The Funny Manns was an American

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 syndicated television

Television

Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...

 program that first appeared in 1961. It was hosted by Cliff Norton

Cliff Norton

Clifford Charles "Cliff" Norton was an American character actor and radio announcer who had appeared in various movies and television series over a career that spanned over 40 years. He was probably best known as the announcer for Dave Garroway's radio program...

 and featured re-edited public domain

Public domain

Works are in the public domain if the intellectual property rights have expired, if the intellectual property rights are forfeited, or if they are not covered by intellectual property rights at all...

 silent movie

Silent Movie

Silent Movie is a 1976 satirical comedy film co-written, directed by, and starring Mel Brooks, and released by 20th Century Fox on June 17, 1976...

s, much as Jay Ward

Jay Ward

J Troplong "Jay" Ward was an American creator and producer of animated television cartoons. He produced animated series based on such characters as Crusader Rabbit, Rocky & Bullwinkle, Dudley Do-Right, Peabody and Sherman, Hoppity Hooper, George of the Jungle, Tom Slick, and Super Chicken...

's show Fractured Flickers

Fractured Flickers

Fractured Flickers is a live-action syndicated half-hour television comedy show that was produced by Jay Ward, who is otherwise known for animated cartoons. The pilot film was produced in 1961 , but the series wasn't completed until 1963...

 did. The show was co-produced by Nick Nicholson, who sometimes performed on the show's skits with Norton. It was broadcast by the BBC

BBC

The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...

 in the United Kingdom

United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

.

The program would always begin with Cliff Norton as some type of handyman, whether it was a painter, repairman, or even a plumber, and as he began dialog, he would use the line "I learned everything I know from my (Uncle/Father/etc.)" and then it would cut to the edited silent films.

The silent stars appearing on the show included Snub Pollard

Snub Pollard

Harry "Snub" Pollard was a silent film comedian, popular in the 1920s.-Career:Often mistaken as the brother of Australian actress Daphne Pollard, in fact the two were not related despite their shared surname. Harry Pollard was born as Harold Fraser and took the name Pollard as his stage name...

, Poodles Hannaford, Billy Bevan

Billy Bevan

Billy Bevan was an Australian film actor. He appeared in 254 American films between 1916 and 1950....

, Oliver Hardy

Oliver Hardy

Oliver Hardy was an American comic actor famous as one half of Laurel and Hardy, the classic double act that began in the era of silent films and lasted nearly 30 years, from 1927 to 1955.-Early life:...

 (minus his partner, Stan Laurel

Stan Laurel

Arthur Stanley "Stan" Jefferson , better known as Stan Laurel, was an English comic actor, writer and film director, famous as the first half of the comedy team Laurel and Hardy. His film acting career stretched between 1917 and 1951 and included a starring role in the Academy Award winning film...

) and a young Mickey Rooney

Mickey Rooney

Mickey Rooney is an American film actor and entertainer whose film, television, and stage appearances span nearly his entire lifetime. He has won multiple awards, including an Honorary Academy Award, a Golden Globe and an Emmy Award...

, billed as "Mickey McGuire".