Comedy-Variety

The Academy of Television Arts & Sciences Foundation Presents

02:26

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About

“You had to have your wits about you. It was a little bit like summer stock…I think the thing that made it the golden age of television is most of us were from Broadway.” - Jayne Meadows, Actress

Interviewees discuss television's "Golden Age" of comedies.

Highlights

Jayne Meadows on the challenges of working in live television

Carl Reiner on Your Show of Shows and Caesar's Hour

Hazel Shermet on appearing on The Morey Amsterdam Show

Mary Kay and Johnny Stearns on the challenges of acting in live television; on sets and locations on Mary Kay and Johnny

Stewart MacGregory on being stage coordinator for NBC Television starting in 1948

Howard Morris on co-starring on Admiral Broadway Revue, Your Show of Shows, and Caesar's Hour, along with Sid Caesar, Imogene Coca, and Carl Reiner

Who talked about this topic

Paul Bogart

Paul Bogart briefly on being a stage manager on Your Show of Shows

Chuck McCann with Emerson College

Chuck McCann on live television in the 1950s

Hume Cronyn

Hume Cronyn on appearing in the series The Marriage with wife Jessica Tandy

Jamie Farr

Jamie Farr on Sherwood Schwartz writing for The Red Skelton Show

Larry Gelbart

Larry Gelbart on the rigorous work ethic and camaraderie of the writers of Caesar's Hour

Sheila Kuehl

Sheila Kuehl on playing "Jackie Erwin" on The Stu Erwin Show aka Trouble With Father

Norman Lear

Norman Lear on the challenges of working all day and night in the days of live television

Stewart MacGregory

Stewart MacGregory on being stage coordinator for NBC Television starting in 1948

Barney McNulty

Barney McNulty on doing cue cards for The Ed Wynn Show

Barry McNulty on doing cue cards for I Love Lucy with Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz

Jayne Meadows

Jayne Meadows on the challenges of working in live television

Jayne Meadows on her sister Audrey Meadows as "Alice Kramden" on The Honeymooners

Howard Morris

Howard Morris on co-starring on Admiral Broadway Revue, Your Show of Shows, and Caesar's Hour, along with Sid Caesar, Imogene Coca, and Carl Reiner

Don Pike

Don Pike on being technical director for Lights Out and Your Hit Parade

Carl Reiner

Carl Reiner on Your Show of Shows and Caesar's Hour

Gene Reynolds

Gene Reynolds on the M*A*S*H episode "Point of View"

Gene Reynolds on killing off "Henry Blake" on M*A*S*H

Hazel Shermet

Hazel Shermet on appearing on The Morey Amsterdam Show

Hazel Shermet on appearing on The Fred Allen Show

Hazel Shermet on doing Songs You've Never Heard for WOR

Johnny Stearns

Mary Kay and Johnny Stearns on the challenges of acting in live television; on sets and locations on Mary Kay and Johnny

Mary Kay Stearns

Mary Kay and Johnny Stearns on the challenges of acting in live television; on sets and locations on Mary Kay and Johnny

Gale Storm

Gale Storm on how My Little Margie impacted television

Mel Tolkin

Mel Tolkin on writing for Your Show of Shows

Mel Tolkin on classic sketches from Caesar's Hour featuring Sid Caesar

All Topics