Behind the Scenes 
Object Lesson
Ruth Buzzi’s Garage
At the end of every show we’d pop out of these doors and scream out something ridiculous.
Photograph by Ryann Ford
Earl says: To any man who is embarrassed at seeing Ruth Buzzi in centerfold, I have two things to tell you: (1) It is not what you think it is; (2) It is very cute and funny. I just love Ruth Buzzi’s humor. (December 6th, 2010 at 5:42pm)
Golden Globe Award winner Ruth Buzzi is famous for her self-created character Gladys Ormphby, a hairnet-wearing, handbag-wielding spinster who put people in their place with a whack over the head on Rowan & Martin’s Laugh-In. The actress-comedian and her husband of 32 years, Kent Perkins, divide their time between three North Texas properties, including a ranch near Fort Worth, where a plump black cat named Ratso Rizzo holds court. “You should see him on a four-wheeler,” says the 74-year-old. Sharing space with Rizzo are 5 cows—Buzzi treats them to slices of white bread—40 chickens, 25 ducks, 2 swans, and 8 guinea fowl. Behind the cow pasture a 2,400-square-foot garage holds a silver 1958 Rolls-Royce, a 1969 Jaguar XK-E, an assortment of furniture, and hundreds of cataloged boxes of Hollywood memorabilia that will soon be moved to a new home in Erath County.
Items in Ruth Buzzi’s Garage
• That’s my suit from a celebrity challenge Jeep race. I was the first person to ever burn out brake lights.
• Laugh-In had a magazine. Hugh Hefner was great.
• That’s my Playboy centerfold.
• I did a two-hour special in Seoul, South Korea, with Rolf Harris. He used to appear on The Tonight Show.
• These are the clippers I use to cut Kinky Friedman’s hair. I am able to trim his hair because my father taught me how to trim bushes when I was a kid.
• The only reason all these awards are in my garage is because of the move.
• This is a cast picture with Tiny Tim and John Wayne.
• That was the Dean Martin roast in Vegas. I was beating up Muhammed Ali along with Howard Cosell and Freddie Prinze.
• These are my notes from my club act, probably around 1975 or '76.
Visit the ultimate Laugh-In fan site at rowanandmartinslaughin.com.
For dozens of Laugh-In and Dean Martin Celebrity Roast videos featuring Ruth Buzzi, search her name on youtube.com.
Rolf Harris is not only an entertainer but also a painter. To view his work, visit rolfharris.com.
Buy the Dean Martin Celebrity Roasts collection at deanmartinvideo.com.
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