For most of you here, I'll have to set this up a bit:
Hoolihan & Big Chuck were Cleveland's first post-Ghoulardi. The hosts/comics of our cheesey Friday night movies. The guy who'd have skits and commentary at the commercials. Pre-Elvira, by about three decades, when UHF existed and VHF had all of three stations.
The Houlihan & Big Chuck years, ahhh those were the best years. Hoolihan (or Mild Mannered Weekend Weatherman) who moonlighted this night job. Chuck was a welder who did the same thing. They made a great comedic team....at least to a kid who was in 6th grade who could stay up late to watch movies like "The Pit & the Pendulum" and the "Screaming Skull" (no, not Dionne Warwick...she's the 'Singing Skull').
Eventually, Hoolihan found g-d and went to sell bibles in Florida......or aluminum siding...depending on which story you've heard or believe. They made Lil Jon, an extra, Big Chuck's side kick and Chuck got top billing.
But no one watched for the movies. We watched for the skits. Most skits were based around
- Mary Hartski! Mary Hartski!
- Ben Crazy
- Sunday Morning Chills (yes, the day after sequel to Saturday Night Fever)
- the Kielbasa Kid
Chuck (playing the ukulele in the picture with Hoolihan and Tim Conway) was quite handsome, at least to a developing gay youth - and loved his chin.
Eventually, the show moved from Friday nights to I guess Saturday or Sunday afternoons. But they were no Superhost. He had that timeslot locked up. Anyway, I had kind of grown out of that crappy movie phase (well, until MST3K did it up right - the Joel years, of course).
Chuck hanging it up though (at 73!!), well it is just another reminder of the passing of time. My time.
2 comments:
Jaysus...you're kidding... Big Chuck is still ALIVE??? I had no idea, much less that he was STILL doing the show. Yowza.
Garfield 5, 23 23, Garfield 5, 23 23!
Ah, I remember the handsomeness that was Big Chuck. Such a Friday night ritual to watch the show. It got me through my tween years.
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