Rose Marie documentary ‘Wait for Your Laugh’ heading to television
Wait for Your Laugh Dick Van Dyke Rose Marie
Stephen Battaglio Stephen Battaglio Staff www.latimes.com stephen-battaglio
The 2017 documentary on the long career of the late sitcom pioneer will make its video debut on free TV.
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Los Angeles Times
“Wait for Your Laugh,” the 2017 documentary depicting the nine-decade career ofactress Rose Marie, is making its video debut on the platform where the public loved her most — free television.

Decades Network, the multicast network that specializes in classic and historic TV programming of all genres, will broadcast the film aon May 1 at 9 p.m. Eastern and 6 p.m. Pacific, with an encore on May 18. Decades is shown on TV in Los Angeles via KCBS’ sub-channel 2.2, and is carried on many cable and satellite systems.

Known as, the home of such vintage TV staples as “Laugh-In,” “The Ed Sullivan Show” and “The Dick Cavett Show,” Decades rarely acquires new programming. Neal Sabin, vice chairman of Weigel Broadcasting, which operates the channel, said he made an exception for “Wait for Your Laugh” because of Rose Marie’s familiarity and importance to its vintage-TV-loving, baby-boomer audience.

“Rose Marie’s story is really the story of modern show business in America,” said Sabin. “The film fits so well with our mission to remember pop culture touch points from across the decades.”

Rose Marie is best known for her role as Sally Rogers, the wisecracking comedy writer on “The Dick Van Dyke Show.” She also spent years on the long-running daytime and syndicated game show “Hollywood Squares.”

“Wait for Your Laugh” goes back to the very start of Rose Marie’s career as a child performer in vaudeville, where she became a favorite of organized crime figures including Al Capone and Bugsy Siegel. She went on to star on Broadway, in nightclubs and movies before becoming a popular figure on television.

The documentary features interviews with many of the surviving stars who worked with Rose Marie, including Van Dyke, Carl ReinerDick and Peter Marshall. The film, directed by Jason Wise, also features behind-the-scenes color footage from the “Dick Van Dyke Show” set and other programs in which Rose Marie appeared.

Rose Marie died on Dec. 28 at 94 after doing several months of publicity for the film. The buildup to the project led to a mini-renaissance for her popularity as she amassed a large Twitter following. At the height of the #MeToo movement, she weighed in on social media about being sexually harassed during her long career.

stephen.battaglio@latimes.com