Tom Smothers, Comic Half of the Smothers Brothers, Dies at 86 – The New York Times

Tom Smothers, the older half of the comic folk duo the Smothers Brothers, whose skits and songs on The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour in the late 1960s brought political satire and a spirit of youthful irreverence to network television, paving the way for shows like Saturday Night Live and The Daily Show, died on Tuesday at his home in Santa Rosa, Calif., a city in Sonoma County. He was 86.

He died following a recent battle with cancer, a spokesman for the National Comedy Center announced on behalf of the family.

The Smothers Brothers made their way to network television as a folk act with a difference. With Tom playing guitar and Dick playing stand-up bass, they spent as much time bickering as singing.

With an innocent expression and a stammering delivery, Tom would try to introduce their songs with a story, only to be picked at by his skeptical brother. As frustration mounted, he would turn, seething, and often deliver a trademark non sequitur: Mom always liked you best.

Hoping to reach a younger audience, CBS gave the brothers creative control over The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour, a one-hour variety show that made its debut in February 1967. For the next three seasons it courted controversy as it addressed American policy in Vietnam, religious fundamentalism, racial strife and recreational drug use.

via www.nytimes.com

We spent many a happy hour chuckling to the Smothers Brothers as we thrilled to their politically risky humor. Good times.