Fun Funeral Planning with "Chuckles Bites the Dust"

By Gail Rubin

Laughter is one of the best ways to break down resistance to discussing serious topics like death and preneed funeral planning. If you have a hard time beginning a funeral planning conversation with your family, get them together and watch “Chuckles Bites the Dust,” an Emmy Award-winning episode of The Mary Tyler Moore Show.

Chuckles, the clown at the local Minneapolis TV station where Mary Richards works in the newsroom, was invited to lead the parade when the circus came to town. He was dressed as one of his popular characters, Peter Peanut. An elephant decided he needed a snack, and that’s how Chuckles bites the dust. Most of the newsroom staff can’t stop laughing about how he died.

Mary, who is taking the clown’s death terribly seriously, does not join in the laughter in the newsroom. But laughter and tears are intertwined, and emotions can’t be suppressed for very long without dire consequences. In a very famous scene at Chuckles’ funeral, Mary starts laughing uncontrollably.

After the funeral, the newsroom gang retires to Mary’s apartment for coffee and cake. They talk about what a nice event it was, and each person expresses their wishes for their own dispositions.

Sue Ann Nivens, played by Betty White, said, “I want to be cremated and have my ashes thrown on Robert Redford.” Redford was very popular in 1976 when this episode first aired, and Betty White has long expressed romantic notions about him.

Lou Grant said, “I don’t want anybody to make a fuss. When I go, I just want to be stood outside in the garbage with my hat on.”

Mary Richards said, “Well, all I know is I don’t want an organ playing a lot of sad music.”

Anchorman Ted Baxter plans to be put in a cryogenic deep freeze for later reanimation.

This 30-minute episode will have you and your loved ones laughing heartily. The entire episode is available on Amazon.com in online streaming and DVD formats. After you’re done watching, it will be easy to have a funeral planning conversation well before someone dies.

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