampex354 at gmail.com]
> Sent: Friday, November 27, 2009 03:53 PM
> To: '78-L Mail List'
> Subject: Re: [78-L] Close the door, Richard
> 
> I heard it via YouTube. I don't doubt it would have likely offended somepeople then, between a couple of 'damn's and (maybe) that bit about the'fine little chick....and the blue lights are on....and my wife's down inBirmingham, Alabama....'. No doubt it went over a treat in juke jointsthen, but back then, when even the word pregnant was a giant no-no on a parwith f*** today, this wasn't going to work on radio.On Fri, Nov 27, 2009 at 2:22 PM, Stephen Davies  wrote:> [source: http://home.earthlink.net/~jaymar41/jantojun_1947.html]>> At "The way we were" pages, an entry for 1947-march says:> <<<> Most radio stations ban Walter Brown & Tiny Grimes recording of "Open The> Door Richard" on Signature. The label then voluntarily withdraws it from> sale.> >>>>> Why?>> Signature 1006 seems like a low number in the series. Was this issue a> rookie mistake for the label, judged to be in poor taste by the public?>> I lovely the ongoing contradictory purposes of records in this era, whe
reb
>  y> the Signature label clearly says it is for "non commercial uses on> phonographs in homes". But radio stations were playing it anyway.>> Would there have been a censorship problem sending a disc like this thru> the mail?>> http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s-vvKLopleA courtesy of geofbrit59.> - Stephen D in Calgary>> _______________________________________________> 78-L mailing list> 78-L at klickitat.78online.com> http://klickitat.78online.com/mailman/listinfo/78-l>_______________________________________________78-L mailing list78-L at klickitat.78online.comhttp://klickitat.78online.com/mailman/listinfo/78-l
> _______________________________