Frozen Peas
Encyclopedia
Frozen Peas is the colloquial term for a blooper
audio clip wherein American filmmaker Orson Welles
performs narration for a series of British television advertisements for Findus
. The clip is known informally as In July, or Yes, Always, based on several of Welles' complaints during the recording.
Welles breaks from the script, expressing his dissatisfaction about the timing of the piece, as well as remarking that "it's so nice that you see a snow-covered field and say, "Every July, peas grow there"...we're talking about 'em growing and she's picked 'em."
A director requests that he emphasize the word 'in' in the phrase "in July;" Welles claims this is impossible to do in a sensible fashion, claiming that the director isn't thinking.
A director apologizes because the script actually said "Every July" rather than "in July", but Welles continues to complain that it was the other director who made the suggestion, and quips, "Too much directing around here."
From here, the recording transitions to a different commercial for "fish fingers", apparently at either the same recording session, or for the same director:
Welles struggles with the pronunciation of the fisherman's name, cursing under his breath. The director requests a different pacing, but Welles refuses.
Welles attempts to finish the script but gets tangled around the words "crumb-crisp coating." The directors permit him to remove the word "crumb."
The recording moves on to yet another advertisement, for hamburgers, but not before Welles slips in a complaint.
The directors ask for one more take, as they don't like the way he emphasizes "prairie-fed" over beef.
The directors try to calm him down, but Welles insists he's giving it the right reading, to which a director responds, "For the moment." Welles continues to gripe about the amount of takes he's made for these commercials, which he claims is twenty more than any other he's made.
When the engineer attempts to give Welles some pointers, the actor reveals his frustration of being a performer, a "hired hand" on the commercial being given conflicting advice from different people in the booth.
The actual director continues to try to calm Welles down, but he storms out of the recording booth.
many times, often used in conjunction when parodying Welles. The most notable parody is from animated series Animaniacs
; an entire cartoon featuring Pinky and the Brain was titled "Yes, Always" and featured a near-verbatim staging of the entire scene (all profanities replaced by family-friendly material, e.g., "...and I'll make cheese for you" in place of "...and I'll go down on you"), with Brain playing the part of Welles and Pinky as the director. This sketch can be found on the Animaniacs Volume 3 DVD collection. Brain's voice-actor, Maurice LaMarche
, well known for his Welles impression, is known to parody the "frozen peas" tape before recording sessions as a warm up; his parody can be heard in the special features of Comic Book: The Movie
.
Another version portrayed in The Critic
features Welles, voiced by LaMarche, whispering "Rosebud" a la Citizen Kane
before the shot pans out to reveal Welles at a table, with a plate of Rosebud Frozen Peas he is advertising. After reading his lines, describing the peas as "full of count
ry goodness and green peaness
," he becomes disgusted and walks off, taking a handful of peas with him and eating them. In another episode, Welles is upset over having to read a living will
, and begins making endorsements for "Mrs. Pell's Fish Sticks" instead.
Another parody of the tape appeared in a skit on the Canadian sketch comedy show SCTV
, where Welles, played by John Candy
, is hired by Liberace
, played by Dave Thomas
, for a Christmas storytelling. Welles is frequently distracted by the TV crew and finally, he gets up and walks off, quoting "You people are pests! No money is worth...!"
Yet another animated example portrayed by LaMarche comes from the 2010 Futurama
episode "Lrrreconcilable Ndndifferences
." Welles (as a head in a jar) agrees to recreate his famous War of the Worlds broadcast for Lrrr and the Planet Express crew, but complains on-air about obvious plot holes in the script.
Blooper
A blooper, also known as an outtake or boner is a short sequence of a film or video production, usually a deleted scene, containing a mistake made by a member of the cast or crew. It also refers to an error made during a live radio or TV broadcast or news report, usually in terms of misspoken words...
audio clip wherein American filmmaker Orson Welles
Orson Welles
George Orson Welles , best known as Orson Welles, was an American film director, actor, theatre director, screenwriter, and producer, who worked extensively in film, theatre, television and radio...
performs narration for a series of British television advertisements for Findus
Findus
Findus is a company that produces and retails frozen food. Its products include Crispy Pancakes, which were invented in the early 1970s.- Origins :...
. The clip is known informally as In July, or Yes, Always, based on several of Welles' complaints during the recording.
Summary
The recording begins with Welles reading the introduction to a script for a commercial for frozen peas.
"We know a remote farm in LincolnshireLincolnshireLincolnshire is a county in the east of England. It borders Norfolk to the south east, Cambridgeshire to the south, Rutland to the south west, Leicestershire and Nottinghamshire to the west, South Yorkshire to the north west, and the East Riding of Yorkshire to the north. It also borders...
