Thank You, You're Beautiful

"Hold on a second I just have to get a cigarette."

Thank You, You're Beautiful[1]

Series
Work In Progress
Original Broadcast Date
1987
Cast
Laura Esterman, Joe Frank
Format
Scripted Actors, Absurd Monologue, Sound Effects, 1 hour
Preceded by:	At The Border
Followed by:	To The Bar Life

Thank You, You're Beautiful is the name of a program Joe Frank produced as part of the series Work In Progress. It was originally broadcast in 1987.

Synopsis

An ex leaves a long answering machine message combining angry accusations with a desperate party invitation. Joe addresses cheering crowds. Discordant monologueagainst cello music: Joe's father is a famous physician who sues patients who die under his care. Joe hunts his father's killer. A church in honor of evolution. Honking at an apartment building. A hunchback in a hotel. Newspaper stories: anatomists being killed, recording the voices of the dead. Driving in the country. Forbidden math. Police raids disguised as paramedics. Meeting a ghost in a cemetery while dressed as a nun wearing an alarm clock. A rich man thought dead awakens, loses his memory and joins a religious sect. Joe is a king whose power is linked to the phases of the moon. Joe addresses a crowd: "I'm not a liar and I'm not a jerk." A roman army attacks the sea. A factory, owner who only discusses aesthetics. Scenes from the bible portrayed by actors dressed as concentration camp victims. Our reason for existence is to nurse parasites. "What the world needs now," sung in an exaggerated Indian accent. An actor survives dramatic events on the way to a play which he knows nothing about. A human being is a pile of secrets. Going to a concert and finding that your ticket is just an advertisement. A Dutchman who sees people's skeletons. All the things my right hand does for me. The earth was created all at once. Discovering the ruins of Los Angeles. Discovering the meaning of existence and forgetting it. Yelling at drivers with road noise in the background.

Music

• "Creatures" - Startled Insects (from Curse Of The Pheromones, 1987) | YouTube

• "What the World Needs Now" - Harvey Sachs (from Unknown, 1987)

Commentary

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