Pete Seeger censored on ‘The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour’ 50 years ago this hour #OnThisDay #OTD (Sep 10 1967)


Video: 'Pete Seeger - Wimoweh & Flowers Gone'

(Sunday, September 10, 1967, 9:00-10:00 p.m. EDT; during the Vietnam War, part of the Indochina Wars and the Cold War) — The CBS television network censored tonight’s second season premiere of The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour by editing out the performance of Pete Seeger’s antiwar song “Waist Deep in the Big Muddy”, taped Sept. 1, 1967, citing the closing verse as a direct insult at President Lyndon Johnson.

Seeger, who had been blacklisted from commercial television 17 years, had been allowed to perform the song before the studio audience at CBS Television City studios in Los Angeles, but the tape shown on television only showed Seeger performing the song “Winoweh” and Tommy Smothers asking Seeger if he was going to sing “that song”.


Video: 'Waist Deep In the Big Muddy'