Back when cable was in its infancy, one of the funniest things on the planet was watching Super Dave and his horrific stunts gone wrong. Like some doomed Evil Knievel wannabe, Super Dave would introduce the stunt he was about to perform and then get hilariously destroyed.
If your memories of comedic actor Bob Einstein go that far back, or just to his LOL performance as Marty Funkhauser on “Curb Your Enthusiasm”, you’ll likely enjoy HBO’s new documentary THE SUPER BOB EINSTEIN MOVIE.
I loved reliving some of these bits I hadn’t seen in years.
A cavalcade of comedians are sprinkled throughout the doc, including David Letterman, Larry David, Sarah Silverman, Jerry Seinfeld and many more.
Watching them react to Super Dave’s hapless antics makes for a fun 75 minutes.
I had no idea that Bob was the great Albert Brooks brother! The sequences in which Albert and his daughter relate stories of their family are some of the most enjoyable moments of the film for me. I loved the behind-the-scenes moments and there are plenty of them.
When Einstein would appear on the old NBC Late Late Letterman show, he would wear his full red, white and blue jumpsuit and maintain a perfectly serious demeanor, no matter how hard Letterman cracked up.
It’s classic 80’s television that’s rarely been equaled in physical comedy and deadpan delivery.
“Super Dave Osborne” always had his announcer Mike Walden with him for every massive stunt. No matter how many low bridges, steamrollers or super trucks ran over, smashed and dismembered Super Dave, the eager Mike Walden would always run immediately over post-stunt with the question, “How are you feeling Super Dave?”.
Einstein’s straight-faced, profane responses never failed to make me laugh out loud.
His granddaughter relates in heartfelt clips that Einstein never failed to tell the most profane, inappropriate joke at family gatherings. It somehow fit him perfectly.
Fans of 60’s, 70’s and 80’s television will enjoy the glimpses of all the shows Einstein worked on. The clips are plentiful and nostalgic.
My only complaint is that the doc feels too short. Surely there were enough funny clips to fill 90 minutes!
Get on your patriotic jumpsuit, your banged up helmet and false sense of bravado and join Einstein for an enjoyable ride that gets a solid B. Go Super Dave!
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