George Balzer

In his nearly two-hour interview, George Balzer (1915-2006) recalls his start in comedy writing, first for Bing Crosby's Kraft Music Hall radio program, and then on the radio show Burns and Allen where he first teamed up with writer Sam Perrin. He talks about the duo next working on The Jack Benny Program radio show, and later transitioning with Benny to his CBS television program of the same name. Balzer discusses the writing process on The Jack Benny Program, and talks about some of the more memorable skits and comedy bits. Lastly, he outlines writing for Lucille Ball's sitcom Here's Lucy, as well as The Red Skelton Show and The Don Knotts Show. B-roll consists of photos from his Jack Benny years (and featured stars Barbara Stanwyck, President Truman, and the Benny writers), as well as a photo with Sam Perrin and another with Bob Hope and President Nixon. Dan Pasternack conducted the interview on January 25, 2001 in Van Nuys, CA.