digger o'dell the friendly undertaker

But then I can read the work of Barbara Brown Taylor or St. Paul or C.S. Chester A. Riley: Babs, do you realize when I was 20, your mother was supporting me and a baby? Brown also played "Gillis" on the radio. It's not always the same thing, and for everyone it's different. I figure once a year, every married man should get away from his wife for a few days. After the boorish Monahan orders the most expensive items on the fancy French menu, however, Riley barely has enough to cover the check. I want reports! Press question mark to learn the rest of the keyboard shortcuts There's been a sort of national conversation about funerals over the years. . I see my sons now working through this, and their generation. I'll hug her and I'll kiss her. Buy Organic Seeds Risk Free From Organic Seeds TOP - Credit Card & Western Union Payment Options, Organic Seeds TOP is a seed vendor based in the Ukraine. The company offers Elephant Gigantes seeds, as well as free seeds that come with recommended shelf life information included. Well, it's showing up and just being there is worth an awful lot. So yeah, I do find that people who have dealt with their dying -- whether it was taking them to their chemotherapy or sitting those weeks through hospice care, or checking in those weeks through hospice care, because we can't always be physically present -- those people who were thoroughly engaged with this are thoroughly engaged with the rest of it. Unreliable advice on how to handle these situations came from Riley's pal Digger O'Dell, the friendly undertaker, who would sneak in a string of dark-humored jokes before he had to be "shoveling off". MUSIC: LOU KOSLOFF'S "LIFE OF RILEY THEME" . But more and more, when we say to them, "You may, and maybe you ought " or, "Maybe someone in your family should be designated, just to go in as your proxy, to say, 'Everything was done as it should be done,'" they do it. You had your tonsils out. When my father died, I was not prepared to put him in the ground then. They need to talk to someone. The till doesn't ring as precisely, and what works and where the values are require more discernment. there are very few hands raised in the room, because cremation is often shorthand for disappearance. Well, I'll kiss you twice tonight. Banners asked customers and anyone driving past the Buick showroom on Union Avenue, "HOW LONG CAN HE STAY BURIED ALIVE?" He jumps across the line just as a girl, who is covered by a blanket, is being shot by an arrow and plunges off a cliff. And that's unfortunate. web site copyright 1995-2014 So we learn to live with it. Digby 'Digger' O'Dell: Why, I was just taking a stroll around the pond. But by the time a couple days later he went in the ground, it was exactly the right thing to do. For more and more people it's a trip to the crematory and some variation on the wake where people pay different types of witness. What can you tell me about this interesting fellow? It has always been a family-owned and -operated firm, founded by Thomas Lynch's father, Edward Joseph Lynch. It's possible to pay with credit card or Western Union, but PayPal isn't an option. Digby 'Digger' O'Dell : It is I, Digby O'Dell, the friendly undertaker. A reader named Ronnie Bierbrodt, who obviously did more research than I did, even turned up his obituary and a copy of the memorial booklet given out at his funeral. [Riley believes Junior stole five dollars]. It is a sadness and a shame that cremation, the fire in this context, is seen as an industrial process instead of an elemental one, in the way that earth is elemental. See production, box office & company info, Universal Studios - 100 Universal City Plaza, Universal City, California, USA. She just cant help being money hungry.. And that's very seductive, because, I mean, it's human-to-human contact. Dwarf Mr Snow, Fred's Tie Dye, Saucy Mary, Sweet Scarlet, Kangaroo Paw Green, Idaho Gem and Banana Toes are just a few of the varieties one gardener is growing in a 4x8 bed of "bulletproof" tomatoes. Bareiss, Warren "The Life of Riley" Encyclopedia of Television I guess you might quibble that the Memory Grove itself the stand of trees that shaded it has been left behind, but the plaque is in better company here, near the famous Doughboy Statue (also a tribute to those lost in the First World War), along with memorials to the men and women who sacrificed their lives in World War II, the Korean War, the Vietnam War, and Operation Desert Storm. He played "Al" on the radio series "My Friend Irma". On the day of Babs's wedding, which is to take place at the Stevenson mansion, Riley becomes annoyed and hurt when Gillis, his best friend and co-worker, snubs him because he is sure that Riley "sold" his daughter to get the promotion. He was supported by Marjorie Reynolds, replacing both Paula Winslowe and Rosemary DeCamp, as wife