...and don't call me Shirley.
I had one of the single greatest experiences of my 10-year career as a
journalist last week at Comic-Con 2006 in San Diego. While wandering around the
autograph pavillion at the convention center, I stumbled upon Al White and
Norman Gibbs, also known as "the Jive Dudes" from the classic comedy "Airplane!"
For those that aren't familiar, White and Gibbs played small but memorable parts
in "Airplane." Gibbs played the role of "First Jive Dude," and White was "Second
Jive Dude" -- the running joke is that Gibbs and White speak incoherent but
humorous "jive" that no one can understand. They really only appeared in two
scenes in the film, but as far as many people are concerned, those two scenes
are the best parts of the comedic masterpiece.
In their first scene, Gibbs and White talk to one another while
hilarious subtitles translate their jive talk. In their
href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xbYyqRt5Zn8&search=Airplane%21">second
scene, White is suffering from stomach pains as a result of bad airline food.
The duo ask a stewardess for help, but she has no idea what they're saying, so
an elderly woman, played by Barbara Billingsley (the mother on TV's "Leave it to
Beaver"), that speaks jive lends a hand and the three end up in a contentious
argument.
src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7876/3296/320/JiveDudes.jpg" border="0"
/>
I spoke with Gibbs and White during the show, who were amazed at how popular
they are after more than 25 years. Both men were extremely friendly and gracious
about the attention they were receiving at their first Comic-Con event. Of all
the celebrity sightings at the big event, my meeting with Gibbs and White was
the best.
However, I did miss one of my two movie heroes, the immortal Bruce Campbell (see
the very first post of this blog), because I had to fly back home to the wife.
If you think that was an easy decision -- my wife or Bruce Campbell -- then you
don't know me at all...
