It was “old home week” at a recent “Uncle Floyd” performance in Union, as it set the stage for a reunion between comic Floyd Vivino and Livingston residents Karen and Jeff Friedman.
The post-performance visit was the first time in some 20 years that Jeff Friedman had seen Vivino. It was even longer for Karen Friedman: she had not seen Vivino in 37 years.
Jeff Friedman, a retired television director and producer, got his start in 1977 on the Uncle Floyd Show, Vivino’s skit comedy program, which back then was broadcast on UHF channel 68. “I ran camera for the Uncle Floyd Show and a cadre of other productions,” Jeff Friedman recalls. Later he became the show’s director and production manager.
Friedman left the UHF station in 1981 to become Newark station manager for the New Jersey PBS station, NJN. Two years later, in 1983, he brought Floyd “and the gang” over to public television, and served as director and executive producer of the comedy series.
“We premiered on Halloween night,” Friedman recounts. “Our musical guest on the first episode was singer Phoebe Snow. Notable guests over the years included the Ramones, Cyndi Lauper, Cousin Brucie, Robert Klein, Linda Blair, Professor Irwin Corey, Howard Stern, David Johannson, and Paul Simon, to name just a few.”
Career as Cast Member
Comic performer Karen Friedman made guest appearances on Uncle Floyd in the late 1970s on channel 68, and joined the cast for the 680 NJN shows produced through 1986. Her character was known as “Weenie,” which is also her real-life nickname, coined by her husband during their dating days. She was known for her myriad characters, improvisational skills, and vintage costumes.
“We had a truly nice reunion” when they surprised Vivino at the live comedy show in Union, says Jeff Friedman.
He continued, “I last saw Floyd some 20 years ago when I appeared on his Wiseguy Show on Sirius Satellite Radio. Weenie’s last show with him was in 1986. Such wonderful memories!”
During the impromptu reunion, the trio reminisced about the Uncle Floyd television shows and their live studio audiences; Vivino’s live stage shows at the Bottom Line in New York City and other venues in New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania; and Weenie’s vintage “costume department” in the television studio’s basement.
“We plan to get together soon to continue our long overdue visit,” says Jeff Friedman.
Photos: Floyd Vivino, a.k.a. Uncle Floyd, is shown here with Karen and Jeff Friedman after a recent Uncle Floyd live performance. The Friedmans once worked on the Uncle Floyd Show – cast member Karen Friedman played “Weenie,” while Jeff Friedman was the show’s director and production manager.
A 1985 press clipping from the NJN Guide profiled Friedman and Vivino and their work on an upcoming NJN Network “Uncle Floyd” music special. The two produced this special together. Vivino was producer of the regular Uncle Floyd Show series, while Friedman was its director and executive producer.