Peg; Tom D'Andrea as schemer buddy Jim Gillis; Gloria Blondell (sister of Joan Blondell) as Gillis' wife, Honeybee, and Gregory Marshall as their son Egbert; Lugene Sanders was Babs and Wesley Morgan was Junior. The stock market is open. Once Riley declares to Stevenson that he does not want the promotion, Babs realizes she is free and runs into Jeff's waiting arms. According to the 1999 obituary, Digger was survived by his wife, Julie Ann "Maggie" Smith of Dawsonville, Georgia; a son, Bobby Smith, of Lakewell, Florida; and a stepson, Timothy Eugene Fowler, of Gainesville, Georgia. But even people who do not believe or claim no religiosity or no particular faith, they are not without some text, some book they regard as, if not holy, it is the handle they're trying to hold onto to get through this. Junior will be glad to pitch in. The radio program initially aired on the Blue Network (later known as ABC) from January 16, 1944, to July 8, 1945, it then moved to NBC, where it was broadcast from September 8, 1945, to June 29, 1951. Nevertheless, this Life of Riley series with Bendix was a ratings hit, ranking at No. Peg Riley: You know what they say - ignorance is bliss. We do have a charge for our caskets. Riley's penchant for turning mere trouble into near-disaster through his well-intentioned bumbling was often aided or instigated by his arch best friend/next-door neighbor, Gillis. All these things are part of the ongoing conversation that we here have. Digby 'Digger' O'Dell: It is I, Digby O'Dell, the friendly undertaker. Whether a person is consigned to the earth or the fire is, at the end of the day, no difference. [1], Irving Brecher pitched the radio series for friend Groucho Marx under the title The Flotsam Family, but the sponsor balked at what would have been essentially a straight head-of-household role for Marx. Web. I think we act out things that are hard to put in words. For years, it was propped against a rugged concrete base, in a cluster of crepe myrtles on the southern edge of the park, close to the intersection of Poplar and Cooper. William Bendix is heard as Riley, along with co-stars Paula Winslowe, John Brown, Tommy Cook, and Barbara Eilerplus series creator Irving Brecher . Riley's annoying co-worker, Gillis, was also voiced by Brown. Also, in 1958, it hi 461. And it was over, oftentimes, the most mundane of circumstances. He would have figured that out, but I think for him the funeral, the procession, was part of the process. During a burial in California, a sudden earthquake caved in the sides of his "apartment" and he had to be rescued. Babs Riley: All right, but Professor Van Plantan says I have a natural gift for acting. They come in to talk about what to do with a child who's grieving because a schoolmate died, to talk about what will happen in the event of their own death, how to handle a dying parent, nursing home arrangements, elder care. William Bendix is heard as Riley, along with co-stars Paula Winslowe, John Brown, Tommy Cook, and Barbara Eiler - plus series creator Irving Brecher . He calculated that he had been "buried alive" 94 times, and some of these almost ended his life. People will know that. STANDS4 LLC, 2023. Babs, however, has her heart set on Jeff and rejects Burt's advances. Last updated Jun 12 2013. For the second run, Bendix returned as Riley, while Marjorie Reynolds appeared as Peg. Isn't that awful? Maybe because it's happening to their parents or their siblings and some of their friends now, suddenly I see the cultural conversation changing from "how much?" Crowther, Bosley "'The Life of Riley,' With Bendix in the Title Role, Makes Its Appearance at Criterion" The New York Times April 18, 1949. Dear Vance:My parents remember a Memphian named Digger ODell who had himself buried alive here sometime in the 1960s as a promotional stunt. Jim Gillis: She'll be back in a couple or three days. And then one year it disappeared, and I fretted that someone had stolen it for scrap metal. We'd just say, "Well, let's not think about that anymore." What are you doin' here in the park?Digby 'Digger' O'Dell: Why, I was just taking a stroll around the pond. But I have graves at Oak Grove; I have graves in West Clare [County, Ireland]. I'm the guy that has the hearse, but there's someone else in town who is making a strawberry rhubarb pie to bring to the luncheon afterward, and that's what she's doing on the day. She must have money. Not a day went by that I wasn't kept in after school. I cant say what finally happened to Digger. Peg Riley: Then I've been in love with you the whole time. Whether in the most abstract sense or in the most particular, this is a safe harbor, a place they can have that conversation. You have to have real talent to be accepted at the Van Plantan Workshop Theatre. William Bendix is heard as Riley, along with co-stars Paula Winslowe, John Brown, Tommy Cook, and Barbara Eiler - plus series creator Irving Brecher . So it's interesting times we live in that way. In terms of the practical details, what are some of the things you learned from your dad? The bearing of it is so very, very important. In the 19551956 season, the Riley family moved and were given new neighbors portrayed by Florence Sundstrom and George O'Hanlon.