Jerry Colonna

On KEN P.D. SNYDECAST #197: Freaky Snyday Ken mention's Jerry Colonna and his unique voice.

Jerry was an Italian-American singer, actor and comic. He was best known for playing Bob Hope's sidekick in multiple projects, however modern audiences will probably best remember his voice from his performance as the March Hare  in the Disney animated film Alice in Wonderland.

Here he is working alongside Bob Hope:


Here's Jerry (sans Hope) in the film Kentucky Jubilee:


And finally, here is a bit of his musical prowess, the song "Sweet Adeline":

Help Dana find a website where he bought a weird Mickey Mouse Voltron thing....

 Help this man!

He says he already ordered it from a "japanesy website" but lost the link. He believes he first saw the link on Twitter.

I think it may be THIS because that was posted on Twitter before. Please look and try and help him!

D. C. Ken

If you aren't following Ken on Twitter, you missed these great photos from his trip to Washington D. C.:

Ken's #CandyHeartRejects

Bert Lahr in Waiting For Godot

On KEN P.D. SNYDECAST #197: Freaky Snyday Dana mentions the mp3 of this performance. It's on iTunes and on Amazon.

John Milius & Lebowski

On KEN P.D. SNYDECAST #197: Freaky Snyday Ken talks about the documentary "Milius" he worked on with Zak Knutson and Joey Figueroa.

They also mention Milius being the influence for the character of Walter in The Big Lebowski.

Take a look:

KEN P.D. SNYDECAST #197: Freaky Snyday

Hey! KEN P.D. SNYDECAST #197: Freaky Snyday is out!

Talk of Bob's Burgers, Bob Odenkirk's garbage and John Milius.

Recorded in Dana Snyder's bathroom!

Go! Listen! KEN P.D. SNYDECAST #197: Freaky Snyday!

Salisbury Steak

On KEN P.D. SNYDECAST #196: Old Hats New Trick Ken and Dana talk about Salisbury Steak. Ken says he always wants it to taste like the TV dinner version of Salisbury Steak:

From wiki:
Salisbury steak is a dish made from a blend of minced beef and other ingredients, which is shaped to resemble a steak, and is usually served with gravy or brown sauce. Hamburger steak is a similar product, but differs in ingredients. Salisbury steak was invented by an American physician, Dr. J. H. Salisbury (1823–1905), an early proponent of a low-carbohydrate diet for weight loss; the term "Salisbury steak" has been in use in the United States since 1897. The dish is popular in the United States, where it is traditionally served with gravy and mashed potatoes or noodles.

Also from wiki:
Ballet is a type of performance dance that originated in the Italian Renaissance courts of the 15th century and later developed into a concert dance form in France and Russia. It has since become a widespread, highly technical form of dance with its own vocabulary. It has been globally influential and has defined the foundational techniques used in many other dance genres. Ballet may also refer to a ballet dance work, which consists of the choreography and music for a ballet production. A well-known example of this is The Nutcracker, a two-act ballet that was originally choreographed by Marius Petipa and Lev Ivanov with a music score by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky.

I know, totally unrelated. But I thought we could use some culture.


Dana mentions finding a good Salisbury Steak recipe from Rachael Ray.

It could be this one:


Rachael Ray's Salisbury Steak
INGREDIENTS

3 large starchy potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks
2 parsnips, peeled and cut into chunks
1/2 cup milk or cream
1/4 cup flat leaf parsley, finely chopped
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Ground nutmeg
1 1/2 pounds ground sirloin
5 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce, divided
1 egg
1/2 cup Saltine cracker crumbs
3 tablespoons grated onion and juice, grated directly over meat
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil (EVOO)
2 tablespoons butter
2 medium onions, chopped
1 bay leaf
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 1/2 teaspoons ground or rubbed sage (half a palmful)
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups beef stock
4 cups watercress, loosely packed
Serves 4
PREPARATION

Pre-heat the oven to 425°F.

Put the potatoes and parsnips in a large pot, cover with water and bring to a boil over medium heat. Salt the water and cook until tender, 12-15 minutes. Drain the potatoes and parsnips and return them to the hot pot. Add the milk or cream and mash. Stir in the parsley and season with salt, pepper and nutmeg, to taste.

Meanwhile, put the meat in a bowl and add 3 tablespoons of Worcestershire sauce, the egg, cracker crumbs, grated onion, salt and pepper, to taste. Cover a baking sheet with parchment paper. Mix the meat to combine and form into four oval loaves, no more than 1 1/2 inches thick, and arrange them on a baking sheet. Drizzle with about 1 tablespoon EVOO and bake for 20 minutes.

While the meat is in oven, in a medium size skillet over medium heat, add the butter and melt, then add the onions and bay leaf and season with salt and pepper, to taste. Cook for 15 minutes, then add the garlic and sage and cook for another 3 minutes. Sprinkle in the flour and stir for 1 minute, then whisk in the stock and the remaining 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce and season liberally with black pepper, to taste. Cook for 1 minute to thicken the sauce.

Serve the steaks, on individual plates, whole or sliced with gravy on top, a mound of mashed potatoes and parsnips and 1 cup of watercress leaves alongside.

Hungarian Paprika

Available at your local grocer.

Dana Snyder as Dirt Wizard

Listener Jon Eadler tweeted a picture of Dana's character from last night's Adventure Time.



Check local listings for a replay! Looks crazy!

Mabel King

On KEN P.D. SNYDECAST #196: Old Hats New Trick Dana and Ken talk about Mabel King and her Banana Fritter's recipe:

Mabel was best known for her role in the show "What's Happening!!" where she played Roger and Dee's Mama. I think he name on the show was Mama.

