Monty Python, perhaps the most influential sketch comedy group of all time, consisted of Graham Chapman, John Cleese, Terry Gilliam, Eric Idle, and Terry Jones (unofficially some, including myself, also list Carol Cleveland and/or Neil Innes as contributing members). While most of them went on to larger success in comedy and filmmaking, it is their work within the group with which they are most largely associated.
Scholars have long debated questions regarding the Pythons: Who was the driving force behind the group? Who the funniest? The most intelligent? The silliest? Who, if any of them, were responsible for the assassination of JFK? (we at MFR, or probably just myself, have been poring over the recently released documents searching for any connection and so far the results have been…well, there haven’t been any results. So far.) Debates raged among historians. What started out as a gentlemanly discourse soon devolved into childish name-calling, personal feuds, and eventually a series of bloody wars that nearly wiped out a generation of academics from both Oxford and Cambridge, as well several hundred chartered accountants.
Finally, an armistice was declared and, with a tone reminiscent of certain religious matters, it was declared that the answers to these questions were beyond the realm of mankind’s understanding and should be pursued no further. Anyone found attempting to answer these holy questions would be burned at the stake or tarred and feathered, as time permitted. Thus, the matter of debating Pythons was closed for years.
Until now. Upon secretly researching the troupe in a cave on an unmarked island off Sumatra, one handsome scholar found a loophole. A matter about which there could be no serious debate and one by which one Python could be singled out to stand above the rest: height. Yes at 6’5″, one Python: John Cleese, stands head and shoulders (assuming the head and shoulders in question measure approximately 3 inches) above his colleagues. So, in honor of the 78th birthday of Mr. Cleese, we at Monkeys Fighting Robots proudly present to you The Top 7 or 8 John Cleese Sketches From Monty Python.
7. Self Defence Against Fresh Fruit
[embedyt] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U90dnUbZMmM[/embedyt]
If Cleese shines in “Cheese Shop” due to his restraint, he exemplifies the other end of the spectrum here, gleefully shouting at his beleagured students like a demented drill sergeant. Not only is this sketch uproarious, but it might save your life if you ever find yourself walking home from the wrong produce stand late at night.
