In Memoriam: Henry Gibson, 1935-2009

[thatcrazycajun]

Hard on the heels of the sad news about the passing of Mary Travers, now comes word that another '60s icon, Henry Gibson of Laugh-In and Boston Legal fame has now died as well, of cancer...and only four days before what would have been his 74th birthday (21 September). The full story can be found here. From his whimsical poetry recitals on the old Rowan & Martin yukfest to his befuddled Judge Clark Brown facing down the likes of Alan Shore on BL, Henry was always watchable, usually funny and occasionally poignant.

Okay, Universe, can you please stop killing off pieces of my childhood for now? Kthxbye.

Comments

[lemmozine.livejournal.com]

Oh no! I have his LP and his book, A Flower Child's Garden of Verses. I remember the one about the rhino.

Always wondered if the similarity of his name to a certain Swedish playwright was 100% coincidental. Now I'll never have a chance to ask him. (Ibsen - Henrik Ibsen.)

Also sad to hear about Mary. We had their first LP when it came out and I still remember many of the songs - Lemon Tree, and of course their renditions of Where Have All the Flowers Gone and If I Had a Hammer.

You know the story of how the group was formed, right? One NYC folkie who was invited to join, and turned it down, was Dave Van Ronk. Imagine how different things might have been if he'd said yes.

[faxpaladin.livejournal.com]

According to Wikipedia, he chose his stage name specifically as a pun on Henrik, to the point of sometimes introducing himself as Henryg Ibson...

[lemmozine.livejournal.com]

Thanks.

I was just looking for my Henry Gibson book. It's around here someplace. Anyhow, my favorite part of the rhino poem.

...the rhino is a wino.

O Rhino! O Rhino!
Don't take much to turn you on.
O Rhino. O Rhino!
Just some Cabernet Sauvignon.

And who can forget the wisdom of:

The way to skin a polecat . . .
Is, just take your time.

Since I don't have the book in hand, these are from memory and subject to inaccuracy.

[ericavdg.livejournal.com]

According to the obit in the Washington Post, he had two albums, the well-known "The Alligator" an all-time favorite of mine) and one called "The Grass Menagerie." I've done a little searching today and couldn't find it; YMMV because I'm very busy with work and my search was perfunctory. If anyone finds a vinyl copy, I want it, or will pay part of the price (it's likely to be expensive because it seems to be rare) if I can get an MP3 of it.

Matt, I think our childhoods are going to get killed off whether we will it or no. But it's still sad to see the pieces go. May they rest in peace.

[lemmozine.livejournal.com]

I just found The Grass Menagerie on ebay in near-mint and bought it for $20 + $4 shipping. There's another one up there for $19.99 that doesn't seem to be in quite as good shape. It has The Rhino on it. I never knew this existed - thanks for pointing it out. Email me privately at blindlemmingchiffon@earthlink.net re the mp3 if you're interested.

[kayshapero]

Drats. There goes another one. Guess that'll be some party by the time I get up there. :)

A flower, a shy smile, and whimsical poetry with a sly sense of humor - there are worse things to be remembered for.