Wednesday, October 4, 2023

OTR Halloween 2023 Day 4: "Prest-o Change-o, I'm Sure"

"Oh, uh, excuse me. Uh, you really must excuse me. It's an old joke I haven't thought of in years. A joke that Johnny Martins and I used to kill ourselves over- and, to me, it's still funny. Ah, probably you won't crack a smile even but I must tell ya, I really must. You say to me, 'Sarsfield, can you make an elephant disappear?' And I say, 'Sure. Where's the elephant?' Uh, that's all. Really. Oh, I told you it wouldn't sound funny to you but, to me, it brings back memories. I wonder where poor Johnny Martins is. All those years, ah, Johnny and I used to have fits just fits laughin' at our bum joke. Er, that is, we did till I made an elephant disappear."

I think I break a little from the majority of Quiet, Please fans where the humourous episodes are concerned - I rather like them! "Prest-o Change-o, I'm Sure" is played primarily for laughs as the protagonist obtains great magical power but gets a bit muddled as to how to apply it, frequently resulting in a muffed spell and a request for someone to "disappear." But where do people go after he's made them disappear?

"Prest-o Change-o, I'm Sure" was originally broadcast August 16, 1948. You can listen to the episode at Quiet, Please.org.

Image created using Firefly.

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