A Scoutmaster's Blog

I enjoy a good campfire program. You can easily tell when a camp staff has rehearsed the skits and songs, and when they themselves are having a good time. That good time spreads to the campers and makes for a great evening. When you get the campers laughing you know you have done your job well.

Today’s video for YouTube Tuesday features a camp staff that must have spent a lot of time practicing because the skit they performed was done flawlessly. The timing was perfect. The audience had a fantastic time watching them. You really do not want me to explain this video. You just need to sit back, watch and enjoy it. Then grab a few people and start practicing it yourselves for this summer camp programs. (1349)

100 Days Of Scouting: Day 36.

I would guess that most Boy Scouts and adult leaders have seen the enlarging machine skit. The story goes that whatever is thrown in one side of the machine comes out bigger and better on the other side. For example, a tennis ball thrown in one side comes out the other side as a soccer ball. The skit continues as things get bigger and bigger until the final item which is the punch line.

When the Boy Scouts of Melrose Troop 68 picked that skit to perform for the Buckskin closing campfire this summer I said, okay, but are you going to give it the Troop 68 twist? After all, Troop 68 does not do most skits the same way everyone else does them. We need to be different. We need to take the old skit and make it new and interesting again.

They brainstormed a few ideas, practiced it a few times, and came up with a version they felt comfortable with doing. Instead of Boy Scouts trying out the new Many Point enlarging machine, they would be a copy of not too bright hippies who decide to give it a go (thus giving the boys a chance to wear their new tie dye tee shirts). Unfortunately, the last enlarging does not go as the hippies had planned.

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Back in the 1980’s, when the troop was attending Crow Wing Scout Reservation for summer camp, the camp staff performed a skit that would become one of the Scouts, and one of mine, favorite skits. We call it the Radio Skit. You will need five people to be the announcers. It requires practice and great timing to pull off properly. Your audience will love it. Here is the script we use:

Announcer:
On the way to the (meeting/outing/camp) tonight, we were listening to the radio, but we were having trouble keeping a single station on the air. The stations kept overlapping each other. Just as we starting getting interested in one thing the station would switch and something entirely different would come on. It sounded something like this….

Commercial:
Are you missing something in your life? Do you always find yourself unprepared? Do you like camping and hiking in the great outdoors? If you do then join the Boy Scouts of America. Scouting today – it’s a lot more than…
Baseball:
…a beautiful day at the county stadium were the (team name) are hosting the Twins. It looks like it will be a very close battle today as both teams are very strong and led by two great pitchers, Scott and (other team pitcher). The Twins will be at the plate first. Leading off the batting order will be…
Cooking:
…meatloaf, scalloped potatoes, peas. And we will top it off with apple pie for desert. Okay ladies, get out your note pads and your cooking utensils. Listen carefully and you will learn how to prepare this scrumptious dish to please that hard working hungry husband of yours after a long day’s work at…
Story time:
…Fantasy land, where all of your dreams come true. Hello boys and girls. Today’s story is an old time favorite. It is about a famous little girl and her dear old grandmother who…
Gangster:
…dirty, rotten, no good two bit, double crossing crook and when I get my hands on him I’ll pulverize him to a pulp, fit him to a pair of concrete shoes, and he will never be seen in my territory again. Even if the low down, dirty rat is…
Baseball:
…the next batter at the plate for the Twins. Here’s the first pitch… It’s a ball, outside. The pitcher gets his signals. He winds up… Whoa! It’s a hard fast ball right down the pipe. Strike one. The count is one and one. The pitcher delivers again. The batter swings…
Cooking:
…the meatloaf into the pan and fry for fifteen minutes or until brown. Now ladies, this next step is very crucial to the success of your meatloaf. If you don’t get it correctly…
Gangster:
…I’ll bash your head in and make mash potatoes out of your face. So don’t mess up or I’ll send you to…
Commercial:
…the Boy Scouts of America. Just imagine the fun you’ll have swimming, boating, hiking, and sitting around the campfire at night. Only you, the stars, the moon and…
Story time:
…Little Red Riding Hood”, said the wolf. “What do you have in your basket?” “Well, Mr. Wolf”, said Little Red Riding Hood, “I have…
Baseball:
…two outs! Twins on first and second at the bottom of the third and they are down by two runs. They’ve got to have a hit with this batter or they’re…
Cooking:
…meatloaf will be burnt, so be careful ladies, because burnt meatloaf can cause…
Baseball:
…a home run! And that will put the Twins in the lead, 6 to 5, in the bottom of the sixth inning here at county stadium. Wow! What a change of events. This game has changed from a dull, typical pitchers battle to an…
Commercial:
…afternoon of fun and adventure at the beautiful (campground name). And remember, as the Boy Scout motto states, Be Prepared to…
Gangster:
…get your guts blown out if you double cross me again. I’ll put so many holes in you that you’ll look like a screen door. No one fools around with me except…
Commercial:
…the Boy Scouts of America…
Baseball:
…have struck out again, and boy is the (other team)’s manager giving it to the ump. I can just imagine saying…
Story time:
…My, what big eyes you have grandmother”, said Little Red Riding Hood. “The better to see you with my dear,” said the wolf. “And grandmother”, said Little Red Riding Hood, “what a big you have…
Baseball:
…says the ump to the (other team)’s manager as he throws him out of the game. Well, Bob, it looks like the only thing that can save the (other team’s name) now is…
Commercial:
…the Boy Scouts of America…
Cooking:
…and your piping hot peas. By now your pie crust should be tender and flaky, just like …
Story time:
…Little Red Riding Hood was about to be gobbled up by the wicked old wolf. Suddenly, the door burst open, and the woodsman said…
Gangster:
…you dirty bugger. I’ve got you dead to right now. Mess with my girl, will you? Well, no one messes with my girl and gets away with it. The only thing that can save you now is…
Baseball:
…the Twins…
Cooking:
…your crisp apple pie..
Story time:
…Little Red Riding Hood..
Commercial:
…and the Boy Scouts of America.

