Legendary comedian, Soupy Sales, passed away today. He was 83.
While he may not be as well-known as some of colleagues from the Golden Era of Television (like Ernie Kovacs or Red Skelton) he created and hosted the important childrens show, "Lunchtime with Soupy." 
The show ran for only three years but became a TV legend for two improvised moments:
- Once, Soupy asked the kids watching his show to "go into Mommy's purse and mail me all the green pieces of paper." He ended up receiving around $300.
- A regular feature on the show was that there would be a knock on the door and Soupy would answer it and have a conversation with an (to the audience) unseen character. Once, and this was live on TV, the crew added a knock to the show without Soupy's knowledge. When he opened the door there was stripper who proceeded to, well, uh, strip! The video is below (first what the audience saw, and then the hidden backstage, "private"camera that captured the surprise.).
Soupy Sales. Rest in Peace.
(and on a sidenote, can anyone tell me what that "stripper music" is titled? Put in the comments below. Thanks!)
Filed under: TV shows
Tags: childrens show, death, Soupy Sales, stripper
