TV Week January 01 1988

HEADLINE: Top comics band together to help the homeless raise a smile

Article originally printed in Australia's TV Week January 01 1988.

CREDIT: Thanks to Marilyn Burge for providing us with this article.

TV Week (Australia) 9 January 1988

IT had to be one of the biggest gatherings of comedy talent ever and, in this case, the laughs were all for a very serious reason.

Comic Relief has now become an annual event in the United States to raise money for the growing number of homeless urban Americans.

Shown by the giant Home Box Office cable network, it becomes something of a telethon to which generous viewers are invited pledge their donations by telephoning a toll free number.

And this year it also was the occasion of a reunion for two of Britain's most successful and best-loved comedians, Peter Cook and Dudley Moore. While Dud has now made it in a big way in the U.S., his former partner still makes his home and his living England.

Robin Williams was there, clutching his rather shy-looking son Zachary.

Beautiful Shelley Long turned up to tell a few gags and drop a for plug or two for her new movie, Hello Again, which co-stars LA Law heart-throb Corbin Bersen.

Michael J. Fox gave it all the i thumbs up and Marlee Matlin used her fingers to tell jokes in sign language.

Then there were those r Golden Girls - Bea Arthur, Rue McClanahan and Estelle Getty - doing some hilarious stand-up routines and a string of self-contained character pieces.

Among the other stars who appeared were Alan Thicke, Justine Bateman, Bill Crystal, Whoopi Goldberg, Don Knotts and even the legendary Dick Gregory.

© "TV Week" 9 January 1988

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