Irving Cohen
Encyclopedia
Irving Cohen was a character that Martin Short
used on SCTV
, and brought with him to SNL
. Cohen was a caricature of old Tin Pan Alley
songsmiths, and the running gag
in any sketch where he appeared was that he would claim that he could "write a song about anyt'ing," at which point Irving would call to a pianist off camera, "Give me a 'C', a bouncy, 'C'", and then he would ad-lib lyrics, ending with, "Da-da-da-da-dee, da-da-da-da-dah, ah, whatever da hell else ya wanna put in da t'ing!" Cohen started his interviews by reminiscing about the old days, starting off with, "In the old days, we had a t'ing, called, 'Vau-de-ville'..."
Cohen's age could only be guessed at, but he appeared to be in his nineties, and Short wore heavy age makeup, to portray the character.
On SCTV, he was featured on "The William B. Williams Show", a spinoff of the "Sammy Maudlin Show", which was SCTV's running parody of "The Tonight Show
".
On SNL, he was included in a sketch featuring other old Yiddish Vaudevillian characters portrayed by other cast members including Billy Crystal
, Rich Hall
and Christopher Guest
, and guest host Eddie Murphy
playing his Gumby character, whom he played as an old Yiddish Vaudeville actor. The sketch took place in a deli off Broadway
, and featured a joke in which everyone tried to remember the ingredients of a Morey Amsterdam
sandwich. Cohen used his trademark "Give me a 'C', a bouncy, 'C' " and listed ingredients, followed by, "Da-da-da-da-dee, da-da-da-da-dah, ah, whatever da hell else ya wanna put in da sammich". The sketch ended when a waiter refused to serve Gumby, who had done a dine-and-dash
years before.
Martin Short
Martin Hayter Short, CM is a Canadian actor, comedian, writer, singer and producer. He is best-known for his comedy work, particularly on the TV programs SCTV and Saturday Night Live...
used on 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 :...
, and brought with him to SNL
Saturday Night Live
Saturday Night Live is a live American late-night television sketch comedy and variety show developed by Lorne Michaels and Dick Ebersol. The show premiered on NBC on October 11, 1975, under the original title of NBC's Saturday Night.The show's sketches often parody contemporary American culture...
. Cohen was a caricature of old Tin Pan Alley
Tin Pan Alley
Tin Pan Alley is the name given to the collection of New York City music publishers and songwriters who dominated the popular music of the United States in the late 19th century and early 20th century...
songsmiths, and the running gag
Running gag
A running gag, or running joke, is a literary device that takes the form of an amusing joke or a comical reference and appears repeatedly throughout a work of literature or other form of storytelling....
in any sketch where he appeared was that he would claim that he could "write a song about anyt'ing," at which point Irving would call to a pianist off camera, "Give me a 'C', a bouncy, 'C'", and then he would ad-lib lyrics, ending with, "Da-da-da-da-dee, da-da-da-da-dah, ah, whatever da hell else ya wanna put in da t'ing!" Cohen started his interviews by reminiscing about the old days, starting off with, "In the old days, we had a t'ing, called, 'Vau-de-ville'..."
Cohen's age could only be guessed at, but he appeared to be in his nineties, and Short wore heavy age makeup, to portray the character.
On SCTV, he was featured on "The William B. Williams Show", a spinoff of the "Sammy Maudlin Show", which was SCTV's running parody of "The Tonight Show
The Tonight Show
The Tonight Show is an American late-night talk show that has aired on NBC since 1954. It is the longest currently running regularly scheduled entertainment program in the United States, and the third longest-running show on NBC, after Meet the Press and Today.The Tonight Show has been hosted by...
".
On SNL, he was included in a sketch featuring other old Yiddish Vaudevillian characters portrayed by other cast members including Billy Crystal
Billy Crystal
William Edward "Billy" Crystal is an American actor, writer, producer, comedian and film director. He gained prominence in the 1970s for playing Jodie Dallas on the ABC sitcom Soap and became a Hollywood film star during the late 1980s and 1990s, appearing in the critical and box office successes...
, Rich Hall
Rich Hall
Richard "Rich" Hall is an American comedian, writer and musician.-Early life and career:Hall was born in Alexandria, Virginia and grew up in Mecklenburg County, North Carolina. He is part Cherokee Indian...
and Christopher Guest
Christopher Guest
Christopher Haden-Guest, 5th Baron Haden-Guest , better known as Christopher Guest, is an American screenwriter, composer, musician, director, actor and comedian. He is most widely known in Hollywood for having written, directed and starred in several improvisational "mockumentary" films that...
, and guest host Eddie Murphy
Eddie Murphy
Edward Regan "Eddie" Murphy is an American stand-up comedian, actor, writer, singer, director, and musician....
playing his Gumby character, whom he played as an old Yiddish Vaudeville actor. The sketch took place in a deli off Broadway
Broadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
, and featured a joke in which everyone tried to remember the ingredients of a Morey Amsterdam
Morey Amsterdam
Morey Amsterdam was an American television actor and comedian, best known for the role of Buddy Sorrell on The Dick Van Dyke Show in the early 1960s.-Early life:...
sandwich. Cohen used his trademark "Give me a 'C', a bouncy, 'C' " and listed ingredients, followed by, "Da-da-da-da-dee, da-da-da-da-dah, ah, whatever da hell else ya wanna put in da sammich". The sketch ended when a waiter refused to serve Gumby, who had done a dine-and-dash
Dine and dash
A dine and dash is a form of theft by fraud, in which a patron orders and consumes food from a restaurant or similar establishment with no intent to pay, then leaves without...
years before.