What Was The Last Episode of ‘The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour’? The Answer Could Be Different Than You Think!
If you’re wondering what happened on the last episode of The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour‘s original run, the answer is probably shorter than you think: Nothing. Because there wasn’t one.
Viewers who tuned into CBS on April 13, 1969 to see the Smothers Brothers — older brother Dick and younger brother Tommy — unleash their signature brand of sibling-rivalry comedy, socially relevant humor that pushed the censors’ buttons hard, and a roster of fresh and legendary entertainers who were more than game to cater to the Brothers’ mission … got Hee Haw instead.
The evening spotlighted one of TV’s strangest struggles between a powerhouse network and its talent. Especially given that said talent earned the network two Emmys, a steady stream of press, a show that could take on the seemingly invincible Bonanza — and a lock on non-traditional viewers tuned into the struggles of the time.
Clean-cut … and progressive-minded
At first glance, the Smothers Brothers hardly seemed controversial: two pleasantly handsome, neatly groomed and suit-clad thirty-somethings who were, indeed, real brothers. The two first dabbled in folk music (a talent they brought with them to their other ventures), acted sporadically, and plied their comedy on other people’s variety shows.
So when, in 1967, CBS offered them a chance to try their luck against Bonanza, the brothers jumped … with one stipulation. “Everybody got killed against Bonanza,” Dick told David Letterman in 1982, “so we said we wanted to be socially relevant and they said, ‘OK, anything you want!’ Once we did the show, they started complaining about the type of material we were doing.”
In the same interview, Tommy said the pair knew they were in trouble from “about the third show into the first season.”
But the brothers didn’t flinch. Their humor was pointed, sidesplitting and unlike any other on television. And they got away with it — in part because of their “Straight-man Dick and naive Tommy” schtick, but also because there really was a smart and socially engaged audience longing to see their viewpoints on TV.
The Brothers’ guest list often catered to that audience. Rock acts like The Who (who famously, if unintentionally, blew up the set), Jefferson Airplane, The Doors, and Buffalo Springfield brought the sound and energy of the youth movement to primetime TV. Folk legends like Joan Baez and Pete Seeger — whose antiwar song “Waist Deep in the Big Muddy,” was censored and then edited right back in — made headlines. Comedy trailblazers like George Carlin, Gallagher, Steve Martin (then a young staff writer for the show), and Pat Paulsen, whose deadpan political commentary became a recurring gag, sharpened the show’s rebellious edge even further.
What got the show cancelled?
Dick Smothers supported Tommy’s need to keep pushing the envelope, hoping that the show’s ever-growing ratings would cement its worth to a nervous CBS. But he also attempted to keep his brother and the show’s other writers reined-in enough to keep the show on the air.
Ultimately, it was a Tommy Smothers’ favorite, Canadian comedian David Steinberg, who would set the final battle in motion. In a show that taped in October 1968, Steinberg — a former rabbinical student — launched into one of his popular “sermonettes,” which took popular religious lore and gave it a modern, comical and politically pointed spin.
This time, with Smothers’ blessing, Steinberg dressed as a rabbi and delivered a message reimagining Moses as a modern-day anti-war activist. This Moses wasn’t commanded by God, but rather by his conscience and a youthful flock refusing to fight in an unjust war. Facing Pharaoh — thinly veiled as the US President — Moses declared, “Take your army and go. I will not help you any longer.” Then Steinberg encouraged the audience, and especially young people at home, to keep up the fight.
The studio audience erupted in applause. CBS saw it as a direct attack on the Nixon administration and pulled the skit. The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour was all but finished. And, on April 4, 1969, the network made it official, firing The Smothers Brothers and ending the show.
Everett Collection
But the brothers — or, at the very least, Tommy — had one last episode to send the network censors’ way. The one that should have aired on April 13. Letting his brother off the hook by pretending to fire him in the opening monologue, Smothers and his fellow writers left nothing on the table.
What happened in the “lost” episode?
Laugh-In‘s Dan Rowan took over Dick Smothers’ spot. Guest stars included Teddy Neeley, a star of Broadway’s controversial Hair, as well as jazz singer Nancy Wilson, who performed solo but also joined up with Tommy to create comedic gold about racists and the censorship of interracial romance. And yes, David Steinberg was welcomed back, too, poking fun at the unserious nature of higher education and delivering another sermonette.
“We don’t want to offend anybody out there,” Tommy said in introducing the segment. “But if you get offended … that’s the way the cookie crumbles.” Then Steinberg launched into a retelling of the adventures of King Solomon and Jonah.
But the show’s most pointed — and utterly unvarnished — barbs were reserved for Rhode Island Sen. John Pastore, chairman of United States Senate Subcommittee on Communications. Pastore is best known for preserving and then bolstering PBS funding after hearing Fred Rogers recite the lyrics for “What Do You Do With the Mad That You Feel” from his beloved Mr. Rogers Neighborhood.
But Pastore also led the charge in insisting that all television programming be family-friendly, no matter what. And Smothers wasn’t about to let anybody forget it.
The episode also featured a sprawling musical number tackling “Rules and Regulations” — everything from union rules, smoking onstage, libraries, long hair on boys, and even marriage. Then he and Rowan “award” Pastore Laugh-In‘s Flying Fickle Finger of Fate, given to celebrities and politicians who earn the spotlight for dubious reasons.
The show closes with a solemn Tommy assuring the audience that difficult times create great men and saluting Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.: “Let us all hope that his dream will someday come true.”
Though it aired on Canada’s CTV, which wasn’t subject to American censorship, the episode wouldn’t hit American airwaves until 1993, when Tom and Dick Smothers hosted its debut on the E! Entertainment Network.
CBS aired a few more episodes that were already in the can through June 8, and then The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour was no more.
> Which Brother is Still Alive From ‘The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour?
The Fall-Out … and the Future
Pasha Rafat/TV Guide/courtesy Everett Collection
Tommy Smothers quickly filed suit against CCBS, saying the brothers’, their writers’ and producers’ First Amendment rights were violated and the brothers’ contract breached. Four years later, the Smothers brothers were awarded nearly $800,000 in damages.
Meantime, the brothers continued to appear on television and perform at comedy clubs across the country. And ultimately, they told David Letterman, they were able to see it as a blessing in disguise. Their unwillingness to back down from what they believed was right earned them respect throughout the industry. And it earned them a broad and grateful audience who finally saw themselves, their viewpoints and their heroes represented in primetime.
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