Comedian Barry Mitchell spotted my items about Morty Gunty and he sent a very nice note with a state-of-the-art (for 1964) screen shot. Here is Barry’s YouTube channel. Great stuff, Barry!
http://www.youtube.com/user/barryfunnytv
On a cold January day in 1964, I was did my ventriloquism act on Morty Gunty’s local Channel 9 kiddie show, “The Funny Company.”
It was taped at WOR’s Times Square studio. I believe the address was 1440 Broadway.
Morty asked me my dummy’s name and I told him, “Melvin Mazel.” (“Mazel” is the Yiddish word for “Luck.”)
The attached screen grab is the exact moment Morty asked incredulously, “Melvin MAZEL?” then turned his head and said to an off- camera stagehand, “Irving, he’s from your parish!”
I saw Morty one more time in 1978 when he was performing at a nightclub in Miami Beach. I remember one of his jokes (paraphrasing, here) “My wife is an avid reader. She bought “The Joy of Cooking” and “The Joy of Sex” and brought a brisket to climax.”
Keep Smiling!
Barry Mitchell
I’ll try, Barry! Thanks very much.
Judith — Great comments about Morty! Thanks.
Gunty had his Master’s degree in education from Brooklyn College. I don’t know if Morty had a regular band that played for him, but he started doing stand-up comedy in the 50’s while in Ned Harvey’s band, playing sax and clarinet.
I’ve been remiss in not putting my audio and video clips with Morty Gunty back online, since switching hosting services. I have another video clip coming up, of Morty on TV in the 70’s.
I FIRST SAW MORTY GUNTY WHEN HE’D ENTERTAIN AT BROOKLYN COLLEGE. I
BELIEVE HE WAS AN ALUMNI AT THAT SCHOOL. I WAS A STUDENT THERE, PLANNING MY WEDDING FOR OUR NEXT INTER-SESSION. I WAS SO
EXCITED BY MORTY’S HUMOUR AND STYLE, AND KNOWING HE ALSO HAD A BAND (AM I RIGHT?) I ASKED HIM TO PROVIDE THE MUSIC AND HUMOUR AT OUR WEDDING DINNER. HE WAS WONDERFUL, OF COURSE.
I WAS RECENTLY REMINDED OF HIM WHEN WATCHING “BROADWAY DANNY ROSE” ON TV TONIGHT, WHERE HE APPEARED AS ONE OF THE COMICS LUNCHING AT…( WHAT WAS THAT BROADWAY RESTAURANT? ) ANYWAY, I COULD POINT AT THE TV AND BOAST TO MYSELF:
“SEE THAT GUY, MORTY GUNTY? HE PLAYED AT MY WEDDING!”
Great You Tube channel, Barry! Morty was great, and my twin brother Doug and I loved his show. You are carrying on his tradition of Borsht Belt humor with a modern twist. I’m as WASP as they come, but nobody laughs harder at this stuff than I do! Keep it coming!