SCTV, the Canadian sketch comedy series about a fictional TV station that ran between 1976 and 1984, was such a huge influence on my comedic interests. It wasn’t as popular as SNL, but it might have been funnier—certainly friendlier, weirder and more lovingly produced. The mainstays were nascent comedy legends—John Candy, Eugene Levy, Andrea Martin, Catherine O’Hara, Rick Moranis, Dave Thomas, Martin Short and Joe Flaherty, who was considered the elder statesman of the group. SCTV often included musical guests—from Hall & Oates to Levon Helm to the Tubes to John Mellencamp—who not only performed but participated in the various shows within the show.
With the passing of Flaherty a year ago today, I’ve been reminiscing about his roles as station owner Guy Caballero, news anchor Floyd Robertson and hayseed Big Jim McBob (“He blowed up—blowed up real good!”). But my favorite was Count Floyd, the presenter of “Monster Chiller Horror Theater,” a parody of the horror movie hosts of my childhood. Most of the “films” starred Dr. Tongue (Candy) and his Igor-like assistant Bruno (Levy)—a fave was Dr. Tongue’s Evil House of Pancakes. Count Floyd would howl like a werewolf, although he was supposed to be a vampire in a cheap costume…well, see for yourself.
Apart from Bob & Doug McKenzie, Count Floyd was the only SCTV character who got a related record album. The rare Count Floyd mini-LP featured such tracks as “Reggae Christmas Eve in Transylvania” and “The Gory Story of Duane and Debbie.” It wasn’t a comic triumph, but it had an impact. The Simpsons showrunner Al Jean once told Flaherty, his hero, that he’d purchased the album. Flaherty replied, “You’re the one!”
Isn’t that Count Floyd Dr Tongue and Woody Tobias Jr