Graham Chapman signed...

[Denis]

but did not sit on her face.

Yep, that's what it says. Saw him sign it myself.

[uwe]

Sitting on her face doesn't make very much sense to me, shouldn't it be the other way around even in Canada with its long cold log cabin winters and nothing much else to do? Please enlighten and elaborate!

[Denis]

Well, Her Majesty did have a more sprightly face back then...

Chapman came to speak at NC State when I was in college and working for the school newspaper I got in free. Afterwards, the features editor introduced me to him and he signed that bill, "Graham Chapman signed but did not sit on her face". Totally random it was and was a reference to nothing he spoke about.

During Chapman's speech there was a rather feminine guy sitting directly behind my buddy and me who kept shouting out comments, questions, statements, etc., and Chapman kept ignoring him. Well, during one of those "say-something-incriminating-when-the-rest-of-the-room-suddenly-falls-silent moments, the guy shouted out, "I demand service!"

Chapman finally addressed him by replying, "You need servicing by a very large bull."

The entire audience erupted and my buddy and I slunk down into our seats, red-faced but in hysterics! It was a great evening!

[Chaser001]

Maybe Chapman meant the bill had never been in a wallet in his back pocket. 

[uwe]

I didn't know he was gay. In that case of course it all made sense! He had a befitting good-bye from the others, kinda like I would like my funeral to be!

"Chapman died on 4 October 1989 after suffering from throat cancer and secondary spinal cancer.[3] He had several chemotherapy treatments and tumour removal surgeries in the final months of his life, and at one point, he ended up confined to a wheelchair. By September 1989, his cancer had been declared terminal. He filmed scenes for the 20th anniversary of the first broadcast of Flying Circus that month, the last time he would appear on screen, but became ill again on 1 October. Those present at the time of Chapman's death in a Maidstone hospital included his brother, sister-in-law, partner David Sherlock, and his former Python fellows John Cleese and Michael Palin, who had to be led out of the room to deal with their grief.[4] Terry Jones and Peter Cook had visited earlier that day. Chapman's death occurred on the eve of the 20th anniversary of the first broadcast of Flying Circus, and Jones called it "the worst case of party-pooping in all history."

The five surviving Python members decided to stay away from Chapman's private funeral, to prevent its becoming a media circus and to give his family some privacy. They sent a wreath in the shape of the famous Python foot with the message "To Graham from the other Pythons. Stop us if we're getting too silly". They held a private memorial service in St Bartholomew's Hospital in London on the evening of 6 December 1989, with a chorus of the Chinese version of the hymn "Jerusalem" ("... Bling me my speal, oh crowds unford, bling me my chaliot of file..."). Cleese delivered his eulogy to Chapman, which began as follows:

"Graham Chapman, co-author of the "Parrot Sketch", is no more. He has ceased to be. Bereft of life, he rests in peace. He's kicked the bucket, hopped the twig, bit the dust, snuffed it, breathed his last, and gone to meet the great Head of Light Entertainment in the sky. And I guess that we're all thinking how sad it is that a man of such talent, of such capability for kindness, of such unusual intelligence, should now so suddenly be spirited away at the age of only forty-eight, before he'd achieved many of the things of which he was capable, and before he'd had enough fun. Well, I feel that I should say: nonsense. Good riddance to him, the freeloading bastard, I hope he fries. And the reason I feel I should say this is he would never forgive me if I didn't, if I threw — threw away this glorious opportunity to shock you all on his behalf. Anything for him but mindless good taste. ...[5] "

Cleese continued after a break from laughter in the audience, claiming that Chapman had whispered in his ear the night before, when he was writing the speech, saying:

"All right, Cleese. I know you are very proud of being the very first person ever to say 'shit' on British television. If this service is really for me: Just for starters, I want you to become the first person ever at a British memorial service to say 'f***'. "

Palin then spoke, saying that he liked to think that Chapman was there with them all that day — "or rather, he will be in about 25 minutes," a reference to Chapman's habitual lateness when they were all working together. Idle, choking back tears, stated that Chapman had thought that Palin talked too much and had died rather than listen to him any more. He also led other surviving Python members along with Chapman's family and close friends in a rendition of "Always Look on the Bright Side of Life" from the film Life of Brian. Not to be outdone by Cleese, Idle was heard saying during the song's close: "I'd just like to be the last person at this meeting to say 'f***'. Thank you very much, God bless you, Graham."[6] On 31 December 1999, Chapman's ashes were rumoured to have been "blasted into the skies in a rocket".[7][8] In reality, however, Sherlock scattered Chapman's ashes on Snowdon, North Wales on 18 June 2005.[9]

[luve2fli]

As an aside, that's a vintage banknote. We don't even have a $2 bill in Canada anymore and that one wasn't the last version (which was introduced sometime in the mid-eighties and featured large block letters and everything left-alligned, IIRC). That's got to be late 60's/early 70's - must be worth at least $2.01 by now ...... 

[Dave W]

I recall that several years after he passed, the rest of the troupe appeared on stage for a benefit of some sort, accompanied by a cardboard cutout of Graham. I like to think he would have approved.

[jumbodbassman]

As an aside, that's a vintage banknote. We don't even have a $2 bill in Canada anymore and that one wasn't the last version (which was introduced sometime in the mid-eighties and featured large block letters and everything left-alligned, IIRC). That's got to be late 60's/early 70's - must be worth at least $2.01 by now ...... 

but finally worth $2 US

[Droombolus]

Totally random it was and was a reference to nothing he spoke about

It's referring to the song ......

[luve2fli]

.... but finally worth $2 US

Actually Canada's $ is at or over par with the US greenback now, has been for quite some time ..... FYI

[Highlander]

I didn't know he was gay.

That is almost classic Python in it's own right... he was also a genuine Doctor and operated as such on the sets of their movies...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fsHk9WC7fnQ&feature=related


(from the Aspen show)