#Jack Benny Show

[ilovemesomevincentprice]

Ohhhh SNAP!!

Vincent Price on The Jack Benny Show (1953)

[alloftheclassics]

@neil-gaiman spoke with the International Jack Benny Fan Club (501c) for the Jack Benny Convention about Why He Loves Jack Benny

Thank you, Neil! Like you said, “knowing and loving Jack is a responsibility”.

[driveintheaterofthemind]

TV Guide Vol. 02 #06 and Vol. 03 #047

Jack Benny

TV Guide Magazine Group (1954/1955)

[infinitemarilynmonroe]

Marilyn Monroe and hairstylist Gladys Rasmussen on the set of The Jack Benny Show, 1953.

[faramirsonofgondor]

I love Challengers

[citizenscreen]

All-star jam session rehearsing for an appearance on “The Jack Benny Show” in 1954. (L-R) violinist Jack Benny (of course), saxophonist, Fred MacMurray, Cornetist, Dick Powell, Banjoist, Kirk Douglas, and drummer, Dan Dailey.

[papermoonloveslucy]

RIP TOM SMOTHERS

1937-2023

Tommy Smothers was one half of the comedy and music duo the Smothers Brothers, performing for nearly his entire career with his brother Dick. On September 10, 1967 CBS censored Pete Seegar's anti-war song “Waist Deep in the Big Muddy” during “The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour.” The network claimed the lyrics were an insult to President Johnson. This event was a landmark decision for television and affected the brothers' career.

Lucille Ball and The Smothers Brothers often appeared on the same variety and awards shows together, although not at the same time. They were involved in "Jack Benny's 20th Anniversary Special" (1970), "The Ed Sullivan Show Georgie Awards" (1970), "Dinah Shore's Like Hep!" (1969). "The Dean Martin Show" (1970), "Zenith's Salute to 25 Years of Television" (1970), "Jack Benny's Carnival Nights" (1968), and "John Wayne's Swing Out Sweet Land" (1972).

The brothers were mentioned on the very first episode of "Here's Lucy" (1968). When Harry balks about hiring family, Lucy says “Suppose the Smothers Brothers didn't hire relatives. We'd only have one Smother!” A month before “Here's Lucy” premiered, CBS presented a four episode series titled “The Summer Smothers Brothers Hour.” Season 3 of their popular variety show premiered a week later.

When Mr. Mooney sees Lucy and Viv reunited in "Lucy and the Lost Star" (1968), he calls them the 'Smothers Mothers'.

[oldshowbiz]

November 5, 1981.

The legendary Frank Nelson of Jack Benny Program fame appeared on the Tonight Show to do a Benny-style routine with Johnny Carson. Nelson knocked on a door behind Johnny's desk and entered as a mailman. The routine ended with a pot joke.

Johnny Carson: Pardon me?

Frank Nelson: Yesssssssss?

Johnny Carson: Are you... are you the mailman?

Frank Nelson: No. I'm a kangaroo with a mustache. You want to peek in my pouch?

Johnny Carson: Now look, listen, we're... Look, we're on the air. Can't you see? How did you get in here?

Frank Nelson: Neither rain, nor sleet, nor snow, nor gray hair will stop me from my appointed route.

Johnny Carson: Now come on. Look, as long as you're here, do you have anything for me?

Frank Nelson: I didn't catch the name, whitey.

Johnny Carson: I'm Johnny

Frank Nelson: Well, cough up some ID.

Johnny Carson: Oh come on, this is silly. My announcer, Ed McMahon, will vouch for me.

Frank Nelson: Your announcer? I thought that was Shamu in a business suit.

Johnny Carson: Look, I have... This is really ridiculous, now I have... I have my driver's license.

Frank Nelson: Wellllll! I didn't know our little legs were long enough to reach the pedals!

Johnny Carson: Now look, I hope that's sufficient.

Frank Nelson: Fifty-six years old and still called Johnny. That's cute.

