Well. By Lorraine LoBianco. Junior will be glad to pitch in. I like the connection, the sound of the word "process"; it suggests movement, a pilgrimage. : Commissioned in 1932 by Memphis Chapter 1 of the American War Mothers, this large bronze plaque carried the names of 27 Memphians who had lost their lives in World War I. Dear Vance:What happened to the Memory Grove plaque an old war memorial that stood in Overton Park, in a stand of trees close to Poplar Avenue? It was a sudden inspiration brought on by ownership of a tuxedo T-shirt! Chester A. Riley : Hello, Digger. But even people who do not believe or claim no religiosity or no particular faith, they are not without some text, some book they regard as, if not holy, it is the handle they're trying to hold onto to get through this. Brecher told Brown, "I want a very sepulchral voice, quavering, morbid," and he got it right away.[2]. I guess he likes this blond's cooking. [1], William Bendix also starred in the 1949 film version of The Life of Riley directed by Irving Brecher. Peg Riley: Well, he's always been so bright. All to the good, I say. No one escaped Crowther's vitriol: Bendix was "an oaf," Lanny Rees, as son, Junior, looked "slightly frightening," Randall as Babs was "just another shapely blonde," and John Brown as Digger was "extremely disappointing in the flesh." Peg Riley: My father let me decide who I wanted to go around with. With William Bendix the protagonist, as Riley and among others John Brown, who portrayed the friendly undertaker "Digger" O'Dell. Let's see! I've really come to the point where I can see in a fire all that release; I can see the Holy Spirit in it, you know. So people come in to talk about arranging their parents' funerals or their own. It is the ridiculous and the sublime. Radio historian Gerald Nachman quotes Brecher as stating, "He was a Brooklyn guy and there was something about him. And that is the cruel part, and that is the good news and the bad news all at once -- that things are happening even so. The show was canceled after its first season, but was revived in 1953, then ran on the NBC network until August 1958. How different is confronting death without faith? And that's unfortunate. SOURCES: What are you doin' here in the park? What can you tell me about this interesting fellow? [after Riley discovers the man he accused of bank robbery is a policeman]. William Bendix is heard as Riley, along with co-stars Paula Winslowe, John Brown, Tommy Cook, and Barbara Eilerplus series creator Irving Brecher . Starting with the right soil and conditions can make all the difference when it comes to germination and transplanting of pepper seedlings. And what about the formalities, the particular traditions and customs that are a part of the funeral? And particularly when you see the transaction . I think the national rate now is right around 38 percent. Well, if you ask any group of ordinary citizens, "How many here have attended a cremation?" The character of Digger O'Dell was not resurrected as a result of actor John Brown having been placed on . I planned the whole thing. Well, we wear black for funerals -- people have to know who the directors are, who to ask -- and white shirts and gray ties. Press question mark to learn the rest of the keyboard shortcuts And there's somebody else digging the hole in the ground. 2023. Dear j.b.: Well, for starters I can tell you that this interesting fellow (and Im certainly not disputing that) was not a Memphian, and his name wasnt really Digger ODell. But you have to do that first, because people will sense if you're not willing to do that, if you're just sort of going through the motions. Her testimony is like all testimony -- it is a combination of gratitude and grief, and that the gratitude does not trump the grief, nor does the grief undo the gratitude. But you've seen people come in that are agnostics or --. A great memorable quote from the The Life of Riley movie on Quotes.net - "It is I, Digger O'Dell, your friendly undertaker. The radio program initially aired on the Blue Network (later known as ABC) from January 16, 1944, to July 8, 1945, it then moved to NBC, where it was broadcast from September 8, 1945, to June 29, 1951. The dirt on Herbert ODell Smith. And I suppose this is the message at every graveside: They stay, we go, until we come to that point in which we are brought there, and we stay and they go. And it works; it does work. Jim Gillis: Of course it's right. Irving Brecher, who would direct the film adaptation of Life of Riley, had seen William Bendix in a film called The McGuerins of Brooklyn (1942) and knew he'd found his man. The till doesn't ring as precisely, and what works and where the values are require more discernment. I