Television Variety Shows
Histories and Episode Guides to 57 Programs
$75.00
In stock
About the Book
For the few hundred television viewers in 1946, a special treat on the broadcast schedule was the variety show called Hour Glass. It was the first TV program to go beyond talking heads, cooking demonstrations, and sporting events, featuring instead dancers, comics, singers, and long commercials for its sponsor, Chase and Sanborn coffee. Within two years, another variety show, Texaco Star Theatre, became the first true television hit and would be credited with the sales of thousands of television sets.
The variety show formula was a staple of television in its first 30 years, in part because it lent itself to a medium where everything had to be live and preferably inside a studio. Most of the early television stars—including Jackie Gleason, Milton Berle, Sid Caesar, Ed Sullivan, Red Skelton, Dinah Shore, and Arthur Godfrey—rose to prominence through weekly variety shows. In the 1960s, major stars such as Jerry Lewis, Dean Martin, Judy Garland and Danny Kaye were hosting variety shows. By the 1970s, the format was giving way to sitcoms and dramas, but pop music stars Sonny and Cher, Tony Orlando and Dawn, and Donny and Marie Osmond hosted some of the last of the species.
This book details 57 variety shows from the 1940s through the 1990s. A history of each show is first provided, followed by a brief look at each episode. Air date, guest stars, sketches performed, and a listing of songs featured are included.
About the Author(s)
Bibliographic Details
David M. Inman
Format: softcover (7 x 10)
Pages: 427
Bibliographic Info: photos, bibliography, index
Copyright Date: 2006
pISBN: 978-0-7864-2198-5
eISBN: 978-1-4766-0877-8
Imprint: McFarland
Table of Contents
Preface 1
Introduction 3
I : The Pantheon 5
1. The Steve Allen Show 7
2. The Variety Shows of Milton Berle 16
3. The Carol Burnett Show 23
4. The Variety Shows of Sid Caesar 40
5. The Variety Shows of Jackie Gleason 47
6. Arthur Godfrey and His Friends 62
7. The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour 67
8. The Variety Shows of Ed Sullivan 73
II : The Beginning 119
9. The “Arthur Murray” Variety Shows 121
10. Cavalcade of Stars 128
11. The Colgate Comedy Hour 133
III : The Sketch Artists 141
12. The George Gobel Show 143
13. The Variety Shows of Bob Hope 148
14. The Danny Kaye Show 154
15. The Don Knotts Show 162
16. The Jerry Lewis Show 165
17. The Garry Moore Show 170
18. The Variety Shows of Red Skelton 180
19. The Flip Wilson Show 201
20. The Jonathan Winters Show 208
IV : Mostly Music 213
21. The Glen Campbell Goodtime Hour 215
22. The Variety Shows of Perry Como 224
23. The Eddie Fisher Show 234
24. This Is Tom Jones 236
25. The Dean Martin Show 242
26. The Variety Shows of Dinah Shore 264
27. The Andy Williams Show 270
V : A New Host Every Week 283
28. The Hollywood Palace 285
29. Kraft Music Hall 301
VI : From Pop to Prime Time 313
30. The Jimmy Dean Show 315
31. The Ford Show 319
32. The Variety Shows of Sonny and Cher 324
VII : Memorable Misfires 335
33. The Julie Andrews Show 337
34. The Judy Garland Show 341
35. The Variety Shows of Mary Tyler Moore 346
36. NBC Follies 349
37. Pink Lady and Jeff 352
38. The Paula Poundstone Show 354
39. The Richard Pryor Show 356
40. Saturday Night Live with Howard Cosell 358
VIII : The Last Gasp 361
41. The Captain and Tennille 363
42. Dick Clark’s Live Wednesday 365
43. The Variety Shows of Donny and Marie Osmond 367
44. Tony Orlando and Dawn 374
Bibliography 379
Index 381
Book Reviews & Awards
“highly recommended”—ARBA; “excellent”—Big Reel; “ample references…informative…detailed and comprehensive…massive amounts of material”—SPERDVAC Radiogram; “outstanding”—Television Chronicles; “a potpourri of pleasant reverie”—Chattanooga Airwaves.