, where Mrs. Buckley lives; every July, peas grow there..."
Welles breaks from the script, expressing his dissatisfaction about the timing of the piece, as well as remarking that "it's so nice that you see a snow-covered field and say, "Every July, peas grow there"...we're talking about 'em growing and she's picked 'em."
A director requests that he emphasize the word 'in' in the phrase "in July;" Welles claims this is impossible to do in a sensible fashion, claiming that the director isn't thinking.
Why? That doesn't make any sense. Sorry. There's no known way of saying an English sentence in which you begin a sentence with 'in' and emphasize it. Get me a jury and show me how you can say "in July", and I'll go down on you. That's just idiotic, if you'll forgive me my saying so. That's just stupid, "in July"; I'd love to know how you emphasize 'in' in "In July"...impossible! Meaningless!
A director apologizes because the script actually said "Every July" rather than "in July", but Welles continues to complain that it was the other director who made the suggestion, and quips, "Too much directing around here."
From here, the recording transitions to a different commercial for "fish fingers", apparently at either the same recording session, or for the same director:
"We know a certain fjordFjordGeologically, a fjord is a long, narrow inlet with steep sides or cliffs, created in a valley carved by glacial activity.-Formation:A fjord is formed when a glacier cuts a U-shaped valley by abrasion of the surrounding bedrock. Glacial melting is accompanied by rebound of Earth's crust as the ice...
in Norway, near where the codCodCod is the common name for genus Gadus, belonging to the family Gadidae, and is also used in the common name for various other fishes. Cod is a popular food with a mild flavor, low fat content and a dense, flaky white flesh. Cod livers are processed to make cod liver oil, an important source of...
gather in great shoals. There, Jan St..."
Welles struggles with the pronunciation of the fisherman's name, cursing under his breath. The director requests a different pacing, but Welles refuses.
You don't know what I'm up against: because it's full of, of, of things that are only correct because they're grammatical but they're tough on the ear, you see; this is a very wearying one, it's unpleasant to read. Unrewarding.
Welles attempts to finish the script but gets tangled around the words "crumb-crisp coating." The directors permit him to remove the word "crumb."
The recording moves on to yet another advertisement, for hamburgers, but not before Welles slips in a complaint.
Here, under protest, is "beef burgers." "We know a little place in the American far west, where Charlie Briggs chops up the finest prairie-fed beef and tastes..." This is a lot of shit, you know that?
The directors ask for one more take, as they don't like the way he emphasizes "prairie-fed" over beef.
But you can't emphasize 'beef', that's like his wanting me to emphasize 'in' before 'July'! Come on, fellas, you're losing your heads! I wouldn't direct any living actor like this in Shakespeare, the way you do this! It's impossible!
The directors try to calm him down, but Welles insists he's giving it the right reading, to which a director responds, "For the moment." Welles continues to gripe about the amount of takes he's made for these commercials, which he claims is twenty more than any other he's made.
You're such pests...now, what is it you want? In your depths of your ignorance, what is it you want? Well, whatever it is you want, I can't deliver because I just don't see it.
When the engineer attempts to give Welles some pointers, the actor reveals his frustration of being a performer, a "hired hand" on the commercial being given conflicting advice from different people in the booth.
I take direction from one person...under protest, but from two I don't sit still.
The actual director continues to try to calm Welles down, but he storms out of the recording booth.
This isn't worth it, no money is worth it!
Background
It is uncertain exactly when the clip was recorded, though anecdotal evidence places the recording session in Toronto, Ontario, sometime in the 1980s. Many believe it was after the late 1960s. It is not known whether a complete recording of the session exists (since, for example, the "multiple takes" Welles alludes to are not extant on the recording as circulated, and the recording transitions between different commercials).Parodies
The tape has been parodiedParody
A parody , in current usage, is an imitative work created to mock, comment on, or trivialise an original work, its subject, author, style, or some other target, by means of humorous, satiric or ironic imitation...
many times, often used in conjunction when parodying Welles. The most notable parody is from animated series Animaniacs
Animaniacs
Steven Spielberg Presents Animaniacs, usually referred to as simply Animaniacs, is an American animated series, distributed by Warner Bros. Television and produced by Amblin Entertainment and Warner Bros. Animation. The cartoon was the second animated series produced by the collaboration of Steven...