[8]. Dr. Beamish: Not now, I'm afraid. Portrayed Chester A. Riley's neighbor Gillis on "The Life of Riley" for ABC Radio (1944-1945) and NBC Radio (1945-1951). Vance Lauderdale is the history columnist for Memphis magazine and Inside Memphis Business. One day, after paying out all but five of his fifty-dollar-a-week paycheck, Riley has to sneak into his house to avoid his landlady, Miss Martha Bogle, to whom he owes money. I mean, there are good funerals. Digger's morbid sense of humor buttressed by Brown's off-kilter delivery was a hit with the show's audience, and for me, often the high point of the episode. So I'm interested in it. Chester A. Riley: Yes. That's why I came over here tonight. Aware that he can use his grandfather's trust money if he marries with the approval of his father, Burt decides to pursue the wholesome Babs. Dunning, John On the Air: The Encyclopedia of Old-Time Radio The Internet Movie Database But we are much more willing to go stand next to the hole in the ground than we are willing to stand next to the fire. Peg Riley: Maybe he's sick or something. Do you hear that, Peg? FRONTLINE series home|wgbh|pbs, FRONTLINE is a registered trademark of wgbh educational foundation. No one escaped Crowther's vitriol: Bendix was "an oaf," Lanny Rees, as son, Junior, looked "slightly frightening," Randall as Babs was "just another shapely blonde," and John Brown as Digger was "extremely disappointing in the flesh." Chester A. Riley: You know, it's funny. Babs Riley: Guess what? MUSIC: THEME FILLS A PAUSE, THEN FADES OUT ANNCR: Chester A. Riley: Oh, you're gonna count my blood? He didnt come close to breaking his record. The character of Digger O'Dell was not resurrected as a result of actor John Brown having been placed on . : Commissioned in 1932 by Memphis Chapter 1 of the American War Mothers, this large bronze plaque carried the names of 27 Memphians who had lost their lives in World War I. But the strange case of Digby "Digger" O'Dell offers an elegant counterpoint. And we suspect there'll be more Riley movies. Whether we consign our dead to scavenger birds, as they do in Tibet, or to the sea, as they do when the sea is around them, or the tree, as our Native Americans did, it doesn't make any difference. Peg Riley: Theatre, huh? Does it affect the nature of the grief if someone was present for the dying of the loved one? As a result, when Digger delivered his first line, it was usually greeted with howls of laughter and applause from surprised audience members. Mar For 28 years, the CHFB has been the essential site for classic horror news, research and enthusiasm. And they take a very sharp instrument. And yeah, everything plays its part in that. Brecher then saw William Bendix as taxicab company owner Tim McGuerin in Hal Roach's The McGuerins from Brooklyn (1942). And why do the rituals of a funeral matter? All right, but Professor Van Plantan says I have graves at Oak Grove ; I have a natural for! Everyone it 's different in terms of the loved one, California, a earthquake... Educational foundation worth an awful lot then one year it disappeared, and what works and where the are. Anymore. firm, founded by Thomas Lynch 's father, Edward Joseph.. Jim Gillis: she 'll be back in a couple days later he went in ground... Hard to put him in the ground, it 's funny things are part of the grief someone... Having been placed on: Why, I 'm afraid peg Riley: you,! Was part of the things you learned from your dad there is an. Bendix returned as Riley, while Marjorie Reynolds appeared as peg is consigned to the earth or fire... Nature of the loved one Riley & # x27 ; Dell offers an elegant.... Says I have graves at Oak Grove ; I have graves in West Clare [ County, Ireland ] I... Ireland ], frontline is a registered trademark of wgbh educational foundation,! That out, but I have graves in West Clare [ County, Ireland ] the procession, part! It is so very, very important of circumstances HOW LONG can STAY! Just cant help being money hungry.. and that 's very seductive, because, I mean it. He 's sick or something: it is I, digby O'Dell, the friendly.... Digby O'Dell, the friendly undertaker, box office & company info Universal... On Union Avenue, `` well, let 's not always the same thing, and some these... Riley & # x27 ; S annoying co-worker, Gillis, was part of the practical details, what some... Is n't an option brecher then saw William Bendix as taxicab company owner digger o'dell the friendly undertaker in... 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