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I'd Rather Eat Pants
Edward Asner, Anne Meara Star in NPR Radio Comedy
 Monday: Listen to Act One of I'd Rather Eat Pants.
Tuesday: Listen to Act Two.
Wednesday: Listen to Act Three.
Thursday: Listen to Act Four.
Friday: Listen to Act Five.
 Read I'd Rather Eat Pants cast bios.
Dec. 16, 2002 -- Returning to the thrilling radio days of yesteryear, Morning Edition borrows a page from The Lone Ranger, Fibber McGee and Molly, George Burns and Gracie Allen and presents...
I'd Rather Eat Pants, a five-act radio comedy that its author, playwright and screenwriter Peter Ackerman, calls a farce. The play was recorded live from the Museum of Television and Radio in Beverly Hills to commemorate the opening of NPR's new West Coast multimedia production center.
It airs in five daily segments from today through Friday.
Edward Asner and Anne Meara lead an all-star cast in I'd Rather Eat Pants, which was produced by L.A. Theatre Works. It's the story of Abe and Mabel Pepperstein, who run a struggling produce store in New York. When a gourmet grocery opens across the street, Mabel talks Abe into closing the shop to seek fame and fortune in California.
Abe and Mabel convince a surfer dude named Wisdom to give them a lift to California on his motorcycle. Wisdom is played by Derek Cecil, star of the ABC television series Push, Nevada.
While speeding though Kansas, they get pulled over by a musically inclined state trooper, played by Ed Begley Jr. When they finally get to California, Abe and Mabel meet Barney Kikkle, a washed-up Hollywood agent. Kikkle is played by Dan Castellaneta, who's best known as the voice of Homer on The Simpsons. Clea Lewis plays Kikkle's secretary, Melbaleine. NPR's Bob Edwards and Susan Stamberg have cameo roles.
I'd Rather Eat Pants was written for NPR by Ackerman, who co-wrote the animated movie Ice Age. It's the first time he's written for radio.
In Depth
Read I'd Rather Eat Pants cast bios.
Listen to Susan Stamberg's 2001 Morning Edition interview with Edward Asner about what it's like for an actor to audition.
Listen to a Jan. 24, 2000, All Things Considered story on Down The Garden Paths, a play written by Anne Meara.
Listen to a March 6, 2000, Morning Edition story on Dan Castellaneta's role in a stage production of The Alchemist, a 17th century comedy.
Listen to a July 17, 1999, Weekend Edition Saturday story on Dan Castellaneta's one-man show Where Did Vincent Van Gogh?.
Listen to a Nov. 16, 2001, All Things Considered sketch starring Ed Begley, Jr., about two Hollywood screenwriters trying to sell an Americanized version of Harry Potter.
Listen to a Jan. 4, 2001, Morning Edition report on radio drama productions by L.A. Theatre Works and other West Coast groups.
Listen to a Dec. 23, 2001, Weekend Edition story on philosophy and The Simpsons.
Listen to a Sept. 30, 2002, All Things Considered commentary by Art Chimes on the end of the "Golden Age of Radio."
Listen to a Jan. 3, 1999, All Things Considered report on the heyday of radio comedy during the 1930s and '40s.
Listen to an Aug. 10, 2001, Morning Edition radio drama by John Ridley.
Listen to a Jan. 31, 2001, Morning Edition story on The Lone Ranger.
Other Resources
• L.A. Theatre Works
• The Museum of Television & Radio
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