The Honeymooners

What a classic comedy and television show....as a kid in the 50s I and my pals and brother and sister and parents would make sure we got the TV turned on at least 5 minutes or so early to watch "The Honeymooners"....could there possibly be a greater acting talent than Jackie Gleason...what role could he not handle....Ralph Kramden, Joe the Bartender, Reginald Van Gleason, the sad soul, and his acting in "The Hustler" with Paul Newman is near genius. He even nearly topped his Ralph Kramden role in the late 70s with Burt Reynolds in "Smokey and the Bandit"....there may never be another comedian like him. My favorite Honeymooners episode is when Ralph is planning to go on a TV show identifying popular and classical songs and has Norton in his apartment on a piano playing lead ins so Ralph can name the song....as a warmup Norton has to play "Suwanee River" to start every new song, much to Ralph's chagrin....guess what? Ralph is asked on the TV show t name that song - "Suwanee River" and cant do it....oh lord, we all laughed so loud at that episode the roof nearly caved in on our house...and the episode when Ralph finds a suitcase full of money on a bus and starts recklessly spending all of it without turning it in....you will split a gut watching that episode too..and then when demanded Alice would sit at the kitchen table and Ralph would start his mamby pamby woe is me facial expressions and try to gesture to Alice with his hand waving....on Lord, this is absolutely comedy at it's absolute best...only other TV comedy that could hold a candle to the Honeymooners was Amos-n-Andy from the early 50s with the Kingfish and Andy Brown. Went to a local store and bought all 39 episodes and tear up watching each one. Sadly today (2008) Joyce Randolph is the only living member of cast...timeless comedy......