In ‘The Shoe Store’ sketch from ‘The Carol Burnett Show,’ Don Rickles yells at a woman to get out of his store. He tells her, ‘You don’t need a shoe store. You need a blacksmith!’ Harvey Korman, playing the store owner, threatens Don with firing. Rickles promises to be polite, and Korman gives him one more chance.
An obnoxious woman enters, played by Nanette Fabray, and begins giving Don a hard time. She wants the bunny shoes that are on sale. Don does a lot to sell the product, but she turns him down. She asks for evening shoes, and she launches into an incredibly long story that makes Don go crazy.
She says, ‘You don’t have to measure me. I’m a five triple-A.’ Don climbs a ladder to find the perfect pair. She comments about the glare from Don’s balding head. She likes the shoes he brought but decides to wear a burgundy dress instead.
She says, ‘What goes with burgundy?’ He replies angrily, ‘Cheese!’ The audience roars with laughter. He acts like he’s going to choke her behind her back, but he controls himself. Don can’t seem to pull off the woman’s old shoe, and he finally gets it by falling off the stool.
Don says, ‘The last time you wore a five triple-A lady was in baby booties!’ She replies, ‘I happen to have tiny feet.’ Don says, ‘Tiny feet? The last time I saw a foot like yours, a bear was attached to it!’ The argument turns ugly, and Don rants and yells as she leaves the store. He’s still yelling when his boss, Harvey Korman, appears from behind him and fires him.
Don loses it and rips the flower off of Korman’s jacket. Korman says, ‘Savage!’ Don is surprised by this, and both men break character and start giggling. Don says, ‘Where does it say he has the line, savage?’
They can’t look at the audience or camera while they are laughing. The audience loves that both men have made each other hysterical with their antics. These memorable moments made ‘The Carol Burnett Show’ so special!
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