Mr Praline 1389792 225463223 2008-07-13T20:45:52Z Iridescent 937705 Cleanup/[[WP:AWB/T|typo fixing]], typos fixed: of of → of using [[Project:AutoWikiBrowser|AWB]] '''Mr Eric Praline''' is a character from the television show [[Monty Python's Flying Circus]], played by actor [[John Cleese]]. ==Appearances== The Monty Python team consciously decided to avoid recurring characters. Along with [[Terry Jones]]'s nude organist, [[Michael Palin]]'s [["It's" man]] and [[Graham Chapman]]'s Colonel, Mr Praline was one of the few deemed popular and useful enough for multiple appearances.<ref>Johnson 1999, p. 51.</ref> Praline's initial appearance was in a first series episode during a [[Vox populi|vox pop]] segment, to announce that he would be appearing later in the show.<ref name="Johnson-90">Johnson 1999, p. 90</ref> This he did as a policeman, following up on the case of Whizzo's Chocolates, which produced such gems as Cockroach Cluster, Anthrax Ripple, and the titular [[Crunchy Frog]].<ref>{{cite book |title=The Complete Idiot's Guide to the World of Harry Potter |last=Stouffer |first=Tere |year=2007 |publisher=Alpha Books |isbn=1592575994 |pages=p. 122 |url=http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=jGmWkbDwbsEC&pg=PA122&dq=Praline+%2B%22monty+python%22&num=100&sig=ACfU3U2Dp8wRx1v7WEwXlnh9E5sS8QZhtQ |accessdate=2008-07-05}}</ref><ref name="Johnson-90"/> Praline's defining moment came in a later first series episode, when he attempted to return his recently purchased [[Dead Parrot|dead parrot]] to the pet shop from which he had bought it.<ref>{{cite book |title=Monty Python, Shakespeare and English Renaissance Drama |last=Larsen |first=Darl |coauthors=Williams, William Proctor |year=2003 |publisher=McFarland |isbn=0786415045 |pages=p. 23 |url=http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=3Z6yKtyT-cYC&pg=PA23&dq=Praline+%2B%22monty+python%22+%2B%22dead+parrot%22&num=100&sig=ACfU3U01CopWC30vYw2GeJn11E1_6BoYuQ |accessdate=2008-07-05}}</ref> This segment has been called the comedy team's single best-known sketch,<ref>Johnson 1999, p. 96.</ref> and it led to Praline's appearance in the team's first theatrical release, ''[[And Now for Something Completely Different]]'' (1971) which included the sketch.<ref>Johnson 1999, p.&nbsp;220.</ref> In the second series Praline had more pet trouble, this time trying to buy a [[Fish Licence|fish licence]] for his pet [[halibut]], Eric.<ref name="Slowik-182">{{cite book |chapter=Existentialism in Monty Python: Kafka, Camus Nietzsche, and Sartre|title=Monty Python and Philosophy: Nudge Nudge, Think Think! |last=Slowik |first=Edward |editor=Hardcastle, Gary L. and Reisch, George A. |year=2006 |publisher=Open Court Publishing |isbn=0812695933 |pages=p. 182 |url=http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=wPQelKFNA5MC&pg=RA1-PA182&dq=Praline+%2B%22monty+python%22+%2Bfish&num=100&sig=ACfU3U3-6wuBZI4UFRjIEYj0-pJtNHFMrA |accessdate=2008-07-05}}</ref> This final sketch led to Praline singing the "[[Eric The Half-A-Bee]]" song on the ''[[Monty Python's Previous Record]]'' [[album]].<ref name="Johnson-141">Johnson 1999, p. 141.</ref> However, it will forever be the "Dead Parrot" sketch with which Praline is associated. [[John Cleese]] eventually got so fed up with "doing the one with the parrot", that he vowed never again to perform the sketch; conversely, the Eric the Half-A-Bee segment is one of Cleese's personal favourites.<ref name="Johnson-141"/> It includes the revelation that Praline's first name is also Eric. In episode 18, Live from the Grill-o-mat, Praline appears with his flatmate Brooky as the host of a new chat show. However, the show in the sketch is cancelled and they later appear in the The Seven Brides For Seven Brothers Sketch.<ref>Johnson 1999, p.&nbsp;129.</ref> A ''[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]'' photo shoot during the filming of ''[[Monty Python's Life of Brian]]'' in [[Tunisia]] resulted in a post-TV-series appearance for Mr Praline. The comedy team was photographed in costume against [[mosque]]s and palm trees; Michael Palin noted in his diary: "Nostalgia time. John was dressed in his [[Cagoule_%28raincoat%29#The_roll-up-able_cagoule|Pacamac]] as Praline, complete with dead parrot."<ref>{{cite book |title=Diaries 1969-1979: The Python Years |last=Palin |first=Michael |authorlink=Michael Palin |year=2006 |location=New York |publisher=Thomas Dunne Books |isbn=0-297-84436-9|pages=p.&nbsp;487}}</ref> ==Character== Robert Ross' ''Monty Python Encyclopedia'' notes that Mr Praline has become a beloved figure within the Python canon.<ref name="Ross p.43">{{cite book |title=Monty Python Encyclopedia |last=Ross |first=Robert |year=1999 |location=New York |publisher=TV Books |isbn=1575000369 |pages=p. 43 }}</ref> He has been discussed in Python-related literature as well as works not specifically dealing with the comedy team. Ross describes Praline's character as "slightly creepy", with a "British air of oppressed madness".<ref name="Ross p.43"/> ''Literature Through Film: Realism, Magic, and the Art of Adaptation'' (2004) holds Praline up as an example of a "[[Sancho Panza|Sancho]]-like realist".<ref>{{cite book |title=Literature Through Film: Realism, Magic, and the Art of Adaptation |last=Stam |first=Robert |year=2004 |location=Malden, MA |publisher=Wiley-Blackwell |isbn=140510287X |pages=p. 58 }}</ref> The 2006 book ''The Best British Stand-Up and Comedy Routines'' describes the disgruntled Mr Praline as "all plastered down hair and plastic raincoat".<ref>{{cite book |title=The Best British Stand-Up and Comedy Routines |last=O'Brien |first=Mike (editor) |year=2006 |location=New York |publisher=Running Press |isbn=0786718587 |pages=p. 248 }}</ref> Edward Slowik writes that in the [[Fish Licence]] sketch, Praline provides an example of [[Jean-Paul Sartre]]'s [[Existentialism|existentialist]] concept of [[Bad faith (existentialism)|"bad faith"]]. "Bad faith", or a denial of individual freedom, can result when a person fails to accept that past choices and behavior determine one's character. By declaring "I am not a loony!" when his actions have shown he clearly is a loony, Praline exhibits Sartean "bad faith".<ref name="Slowik-182"/> ==References== {{reflist}} ==Bibliography== * {{cite book |title=The First 28<s>0</s> Years of Monty Python |last=Johnson |first=Kim "Howard" |year=1999 |location=New York |publisher=Thomas Dunne Books |isbn=0312169337}} {{Monty Python}} {{DEFAULTSORT:Praline, Mr.}} [[Category:Fictional English people]] [[Category:Fictional police officers]] [[Category:Monty Python]]