''Monty Python Live at Aspen'' was a reunion show featuring the surviving members of the

Monty Python Monty Python (also collectively known as the Pythons) were a British comedy troupe who created the sketch comedy television show '' Monty Python's Flying Circus'', which first aired on the BBC in 1969. Forty-five episodes were made over fo ...

team:

John Cleese John Marwood Cleese ( ; born 27 October 1939) is an English actor, comedian, screenwriter, and producer. Emerging from the Cambridge Footlights in the 1960s, he first achieved success at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe and as a scriptwriter and ...

Terry Gilliam Terrence Vance Gilliam (; born 22 November 1940) is an American-born British filmmaker, comedian, animator, actor and former member of the Monty Python comedy troupe. Gilliam has directed 13 feature films, including '' Time Bandits'' (1981), '' ...

Eric Idle Eric Idle (born 29 March 1943) is an English actor, comedian, musician and writer. Idle was a member of the British surreal comedy group Monty Python and the parody rock band The Rutles, and is the writer of the music and lyrics for the Broadway ...

Terry Jones Terence Graham Parry Jones (1 February 1942 – 21 January 2020) was a Welsh comedian, director, historian, actor, writer and member of the Monty Python comedy team. After graduating from Oxford University with a degree in English, Jones and ...

and

Michael Palin Sir Michael Edward Palin (; born 5 May 1943) is an English actor, comedian, writer, television presenter, and public speaker. He was a member of the Monty Python comedy group. Since 1980, he has made a number of travel documentaries. Palin ...

, appearing on stage together for the first time since their

Hollywood Bowl The Hollywood Bowl is an amphitheatre in the Hollywood Hills neighborhood of Los Angeles, California. It was named one of the 10 best live music venues in America by ''Rolling Stone'' magazine in 2018. The Hollywood Bowl is known for its disti ...

shows in 1980. Filmed on 7 March 1998 at the Wheeler Opera House in Colorado as part of The US Comedy Arts Festival, it featured the five Pythons in an interview with host

Robert Klein Robert Klein (born February 8, 1942) is an American stand-up comedian, singer, and actor. He is known for his appearances on stage and screen. He has released four standup comedy specials: ''A Child of the 50s'' (1973), ''Mind Over Matter'' (19 ...

. The late

Graham Chapman Graham Chapman (8 January 1941 – 4 October 1989) was a British actor, comedian and writer. He was one of the six members of the Surreal humour, surreal comedy group Monty Python. He portrayed authority figures such as The Colonel (Monty Pyth ...

was also allegedly in attendance as his "ashes" were brought out in an urn with his portrait attached to the front, only to be knocked over by Terry Gilliam. The Pythons initially appear with an uninvited

Eddie Izzard Edward John Izzard (; born 7 February 1962) is a British stand-up comedian, actor and activist. Her comedic style takes the form of what appears to the audience as rambling whimsical monologues and self-referential pantomime. Izzard's stand- ...

, who is quickly made to leave the stage. The team and Klein then discuss their work and answer questions from fans on the internet. At the end of the evening they are presented with an

American Film Institute The American Film Institute (AFI) is an American nonprofit film organization that educates filmmakers and honors the heritage of the motion picture arts in the United States. AFI is supported by private funding and public membership fees. Lead ...

Star Award, which is handed to John Cleese, who goes into a mock rant about how they never received any recognition when they were doing Monty Python, before the award is dropped into Chapman's urn. The show ends with Eric Idle leading a singalong of "

Always Look on the Bright Side of Life "Always Look on the Bright Side of Life" is a comedy song written by Monty Python member Eric Idle that was first featured in the Python film ''Life of Brian'' and has gone on to become a common singalong at public events such as football ...

". The special was broadcast in the US on HBO on 21 March 1998. In the UK it was released on VHS in 1999 as part of the

BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...

box set ''The Best of Monty Python's Flying Circus''. A DVD version of the set was later released in 2004. In the US the show was released on DVD in 2001 by A&E Home Entertainment as part of their '' Monty Python Live'' box set.

Origins

In May 1997 the five surviving members of Monty Python regrouped for the first time since Graham Chapman's death in 1989. The meetings focused on Eric Idle's idea of a sequel to '' Monty Python and the Holy Grail'' in which they'd return as Knights of the Round Table, using audio outtakes of Graham Chapman's voice from album sessions to dub a performance out of him, with Arthur's ashes as the front. The rest of the group were enthusiastic, and even began writing material for it. The idea died soon, though, as Cleese was against the idea of doing a new film, partly because he remembered the disagreements the team had when writing '' The Meaning of Life'', but also because any new film would miss Chapman's acting talents. The one-off reunion at Aspen led to plans for a 30th anniversary tour for the following year which, due to disagreements within the group, failed to materialise.''

The Pythons Autobiography by The Pythons ''The Pythons Autobiography by The Pythons'' is the official autobiography of the Monty Python team, released in 2003. It covers the whole of Python history, from their childhoods all the way through to the 30th anniversary celebrations in 1999. ...

'', 2003, p.345, Orion

Cast

*Cathleen Summers

Credits

*John Moffitt, Pat Tourk Lee, Stu Smiley - Executive Producers *Nancy Kurshner - Supervising Producer *Phil Savenick - Co-producer *Paul Miller - Director *Peter Crabbe - Writer

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Monty Python Live At Aspen Monty Python American television specials 1998 television specials 1990s American television specials 1990s in comedy