NEW YORK – “Ol’ Blue Eyes” didn’t get one, but
“The Great One” will. That’s right … Ralph Kramden — Jackie Gleason’s lovable bus driver from TV Land’s enduring hit sitcom, The Honeymooners – was immortalized on August 28th with an eight-foot-high bronze Ralph Kramden statue at the entrance to New York’s Port Authority Bus Terminal in mid-town Manhattan. The statue, which was developed by TV Land in tandem
with the Jackie Gleason estate and The Port Authority of New York/New Jersey, was created to recognize New York City’s most famous bus driver. Fans can watch The Honeymooners on TV Land every night at 11:00pm ET on Time Warner Cable’s channel 85.
The statue represents TV Land’s first effort to honor what the network refers to as “TV Land Landmarks.” The goal of the initiative is to honor those TV icons that are closely identified with various locations throughout the country. As Ralph drove a New York City bus, the Port Authority Bus Terminal was the obvious site from which he could welcome the thousands of
commuters passing through the terminal every day. The statue is to be placed adjacent to the bus terminal’s entrance at Eighth Avenue and 40th Street and features a plaque which states:
|
The Ralph Kramden statue is the latest effort from TV Land to honor The
Honeymooners. Earlier this year, the network produced an original
behind-the-scenes special — Inside TV Land: The Honeymooners — which
explored the continued popularity of the series. Additionally, several
high-profile promotions featuring Honeymooners characters are currently
active. The network’s “Times Change. Great TV Doesn’t” features characters
from The Honeymooners juxtaposed against contemporary trends and pop icons to
underscore how quickly times — and tastes — change.
In New York, the
efforts include an extensive out of home advertising program featuring ads
appearing on bus sides, on commuter rail cars and on the giant ABC monitor
outside the broadcast network’s Times Square studio. As a special treat for
New Yorkers, TV Land has also brought Ralph Kramden back to drive the streets
of New York. Two fully wrapped buses featuring a photographic likeness of
Ralph Kramden in the driver’s seat, with Alice, Norton and Trixie, in tow, as
they wave to passers-bys on the city streets.
“Creating TV Land Landmarks helps us recognize those locations throughout
the country that are closely identified with TV that people want to visit the
sites,” explains Larry W. Jones, Executive Vice President and General Manager,
TV Land. “As Jackie Gleason’s Ralph Kramden character evokes New York City,
TV Land felt strongly that the Port Authority Bus Terminal was the perfect
location from which to kick off this initiative, which we’re optimistic we’ll
be bringing to other landmarks around the country over the next few years.”
The Honeymooners — which began as a segment on Dumont’s Cavalcade of
Stars — elicited such an enormous response from viewers that it became a
regular feature and eventually received an entire half-hour time slot on CBS,
becoming one of TV’s all-time classic comedies. The Honeymooners ranked #2
from 1954-55, garnered Emmy Awards for Audrey Meadows (Supporting Actress in a
Regular Series in 1954) and Art Carney (Best Supporting Actor from 1953-55
plus Special Classification of Individual Achievement for The Jackie Gleason
Show 1966-67 and 1967-78).
The series revolves around Ralph Kramden (Jackie Gleason), a frustrated
New York bus driver with a big mouth and a tiny Brooklyn apartment he shares
with his wife, Alice (Audrey Meadows). Living upstairs from the Kramdens are
their best friends, the Nortons. Ed (Art Carney) — who everyone including
his wife, Trixie (Joyce Randolph) calls Norton — is a sewer worker for the
Department of Sanitation and is often working on get-rich-quick schemes with
Ralph.
The timing and interaction of the talented foursome carried The
Honeymooners to reach cult status with millions of fans tuning in each week.
Gleason and his cast often ad-libbed their performances as the show was live
and there was no way to cut and re-do a scene. In one episode, Gleason missed
his cue to walk onstage, leaving Carney all alone. Without hinting that
anything was going wrong on stage, Carney walked over to the ice box, took out
an orange and ad-libbed an entire skit about peeling the piece of fruit.
