The "Pippin" Battle-Axes.

The Broadway musical "Pippin" has had several major productions.
It is primarily a show geared for young people.
But, pretty much for demographics sake, the creative team added one old crone, a character named Berthe, to fill out the cast.
You might call her a battle-axe.
She has the best song in the show.
An upbeat sing-along called "Oh, it's time to start livin'".
It regularly brings down the house.
The first house-bringer-downer was in the original production, Irene Ryan, better known as the noted battle-axe "Granny" on
"The Beverly Hillbillies".
I saw a TV production, taped from a stage production, in which Martha Raye played Berthe.
Although Martha Raye was a great comedienne and singer, she had certainly earned her battle-axe credentials.
There was this movie that regularly aired on Million Dollar Movie in New York City called "Navy Blues", made in 1941.
In it, Jack Oakie played the hen-pecked boyfriend of Martha Raye. She was hilarious, with her enormous mouth very much in place.
Her performance probably did much to delay our entry into World War 2.
This, was ostensibly what we were fighting for.
Around the same time, she co-starred opposite Bob Hope in several movies, in which she lusted after him, while he was out chasing somebody like Dorothy Lamour.
No "Thanks For The Memory" there.
As Berthe, she sang her number probably better than anyone else ever did.
In a much more recent production, Andrea Martin played Berthe.
Andrea Martin was probably best know for her long stint as a regular on SCTV, where she played many hilarious characters, and actually invented the first satire of a battle-axe, with the creation of Edith Prickley, the eternally leopard-skin outfitted
shrew who was the station manager.
As she got older, she grew into almost exclusive Broadway-type battle-axe roles.
We have not heard the last of Andrea Martin.
More will be heard about Ms. Martin as we continue.
'Til next time.....

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My books ,"Show Runner" and it's sequel, "Show Runner Two", can be found at the Amazon Kindle Store.
Along with the newer ones, "The Man Is Dead", and "Report Cards".
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