If yo would like to see this skit performed check out episode #70 of the Melrose Scout Production Podcast. Or, if you would like to listen to it while jogging or driving in your car download episode #12 of Around The Scouting Campfire.
http://feeds2.feedburner.com/melrosescoutingproductions
http://feeds2.feedburner.com/MelroseScoutingAudioPodcast

Also available on iTunes.

Step right up! Have we got a bargain for you. This episode of the Melrose Scout Productions Podcast has not one, but two, (yes, you read that right) two performances by the members of Melrose Troop 68. Once again this footage comes from the troop’s 2001 Laughs Lunch Show.

Four Boy Scouts walk onto the stage for the first part of this video. They lead the audience in that old time favorite campfire song, “It Ain’t Gonna Rain No More”. The second part is performed by the assistant scoutmasters of the troop. Eymard has made his camp famous beef stew. The other leaders cannot wait to eat a plateful of it. Unfortunately, things do not go well from there.

Click here to DOWNLOAD and watch this Podcast
Subscribe to Melrose Scouting Productions Podcast through iTunes.
or at http://feeds2.feedburner.com/melrosescoutingproductions
Check out other Scouting podcasts at PTC Media.

Let us go back in time. A simpler time of when there were kings, queens, and a peasant who wished to marry the beautiful princess. That is the plot of this hilarious campfire skit performed by two Boy Scouts of Troop 68 during their 2001 Laughs For Lunch Show. It is one of my favorie skits, and I bet you will enjoy it also.

With just a few props and a bit of practice your Scouts can use this skit to entertain troops and families during courts of honor or campfire programs.

Click here to DOWNLOAD and watch this Podcast
Subscribe to Melrose Scouting Productions Podcast through iTunes.
or at http://feeds2.feedburner.com/melrosescoutingproductions
Check out other Scouting podcasts at PTC Media.

The Melrose Scouting Productions Podcast proudly presents another video from the Boy Scout Troop 68 Laughs For Lunch Show archives. This post features a skit in which a director hires an extra to play a small part in a film. The film is about a legendary ship which hits an iceberg. The extra has only four lines to say but unfortunately cannot get them correct on the first take. The director becomes frustrated, and hilarity follows. Even though this video was recorded in 2001, it holds up very well. The skit would be a great one to perform at any campfire program.

Does your troop have fun performing in front of an audience? Have they ever done this skit? Tell us about it by leaving a comment.

Click here to DOWNLOAD and watch this Podcast
Subscribe to Melrose Scouting Productions Podcast through iTunes.
or at http://feeds2.feedburner.com/melrosescoutingproductions
Check out other Scouting podcasts at PTC Media.

For thirteen years the Boy Scouts of Troop 68 held an annual show they called Laughs For Lunch. It was a campfire-style show featuring various songs, skits, and stories. The shows made the new Scouts nervous because, for most of them, it was their first time on stage in front of an audience. The older more experienced Scouts loved performing in front of the crowd and getting the laughs. We usually tried to keep the younger Scouts in groups when they were onstage but the older boys would get the chance to perform a skit or song on their own. This video post to the Melrose Scouting Productions Podcast features one of those skits.

Andy may have been shy were he joined the Boy Scout troop but he soon became one of the guys who loved to ham it up on stage. In this video from the 2001 Laughs For Lunch Show, he plays the artist Vincent Van Go-Go who plans to create a living sculpture on stage using people from the studio audience. He soon has both young and old people on stage portraying trees, rabbits, birds, and other things from nature. I am sure you will enjoy watching it.

Does your troop have fun performing in front of an audience? Have they ever done this skit? Tell us about it by leaving a comment.

Click here to DOWNLOAD and watch this Podcast
Subscribe to Melrose Scouting Productions Podcast through iTunes.
or at http://feeds2.feedburner.com/melrosescoutingproductions
Check out other Scouting podcasts at PTC Media.

It is time to get back to fun with the Melrose Scouting Productions Podcast. After all, the last two postings were a bit more on the serious side. This episode features the Boy Scouts of Troop 68 during their 2002 Laughs For Lunch Show. Two skits are included, both which involve doctors and hospitals. The first skit takes place in the doctor’s office as the patients come to him with their problems. The second skit finds us in the maternity ward’s waiting room as the expectant fathers await word about their new born children. (You may have to turn up your volume a little during the second skit. The boys did not talk as loud as they should have.)