Johnny Carson: Look, I happen to be very busy. Can you just give me my mail?

Frank Nelson: Just hold your horses, Jackie.

Johnny Carson: It's Johnny!

Frank Nelson: Whatever!

Johnny Carson: Look, is there- is there anything else?

Frank Nelson: Oh yes, yes. I do have a package.

Johnny Carson: Good.

Frank Nelson: It's for the boys in the band. Aren't these South American stamps pretty?

[theodoradove]

tfw when you read the acknowledgements for an academic text on an incredibly niche subject and realize the author is the brother-in-law of a grad school classmate (in a discipline that is only somewhat tangentially related to the book in question)

[tuttle-did-it]

‘Moving Violation’ (s7, e13) Murder She Wrote

David Lansbury (nephew of Angela Lansbury, Law & Order, Sex & The City)

Stephen Macht (Sliders, Suits, Castle, General Hospital, Millennium, Star Trek: DS9, Columbo, Cagney & Lacey, Alfred Hitchcock Presents)

Susan Clark (Webster, Airport 1975, Babe, Marcus Welby, MD, Columbo, Benny Hill Show)

Jack Colvin (The Incredible Hulk tv show and 70s/80s movies), Jeremiah Johnson, Child’s Play, Cagney & Lacey, Quincy ME, Six Million Dollar Man)

Episode aired Feb 3, 1991

[grim-ghastly]

People who have this kin list are my favorite genre of person 💕

[kichisaburo3]

Marilyn Monroe Guest Appearance on The Jack Benny Show in 1953 Reblogged

TAG of Marilyn Monroe in my Tumblr https://kichisaburo3.tumblr.com/tagged/Marilyn Monroe

Marilyn Monroe during the shooting of her guest appearance on The Jack Benny Show in 1953. pic.twitter.com/RchFA7zdQj

�� The Marilyn Diaries (@MarilynDiary) November 2, 2024

10 NOV 2024 Sunday

[peterlorrefanpage]

"I Want a Girl Just Like the Girl That Murdered Dear Old Dad."

Tune in below to hear Peter Lorre singing the intro to this tune on the Jack Benny Show (TV) on January 22, 1963! There's so much more to his appearance, too.

Jack Benny introduces Peter as "one of the most frightening, ruthless, cold-blooded and meanest individuals of all time."

Peter sadly voices his concern that audiences would misunderstand him. Fortunately, he's written his own introduction for himself: He's "one of the sweetest men in show business, a man whose emotional sensitivities are touched equally by the cry of a lost child, the chirp of a wounded sparrow, or the silent protest of a crushed petunia."

I NEED AN IMAGE OF PETER TOUCHED BY THE SILENT PROTEST OF A CRUSHED PETUNIA gahhh

Peter's song bit is at 6:06, but keep watching the show (get past the fractured singer there) to see more chatter, and then a super fun skit with Mel Blanc.

I madly adore Jack Benny like I do Peter Lorre. It's wonderful to see these two genuinely sweet men together. Jack was a wholly generous man who was never afraid of someone else getting the laugh. Peter even cracks him up a few times!

Incidentally: When Peter references Jack's own "frightening" pictures, he is most likely referring to 1945's comedy-fantasy, "The Horn Blows at Midnight" - which wasn't actually a bad film! Jack accidentally detonated his own film by spoofing on it so much, people believed it was terrible and stayed away from the theatre. :(

Jack appeared in a number of films.

Check out Jack and Carole Lombard in To Be or Not to Be, and

Jack and Kay Francis in Charley's Aunt.

If you're still here, you might as well take in Peter Lorre on Jack Benny's radio show in the lovely skit, "I Stand Condemned," from March 24, 1946.

[wgc-productions]

I Love "The Jack Benny Program" And I Will Talk About And Analyze It At Length: Part I (The Characters)

I am going to use this humble platform of mine to gush about my extraordinarily niche interest of The Jack Benny Radio Program which aired on NBC (1932, 1933-1948) and CBS (1932-1933, 1949-1955). Let's go!!