always knew I'd bring up my daughter to be somebody someday. He liked the idea that the culture had sort of organized these wheels, in some way liturgically, in some ways socially. I just read this card, and I just spoke to the Justice of the Peace! Peg Riley: No. I was thrilled to find IA, where I can find some of those classics. Banners asked customers and anyone driving past the Buick showroom on Union Avenue, "HOW LONG CAN HE STAY BURIED ALIVE?" I think mine will know what to do, too, not because I've said, "Do this or that," but because they have seen life as I have seen it, and they sort of know me and I know them. Brecher Productions, Inc.; Universal-International Pictures Co., Inc. "Digger" O'Dell, "the friendly undertaker", William Bendix came to the attention of the public in the 1944 Alfred Hitchcock film, Lifeboat , playing a dim-witted sailor who doesn't survive the ordeal. So in a sense, cremation suits us in that way. I think we're among the first couple generations for whom the presence of the dead at their funerals has become optional, and I see that as probably not good news for the culture at large. Thanks for any help. All these things are part of the ongoing conversation that we here have. This character was extremelly successfull, with many puns based on his profession. The open casket, it is something that's often mocked. One of my favorite characters from classic radio is Digby Digger ODell, the friendly undertaker portrayed by John Brown in THE LIFE OF RILEY. So Ive got only one inch to run around in.. Chester A. Riley: Well, if you do, just holler. He would have probably had a difficult way of managing some of the changes that we see nowadays. And yet you write that beautiful essay Tract in your book, The Undertaking, which is in some way a map, is it? It was later reused by Benjamin J. Grimm of the Fantastic Four. It's possible to pay with credit card or Western Union, but PayPal isn't an option. John Brown returned as the morbid, counseling undertaker Digby (Digger) O'Dell. Jackie Gleason starred as Riley during the show's first year, while DeCamp and Lanny Rees reprised their film roles for the series. There is a comfort when you don't have to reinvent that wheel, when we know we have to be at church at a certain time and that these prayers will be said and not those, and that this is accustomed behavior and this is outside the pale, and this is where we go. While readying for Monahan, Riley's daughter Babs, a serious-minded college student, catches the eye of Miss Bogle's handsome young nephew, Jeff Taylor. And particularly when you see the transaction which involves this rather impressive life-or-death event with the rather mundane mercantility of it all. The Life of Riley was an American radio situation comedy series of the 1940s that was adapted into a 1949 feature film, a 1950s television series, and a 1958 comic book. Months after my father died, I can remember this wave of feelings that would come over me, catching me at the most unpredictable times, this wallop of him being dead, him being gone. Peg Riley: Chester Riley! Chester A. Riley: The baby announcements? My, you're looking fine today; very natural" and leave stage with ""Cheerio, I'd better be shoveling off", https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Life_of_Riley. The Life of Riley, 1944 to 1951. Chester A. Riley is back, with long-suffering wife Peg, trouble-prone kids Junior and Babs, moochy pal Gillis, and Digger O'Dell, The Friendly Undertaker in sixteen hilarious half-hour episodes. But, you know, we used to say to my father, who directed a fair few funerals, "What do you want done with you when you're dead?," and he'd say, "Well, you'll know what to do." Will that matter? All rights reserved. The Life of Riley was an American radio situation comedy series of the 1940s that was adapted into a 1949 feature film, a 1950s television series, and a 1958 comic book. He didnt come close to breaking his record. As far as I can tell, he performed it in Memphis only twice, but one of those events made the news because the police were summoned to dig up Digger. Are social changes the reasons that we are more fearful and reluctant to deal with death in our everyday lives? While we would all agree that death is never funny, this show had an usual character in it by the name of Digby "Digger". So what I find is that before people bring their expertise as an embalmer or as a manager or as an executive or as a director, before any expertise, you ante up your humanity, you know? In October 1949, the NBC network began broadcasting a television series inspired by the radio program, also titled The Life of Riley. I always knew I'd bring up my daughter to be somebody