Thumb sucking sketch is taken from The Red Skelton Hour episode, The Spy with the Leaky Mouth. It deals with a man who wants to break his thumb sucking habit, so he goes to see a hypnotist …
Requires: two speaking clowns, probably a Whiteface and an Auguste, but go with what works for you.
Props:
- for the thumb-sucking patient, a blue blanket (or “binky” as we used to call them)
- For the hypnotist, a swami’s turban (or however else you want to dress the character, to make it plain that he’s a hypnotist. Think “Svengarlic” from the Three Stooges short film Flagpole Jitters as one possibility.
- Depending on how you choose to run with it, other possible props could include an oversized thumb, an additional binky, oversized baby bottle, etc.
Thumb sucking sketch
In the original sketch, Red Skelton plays a man who wants to be cured of his thumb-sucking habit. So, he goes to hypnotist Godfrey Cambridge. After some clowning around, Godfrey hypnotizes Red into thinking that he’s … Jackie Gleason! After a short impression of “the great one”, Godfrey proclaims him cured! Only for him to start sucking his thumb again! Apparently, Jackie Gleason sucks his thumb too!
Expanding on the sketch
First, if we’re doing this for modern audiences, a great many won’t know who Jackie Gleason is, sad as that is. Of course, if you’re performing for an older audience, it’s fine. Otherwise, we need to find another character for the “hypnotized” clown to imitate. You can always use “current” celebrities (assuming you can do a funny impersonation of them). But there are also historical characters! For example, Abraham Lincoln. The clown could reach behind the desk and put on a stove pipe hat, fake beard, etc. And then start giving the Gettysburg Address! Only to interrupt it with thumb sucking. Or George Washington, or any other easily recognized historical character.
In addition to swapping out the characters that the patient clown is hypnotized to impersonate, there’s plenty of other opportunity for clown business here. For example:
- The patient clown can pull out his toddler blanket (“binky”) when he starts sucking his thumb.
- Possibly pulling out an oversized baby bottle, pacifier, etc. The hypnotist clown could then comment something to the effect: “Going to be one of those cases!”
- Or, the hypnotist could pull have the patient put his thumb on the table, pull out a clownishly large foam hammer — and hits it! The patient clown then slips on an oversized thumb, and reacts, probably ending the skit with a chase off stage.
- Or, once the patient’s cured and walks off stage, the hypnotist can address the audience: “Thank heavens he’s gone!” – pulls out his binky, and starts sucking his thumb!
- If you want to do a clown ministry twist on this, you could instead have the hypnotist invite him to know Jesus — to make him a new person, and not just pretend.
Run with it!