The Comedian Essay

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“The Comedian” “Playhouse 90” was a television drama series written in the 1950’s. In this essay I will analyze the characters, effective dialogue, the composition and framing of the story, the musical effects, and my opinion on the actors that were casted. Regardless of the fact that Sammy Hogarth was perceived as the main character, I would have to say that “The Comedian” was more about Al. Al was having a hard time defining himself. Yes, it came to Al’s realization that he was losing his touch as a comic writer, but he would never fully admit it to himself. Instead of throwing in the towel, AL resorted to stealing the scripts from a deceased young comic named Davey Farber, whom was killed in World War 2. Al’s actions put his and Sammy’s job in jeopardy, even when Sammy was unaware of what he did. Al kept those scripts locked away in a desk drawer and his girlfriend, Connie, would repeatedly ask him why he had kept them. His response was for “a little sentimentality, and for old time’s sake.” His words are deceiving being that he really keeps them for inspiration, and possibly a back-up plan when he can be comical no more. Even the look on Connie’s face wasn’t fooled with his explanation. The admiration and respect for Davey Farber kills Al inside; it’s not hard to connect the dots. Every time he looked at the un-submitted scripts, the viewer could tell that Al was walloping in self-pity and drowning in his own failure as head writer. Sammy Hogarth on the other hand, is a self-centered comedian who basically runs his entire show, and bullies all of the staff surrounding him. He particularly torments his younger brother, Lester. All of his anger vents out towards Lester because Sammy knows that he can get away with it since his brother is ‘weak’. Sammy hired Lester only to be his hired hand. Also, Sammy expects everyone around him to give
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