; an entire cartoon featuring Pinky and the Brain was titled "Yes, Always" and featured a near-verbatim staging of the entire scene (all profanities replaced by family-friendly material, e.g., "...and I'll make cheese for you" in place of "...and I'll go down on you"), with Brain playing the part of Welles and Pinky as the director. This sketch can be found on the Animaniacs Volume 3 DVD collection. Brain's voice-actor, Maurice LaMarche
Maurice LaMarche
Maurice LaMarche is an Emmy Award winning Canadian-American voice actor and former stand up comedian. He is best known for his voicework in Futurama as Kif Kroker, as Egon Spengler in The Real Ghostbusters, Verminous Skumm and Duke Nukem in Captain Planet and the Planeteers, Big Bob Pataki in Hey...
, well known for his Welles impression, is known to parody the "frozen peas" tape before recording sessions as a warm up; his parody can be heard in the special features of Comic Book: The Movie
Comic Book: The Movie
Comic Book: The Movie is a 2004 direct-to-DVD mockumentary directed by and starring Mark Hamill who is best known for his role as Luke Skywalker, the main character in the original trilogy of Star Wars feature films...
.
Another version portrayed in The Critic
The Critic
The Critic is an American prime time animated series revolving around the life of film critic Jay Sherman, voiced by actor Jon Lovitz. It was created by Al Jean and Mike Reiss, both of whom had worked as writers on The Simpsons. The Critic had 23 episodes produced, first broadcast on ABC in 1994,...
features Welles, voiced by LaMarche, whispering "Rosebud" a la Citizen Kane
Citizen Kane
Citizen Kane is a 1941 American drama film, directed by and starring Orson Welles. Many critics consider it the greatest American film of all time, especially for its innovative cinematography, music and narrative structure. Citizen Kane was Welles' first feature film...
before the shot pans out to reveal Welles at a table, with a plate of Rosebud Frozen Peas he is advertising. After reading his lines, describing the peas as "full of count
Cunt
Cunt is a vulgarism, primarily referring to the female genitalia, specifically the vulva, and including the cleft of Venus. The earliest citation of this usage in the 1972 Oxford English Dictionary, c 1230, refers to the London street known as Gropecunt Lane...
ry goodness and green peaness
Penis
The penis is a biological feature of male animals including both vertebrates and invertebrates...
," he becomes disgusted and walks off, taking a handful of peas with him and eating them. In another episode, Welles is upset over having to read a living will
Living will
An advance health care directive, also known as living will, personal directive, advance directive, or advance decision, are instructions given by individuals specifying what actions should be taken for their health in the event that they are no longer able to make decisions due to illness or...
, and begins making endorsements for "Mrs. Pell's Fish Sticks" instead.
Another parody of the tape appeared in a skit on the Canadian sketch comedy show SCTV
Second City Television
Second City Television is a Canadian television sketch comedy show offshoot from Toronto's The Second City troupe that ran between 1976 and 1984.- Premise :...
, where Welles, played by John Candy
John Candy
John Franklin Candy was a Canadian actor and comedian. He rose to fame as a member of the Toronto branch of The Second City and its related Second City Television series, and through his appearances in comedy films such as Stripes, Splash, Cool Runnings, The Great Outdoors, Spaceballs, and Uncle...
, is hired by Liberace
Liberace
Wladziu Valentino Liberace , best known simply as Liberace, was a famous American pianist and vocalist.In a career that spanned four decades of concerts, recordings, motion pictures, television and endorsements, Liberace became world-renowned...
, played by Dave Thomas
Dave Thomas (actor)
David "Dave" Thomas is a Canadian comedian and actor. He was born in St. Catharines, Ontario, but moved to Durham, North Carolina where his father, John E. Thomas, attended Duke University and earned a PhD in Philosophy. Thomas attended George Watts and Moorehead elementary schools...
, for a Christmas storytelling. Welles is frequently distracted by the TV crew and finally, he gets up and walks off, quoting "You people are pests! No money is worth...!"
Yet another animated example portrayed by LaMarche comes from the 2010 Futurama
Futurama
Futurama is an American animated science fiction sitcom created by Matt Groening and developed by Groening and David X. Cohen for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series follows the adventures of a late 20th-century New York City pizza delivery boy, Philip J...
episode "Lrrreconcilable Ndndifferences
Lrrreconcilable Ndndifferences
"Lrrreconcilable Ndndifferences" is the eleventh episode of the sixth season of the animated sitcom, Futurama and is the 99th episode in production and broadcast order. It aired on Comedy Central on August 26, 2010. In the episode, the ruler of the planet Omicron Persei 8, Lrrr experiences...
." Welles (as a head in a jar) agrees to recreate his famous War of the Worlds broadcast for Lrrr and the Planet Express crew, but complains on-air about obvious plot holes in the script.