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Sunday Spotlight: The “Laugh-In” reunion!

Actors and Others for Animals President JoAnne Worley wisely decided to bring together some of her old pals from Rowan & Martin’s Laugh-In for a reunion last month to raise money for her pet cause which is dedicated to the promotion of the humane treatment of animals.

The always lively Miss Worley was joined by such cast members as Gary Owens and Artie Johnson (pictured above) who were key parts of the the landmark series that ran on NBC from January 22, 1968 to May 14, 1973. It’s trademark was a rapid-fire series of gags and sketches that sometimes included sexual innuendo and were often politically-charged.

“When we did the show, I had no idea as to what its popularity would be, I had no idea what would come of it ultimately,” Johnson told me at the event held at the Universal Hilton. “I recognized after the first 5-6 shows that it had some kind of an impact. I was doing what I enjoyed doing and it was pleasant and it was fun – great surroundings. But there was a time when it was over and it was over. And now I’ve discovered that it’s not always over.”

Laugh-In launched the career of Oscar winner Goldie Hawn who did not attend the event but was there as a cardboard cut-out!

Nancy Sinatra appeared several times as a musical guest on Laugh-In and it was on the show that she met her late husband, Hugh Lambert, who was a choreographer during the show’s first three seasons.

“I’m so glad to be here to celebrate Laugh-In. It meant a lot in my life,” she told the crowd.I was so thrilled when JoAnne (Worley) called. She didn’t use the phone, she just opened the window.”

“Oh the skimpy outfits we wore,” she recalled. “The napkins you have on your table? You put a little fringe on them and I could have made them into a skirt! And the crazy hair back then. I had more wigs than anybody.”

Of her late husband, she said: “Laugh-In was the perfect place for us to meet because it was so happy and our lives were filled with love and laughter.”

Gary Owens, pictured with Laugh-In creator George Schlatter and JoAnne Worley, remembered the show fondly: “What laughs and what a wonderful, talented cast and writers too. You couldn’t ask for a funnier show. George Schlatter hired me in a men’s room of the Smokehouse Restaurant in Burbank. Well, it’s not lime it sounds, at all.”

So what was Agent 99 from Get Smart doing at the event? Well, it turns out that Barbara Feldon helped get the show off on the right foot: “I did the first five episodes of Laugh-In when I was on hiatus from Get Smart so I’ve always sort of been contingently associated with Laugh-In. I’m a friend of JoAnne Worley’s and she called me in New York and asked if I’d consider flying out for this event. I said I’d love to.”

Still fantastic looking at 76, Miss Feldon remains busy: “I’m writing mostly now, I wrote a book called Living Alone and Loving It, a book of essays on living alone that’s in bookstores. And I’ve just done a website called Artists Share where I did an audio version of the book and I wrote  a novel which I also do an audio version of. I love writing. It’s something I always wanted to do, even when I was acting.”

Bruce Vilanch was an inspired choice to host the program as he was both very funny but also able to provide nice historical perspective: “There was Laugh-In on Mondays and Smothers Brothers on Sundays. This was before Saturday Night Live and the only place on television – at the time there were only three channels and whatever Julia Child was cooking on public television – and so we all watched it. It was the only shot we had at the counter-culture on TV. … It had a profound influence on a whole generation of people like me. … It was a new way of expressing ourselves.”

The force of nature that is JoAnne Worley made the event happen and should be very proud of what was a wonderful event. For more information about Actors and Others for Animals, here is a LINK.

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