The Phony Physician
by Thomas S Hischak, Thomas Hischak

Adapted from Moliere's The Doctor in Spite of Himself .

Skelly is the laziest fool in the village.

He refuses to cut down trees because they are his only friends.

To get even with her layabout husband, Mavis tells a wealthy man that Skelly is the most skilled physician in ten counties.

And that to get him to work, Skelly must be beaten with a broom.

So poor, bullied Skelly is forced to become a doctor and to the city he goes - with resulting comic confusions and side-splitting satirical commentary on the medical profession.

In the end he cures Lucy (she was only faking her illness to avoid a pre-arranged marriage) and becomes the hero of the day.

Filled with farcical action and vaudeville-like jokes, this comedy is easily staged and a guaranteed audience-pleaser.