Having said that, I believe it would be very difficult for The Benny Hill Show to thrive today, as many of the gags tend to be made at the expense of women and often walk the line between sexism and outright misogyny. If anything, the success of Quention Tarantino’s Django Unchained proves that modern audiences are more than willing to accept a certain amount of politically incorrect material, but like Blazing Saddles it must be made pretty clear that the film is siding with the oppressed and not the oppressor. Often, when people speak about Blazing Saddles, they’ll say something along the lines of “That movie could never be today.” Which isn’t quite right. Of course, that’s not the only reason Hill has been left behind in the dustbin of history. The show consisted of a variety of sketches in which Hill gropes a girl, and then gets slapped and then they run around to the tune of “Yakety Sax”, which if you are familiar with Benny Hill at all is a song that is already rolling around in your head. The show was produced by Thames Television and was distributed to a worldwide audience of 93 different countries. Make no mistake Benny Hill was a huge comedic presence for twenty years (1969-1989) during the run of his titular The Benny Hill Show. Hill, however, strikes modern viewers as broad and cartoonish, avoiding subtly altogether. While both share an enthusiasm for absurdity, Monty Python’s sketches often featured a healthy dose of cerebral satire buried within the anarchic foolishness. However, history rewards the victors and while Monty Python looms large over sketch comedy even today, Benny Hill has been reduced to a curious footnote in comedy history. The Benny Hill Show towered over even Monty Python in terms of worldwide appeal and popularity in its hey day, which is just astounding.
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