Okay, so let's start with the general premise:

The Jack Benny Program is a show-with-in-a-show about Jack Benny, a real life 1940s American comedian and movie star (though even he would say "star" is pushing it).

The show follows the lives of Jack and the staff of his radio show (think Curb Your Enthusiasm). The characters share the names of their actors (excluding one which we'll talk about), and the characters often reference the lives of their actors and are meant to be exaggerated versions of their actors. Public events dealing with the actors are often referenced and jokes about in-show.

Now let's get to the characters*:

*This is a show that existed for 23 years. It has seen a lot of people come and go. The characters I am showing here are the core cast that stayed the longest, though many of the characters/actors that were in the earlier and later seasons are wonderful in their own right.

Jack Benny: The titular character of the show, Jack is a vain, cheap, neurotic, and charming boss to all of his staff. He has a massive crush on his co-worker, Mary Livingstone (who he was married to in real life). He has deep friendships with all of his staff and is often around them. He is famously bad at the violin, insists that he is 39 even though he is clearly not, and insists that he has blue hair and blonde eyes though (once again, he obviously does not)

Rochester: Jack's long term valet, Rochester is a sly, clever, fun-loving man who prefers to crack jokes over managing his boss' life. His brand of fun includes: drinking, gambling, spending time with his friends, and smoking cigars.

Mary Livingstone: Mary is an actor on the show. She is thoughtful, smart, wise-cracking, and always up to go along with Jack's schemes. She has a massive crush on Jack (who she was married to in real life). She is never afraid to push against Jack's more ridiculous beliefs and ideas. She has a sister,

Dennis Day: The perpetual youngster, Dennis is a kind-hearted, naive, idiotic, silly, young man who lives with his mother whom he loves very much. He is a crooner, which means he sings a song every episode and it is often joked about that singing once a week is his only job. He is often treated like a beloved annoying little brother by the cast and crew. Jack often exploits his good nature by shortchanging his pay or making him work on things outside of his job description. He is a proud red-haired Irish man.

Phil Harris: Phil is a wild child if ever there was one. The orchestra director, Phil stays up late, drinks often, and always advocates for his orchestra members who are ex-convicts with interesting fashion styles. He is a womanizer who is sitll deeply in love with his wife, Alice. He is also illiterate and dropped out of school as a boy. He has a flippant older brother energy with Jack and he is easy going with everyone else.

Don Wilson: Don is the announcer and he always opens the show. Don is self important, quick is be ruffled, loyal to Jack, and a resident straight man. Jokes are often made about his weight. He and Jack often pick at each other, but he is well liked by the other characters.

I'm going to do more of these talking about specific episodes, the form of the show, it's impact on modern comedy, the lives of the actors, and more, but I think this is a good place to stop before it gets too long. In the meantime: here's a video of an episode which I think is a good introduction to the characters, style, and premise.

In this episode Jack and Rochester pick up the cast so they can car pool to work. Hijinks ensue. This episode aired October 4, 1942.

[citizenscreen]

Ingrid Bergman, Jack Benny, Martha Tilton, and Larry Adler sing in quartet as the last act of the USO show performance at Gmund, Germany Ball Park on Juky 26, 1945.

[sohannabarberaesque]

"A show with five stars in it is worth more than a show with one star. And I don't have to work so hard. That way, people never get tired of any one character."

--Jack Benny, in explaining the success of his radio show in 1947 and its popularity among listeners

I assume Hanna-Barbera must've subscribed to this formula when it had a number of package shows featuring several characters in their own segments (witness Huckleberry Hound, Quick Draw McGraw, Yogi Bear, Magilla Gorilla, Peter Potamus, The Banana Splits, Cattanooga Cats and Skatebirds), with an eye to enhancing audience attention (especially among children).