Cloris Leachman — Season 8 — The Black Case Diaries

The Case of Young Frankenstein (1974)

In December of 1974, comedy fans were treated to the latest parody by Mel Brooks. It was a farce poking fun at possibly the most classic horror story in English literature, the book that jump-started the science-fiction genre and made Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley a household name: Frankenstein.

Brooks first saw James Whale’s Frankenstein when he was just five years old, and he found it to be a fairly traumatic experience, haunting him for years to come. It turned out that Gene Wilder, Brooks’ friend and collaborator, had a similar experience. So when Wilder approached Brooks about a possible project parodying the horror classic, the men got started on what Mel Brooks would consider their biggest triumph together.

Wilder had already named the film Young Frankenstein, taking title inspiration from the 1940 film, Young Tom Edison which he saw as a child. He created an outline based on what he thought would happen if he were the great-grandson of Victor Frankenstein. He had several pages written before Mel Brooks got involved, and together they created one of the most beloved comedies of all time.
So, grab your lab coat and let’s all head down to Dr. Frankenstein’s (it’s pronounced FRONK-EN-STEEN) laboratory, where we’ll learn the electrifying history of Young Frankenstein.

70s, Film History, Monsters, PodcastBlack C. DiariesOctober 2, 2023Young Frankenstein, Gene Wilder, Mel Brooks, Cloris Leachman, Terry Garr, Peter Boyle, Marty Feldman

The Mary Tyler Moore Show Case (Part 1)

Back during the early days of TV sitcoms, audiences got familiar with a particular depiction of women. They often wore dresses, woke each morning with a full face of make-up, and stayed home to care for their children while their husband pursued a career. But these fictional portrayals of the modern woman were just that: fiction. As women continued to fight for their place in the entertainment industry, the concept of the ideal woman began to change. Women were carving out a place for themselves in the male-dominated writing rooms and would eventually have the opportunity to write characters that felt like someone they could identify with. One of the very first of these characters was Mary Richards, the protagonist of The Mary Tyler Moore show.

Podcast, Film HistoryBlack C. DiariesAugust 7, 2023Mary Tyler Moore, Tv Sitcoms, CBS, Grant Tinker, Rhoda, Mary Richards, Ed Asner, Cloris Leachman, Gavin McLeod, Betty White