Mike Douglas and James Brown sing “You’re Nobody Till Somebody Loves You”

I missed the heyday of Mike Douglas, but watching this video, it’s easy to see how he was able to concoct such an enjoyable mid-afternoon chat brew every weekday. Douglas’ adoption of a groovy ‘70s-style six-petaled flower was an inspired touch, as it stamped him as the older, tie-wearing white dude who was down with the hippies and “Black is Beautiful” and funky music and all that. Douglas never seemed to mind much of anything, and his charmingly shambolic, super-easy going style helped create a talk show that’s waaaaay looser than anything you’d see today (outside of podcasts, of course).

The date on this video, very recently uploaded to YouTube and with just a smattering of views, is May 11, 1971. James Brown is introduced as co-host, and indeed Brown does hang around for the whole episode—he does three songs in all, and it must be said that he’s makes for a rather distracted co-host; he’s no Andy Richter up there. But who the hell cares, he wasn’t there for his ability to be subservient to Mike—he’s James Brown!!

His musical numbers bookend the program, starting with “I Cried” followed by, remarkably, a full-fledged duet of the old Dean Martin ditty “You’re Nobody Till Somebody Loves You”—Brown seems mildly poleaxed at the idea, and plays along only intermittently, but Douglas is seriously into it. It’s genuinely funny when Douglas tells him to “try to find the beat, James.” Also, who’d've guessed that Douglas does way more dancing than Brown?

In the interview portion we get an actress named Betsy Palmer, who later teaches Douglas and Brown how to make ham hocks and cabbage, although, as she admits, “it’s Czech more than anything,” certainly not super similar to the authentic soul food Brown is used to. Then, hilariously, Douglas tells the home viewer not to consult the Internet for the recipe but rather to write this address:
 

 
Brown caps off the hijinks with a terrific rendition of “Your Cheatin’ Heart”. (By the bye, the album he was promoting was Sho’ Is Funky Down Here.)

 
via Classic Television Showbiz

Previously on Dangerous Minds:
James Brown meets Alfred Hitchcock