someday. That's enough, isn't it? Digger's morbid sense of humor buttressed by Brown's off-kilter delivery was a hit with the show's audience, and for me, often the high point of the episode. She talks about how in her life the difference was not between doing good and evil. All the same, 100 percent of the people that have gone with us are grateful that we invited them to go. Digby 'Digger' O'Dell: Why, I was just taking a stroll around the pond. Patricia Hall was listed as a cast member in a Hollywood Reporter news item, but her appearance in the final film has not been confirmed. In the 19551956 season, the Riley family moved and were given new neighbors portrayed by Florence Sundstrom and George O'Hanlon.[8]. Not to worry, though. Everything assumes its natural order. . Maybe bigger. What we don't want to see is our mother or our father dead, and that is the part we need to see. I've seen at the end of the day people walking upright away from graves, people walking upright away from fires, as if they were going to survive it. Portrayed Chester A. Riley's neighbor Gillis on "The Life of Riley" for ABC Radio (1944-1945) and NBC Radio (1945-1951). Maybe the referee will give you a draw. Chester A. Riley: Their gonna slit my throat from ear to ear and rip out my tonsils, and she says there's nothing to it! Chester A. Riley: Besides that, he's nothing but a lazy loafer. The crematory we use is impeccably run by ethical people, people we inspect, unannounced, a couple times every year. In addition to Bendix' Riley, the show featured immensely popular supporting characters, including Digby "Digger" O'Dell, the ghoulish "friendly undertaker" voiced by John Brown (who also played Thorny on Ozzie and Harriet, Al on My Friend Irma, and Broadway on The Damon Runyan Theatre). 1 I said what about a kiss? Chester A. Riley is back, with long-suffering wife Peg, trouble-prone kids Junior and Babs, moochy pal Gillis, and Digger O'Dell, The Friendly Undertaker in sixteen hilarious half-hour episodes. And yeah, everything plays its part in that. Sterling Holloway recurred as neighbor Waldo Binney, another radio character. I know as a person who has grieved before, and I also know as a person who has been next to people in grief, that one of the awful messages on the day is "Life goes on." I'll hug her and I'll kiss her. Even a criminal gets time off for good behavior. It's an easy target; it always is -- you know, the Digger O'Dell [the "friendly undertaker" character in the 1950s television series Life of Riley]. There's been a sort of national conversation about funerals over the years. interview with the film's producers|credits|privacy policy|journalistic guidelines Barbara 'Babs' Riley: Oh Simon, he knows! Acti-Sol Hen Manure is one popular product that has been used with success by experienced, This website uses cookies for functionality, analytics and advertising purposes as described in our. In some ways it is a culture that's based on convenience and cost efficiency. Chester A. Riley: Nah what would a rich man want with money? US. For more than 30 years he also has been the director of the Lynch & Sons funeral home in the small town of Milford, Mich. And so they'll know what to do. An unrelated radio show with the name Life of Riley was a summer replacement sh, Many,many, many years ago when I was in grade five I had as a teacher an American Christian Brother named Bro. We saw people start organizing these commemorative events to which everyone was invited but the dead guy. STANDS4 LLC, 2023. Where is the meaning? I do not care but that they do it honorably. I admire entrepreneurs and performers as much as the next guy, but it was surely a miserable way to make a living. One option is organic fertilizer made from chicken manure, which can be found at Menard's for a reasonable price of $10.99 per 25-pound bag. Today he is just living the life of RileyThis is the story of Chester A. Rileywho is just livingin Los Angeles California." j.b., memphis. One of my favorite old time radio characters (other than Jack Benny) was Digger O'Dell "The Friendly Undertaker". For more and more people it's a trip to the crematory and some variation on the wake where people pay different types of witness. And for those who are unchurched or unfamiliar in any tradition that gives them sort of the framework for this, a funeral home is still a safe place to talk about matters mortuary and matters of mortality. Chester A. Riley: Do you need any help with the dishes? These included Molly's drunken Uncle Dennis and Myrt, the town's telephone operator with whom Fibber shared many a Though other friends may fail you, I shall be the last to let you down." 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