It?s hard to believe that Tom Smothers is a senior citizen.
But the ever-young-looking comedian and his equally young-looking 60-something brother, Dick, who made The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour a television institution in the 1960s, still perform.
No dirty jokes here, just good, clean fun reminiscent of the understated jokes of Bob Newhart.
“We are an older people?s act,” said Tom Smothers a few weeks before he and his brother started their current tour. “People under 40 don’t know who we are.”
But people over 40 certainly do and it?s that loyal following that keeps the brothers on the road doing about 80 performances a year. Although the brothers don?t completely change the performance for each show, Smothers said they do make variations to keep it fresh while sticking with the “attitude” of their show. Dry humor, some folk songs and jabs at some sacred cows including politics, are still standard Smothers fare.
In a conversation with Newhart, a man Smothers called brilliant, he was surprised to learn that when they were youngsters, they each had the same comedic idol: George Gobles.
“We both realized he didn’t do jokes,” Smothers said. “It was an attitude. People respond to that attitude.”
And for those who need a refresher course in just how the brothers developed during their almost 50 years in the business, they show a 12-minute video presentation of the best of the Comedy Hour to their live audiences.
Smothers calls the video a kind of scrapbook that includes shots of both comedian Steve Martin and singer Kenny Rogers with black hair.
“My life has been so blessed, although I haven?t always handled it in the best way,” Dick Smothers said in an interview with Up Close and Personal magazine. “Lately, I’ve been thinking about the worthiness of our success. I was going to be a teacher because I have a great affinity for little kids and look what happened. God took an average person and blessed me with so much,” he said.
And the fans remember those years warmly, said Tom Smothers noting that CBS “fired us” in 1969.
“People come up to us and say you made me happy when I was a teenager,” he said. You got me thinking about social and political issues. We are the last classic comedy team. That form is no longer in American comedy.”
If you go
The Smothers Brothers
» Venue: Rams Head on Stage, 33 West St., Annapolis
» Times: 8 p.m. today and Wednesday
» Tickets: $79.50
» More info: www.ramsheadonstage.com; 410-268-4545