She also played the memorable role of Steve Martin's mother in The Jerk:

She was an accomplished stage actress, playing Evillene in the Broadway show (and film adaptation of) The Wiz.

Her recipe for Macaroni Pie appeared in the Cooking in Oz cookbook:

After leaving "What's Happening!!" over a pay dispute she dabbled in politics. A conservative Republican, Mabel campaigned for President Reagan's reelection in 1984.

Here she is, in a "Minisode" of "What's Happening!!":

Buddy Hackett's Chinese-y Thing

On KEN P.D. SNYDECAST #196: Old Hats New Tricks we learned how to cook "Lucille Ball's Chinese-y Thing".

It was essentially some beef stir fry.

We also heard about Buddy Hackett's woefully politically incorrect Chinese Waiter character.

Buddy Hackett had a long career playing many, many notable characters. You may have seen him voice Scuttle in The Little Mermaid or his cameo in Scrooged.

Buddy was most successful doing stand up and his numerous appearances on the Tonight Show with Johnny Carson. It has been claimed that he appeared on there more than anyone else.

Here is one of Buddy's routines as "The Chinese Waiter". Obviously, this kind of racial comedy wouldn't fly today and often it's hard to even find outdated racial humor funny in modern times.

Still, in it's time, this was a very popular album. Take a listen:


The recipe Ken read from the Dead Celebrity Cookbook was originally published in the Celebrity Cookbook column, St. Petersburg, FL - Evening Independent newspaper, May 30, 1968.


Buddy Hackett's Chinese Chili

1 tbsp safflower (cooking) oil
3 lbs lean ground beef
1 large yellow onion, peeled and chopped
1 large green (Bell) pepper, diced
1/2 clove garlic, pressed
2 cubes vegetable broth (bouillon)
1/4 cup boiling water
2 (6 oz) cans tomato paste
3 1/2 cups water (about)
1 cup soy sauce
1 1/2 tsp oregano
2 tsp chili powder
1 tsp (scant) crushed red peppers
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp white pepper
1 1/2 cups sliced (canned) water chestnuts
Large handful Asian dried mushrooms, optional
3 (16 oz) cans Chinese bean sprouts, drained
Serve over Steamed rice, noodles or corn

Heat safflower oil in large skillet. Add ground beef, onion,
green (Bell) pepper and garlic. Cook over medium head stirring
until meat turns brown and is crumbly in appearance. Pour off excess fat.

Place meat mixture in large, deep stock pot.
Dissolve vegetable cubes in boiling 1/4 cup of water, add to the pot with
tomato paste, 3 1/2 cups water, soy sauce, oregano, chili powder, red pepper,
salt, white pepper and water chestnuts.

Cook over low fire about 45 minutes; stir often to prevent burning.

Meanwhile, soak dried mushrooms in lukewarm water about 30 minutes.
Drain off water, squeeze out excess fluid, slice mushrooms thinly,
add to chili. Gradually add bean sprouts (which have been carefully
rinsed in cold water to remove canned taste). Heat through.

Serve at once over steaming cooked white rice, dry noodles or corn.

Serve with tall glasses of cold jasmine tea.

Serves 8 generously.

KEN P.D. SNYDECAST #196: Old Hats New Tricks

Hey! KEN P.D. SNYDECAST #196: Old Hats New Tricks has landed!

Talk of Spider-man, NYC and food abound!

Go check it out! KEN P.D. SNYDECAST #196: Old Hats New Tricks!

The Comedy Central Roast of William Shatner

On KEN P.D. SNYDECAST #195: Architectural Digestive, Dana & Ken mention the Comedy Central Roast of William Shatner.

On the roast, Shatner rides in on a horse. Dana mentioned the clips from the show that were played in the Shatner's World live show.

Here is the full roast:

New A Bit of a Chat episodes!

Ken has been doing some AMAZING Bit of a Chats lately. Truly sensational!


A Bit of a Chat with Ken Plume & Weird Al Yankovic
"In this episode, I have a chat with singer/songwriter/icon Weird Al Yankovic, about inspiration, longevity, Orchestr-Al, Guam, jamming, Knott’s preservation, and Late Shift Johnny."

A Bit of a Chat with Ken Plume & Joe Flaherty
"In this episode, I have a chat with comedy icon Joe Flaherty about SCTV, improv, running down McFly, Guy’s Angels, and big blue birds."

A Bit of a Chat with Ken Plume & Tim Minchin 2
"In this episode, I have another chat with comedian/actor/musician Tim Minchin, about Matilda, Judas, smarting, Icarus, pride, and growing up."

A Bit of a Chat with Ken Plume & John Lloyd 2
"In this episode, I have another chat with the legendary producer John Lloyd, about QI, awards, curricula, ego, anger, and tri-kangahoohas."



ALSO! Check out Ken's guest appearance on "Little Atoms":

Little Atoms 264 – Podcaster – A Bit of a Chat With Ken Plume
This is the first of a new monthly strand of Little Atoms interviews in which Neil Denny talks to the hosts of some of his favorite podcasts.
Ken Plume is the proprietor of A Site Called Fred, and the host of numerous podcasts. An expert, some would say an obsessive, on British and American comedy, Ken is probably best known for his A Bit of a Chat, a long, rambling interview show in which he has spoken to a long list of luminaries including Eric Idle, Mel Brooks, Ricky Gervais, John Hodgman and Ernest Borgnine, sometimes for up to three hours!