Benjamin Kubelsky is one of America's most popular and enduring comedians. He began in Chicago as a teenager, playing the violin on a music hall stage; in time, the violin became a prop. Benjamin changed his name to Jack Benny and he developed a persona his audiences came to love. Benny played the part of a vain, but endearing braggart, who despite his foibles and flaws charmed his way into the hearts of millions of fans. His career spanned fifty years, encompassing vaudeville, radio, television and film.
Jack Benny's radio program began in 1932 and was still on the air when it moved to television in 1950. The Jack Benny Show started slowly, with only four shows in the first year, but grew into a biweekly, and then a weekly show by 1958, becoming one of the most popular shows on television.
A master of comedic timing, Benny remained 39-years-old, kept his money in a vault in the basement and drove his old Maxwell car, just as he had on the radio. His real-life wife Mary Livingstone, Rochester, played by Eddie Anderson, his announcer Don Wilson, and a team of regulars including the crooner Dennis Day and Mel Blanc, the voice of Bugs Bunny, abetted him.
In addition to the regulars who remained with the show throughout its extraordinary run, a virtual who's who of stars made guest appearances on the show.
This two DVD collection includes 10 episodes of The Jack Benny Show, with guest stars including Humphrey Bogart, George Burns, Kirk Douglas, Fred MacMurray, Jayne Mansfield, Bing Crosby and Audrey Meadows.
Disc 1
Humphrey Bogart Show
Guest Star: Humphrey Bogart
Police Lt. Jack Benny grills notorious killer
"Babyface" Humphrey Bogart. Bogart is promoting
his new picture Beat the Devil.
The Jam Session Show
Guest Star: Fred MacMurray, Kirk Douglas,
Dan Daily, Tony Martin
Jack's friends are coming over for their weekly jam
Session. The band is Tony Martin on clarinet, Fred
MacMurray on saxophone, Dick Powell on trumpet,
Dan Daily on drums and Kirk Douglas on banjo.
Christmas Show
Guest Star: Charles Cantor
Jack goes Christmas shopping with Rochester and
drives the staff of the department store crazy.
Railroad Station Program
Guest Star: Artie Auerbach
Jack takes the train to New York to talk to his
sponsor, Lucky Strike. He stays in the usual dump,
the Acme Plaza, where a girl keeps phoning the
room, arranging for her elopement. Unfortunately,
Jack never tells her it is a wring number.
Talent Show
Guest Star: Jayne Mansfield
During the monologue, Don announces that a purse
has been found. It belongs to Jayne Mansfield, who
was sitting in the audience when an usher grabbed
her purse - a sneaky way to get a guest star.
Jack hosts a talent contest and Mel Blanc plays
an animal impersonator with hilarious results.
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Disc 2
Goldie, Fields and Glide
Guest Star: Bing Crosby
Jack recalls his old vaudeville days and the tours
he made with his two partners, Bing Crosby and
George Burns, who were billed as
"Goldie, Fields and Glide."
How Jack Found Mary
Guest Star: Bea Benaderet
Jack and Mary have differing recollections of how
they met when Mary worked at Macy's.
In Jack's version, he is handsome spender;
Mary remembers it very differently, especially
buying the engagement ring.
Reminiscing About Last New Year's
Guest Star: Bob Crosby
When the show's cast invites Jack to a big
New Year's Eve party, he turns them down
because he has a date with his new lady friend
Gloria. A couple of hours later, however, Jack finds
himself at a "party" with his new date - Rochester.
The Honeymooners Show
Guest Star: Audrey Meadows
Jack plays Ralph Kramden in a take-off of
The Honeymooners, with Audrey Meadows as
Alice and Dennis Day as Ed Norton.
4 O'Clock In The Morning
Guest Star: Bea Benaderet
After being awakened at 4:00 a.m. by a phone call
from "Hank, The All Night Radio DJ," Jack finds
that he can't get back to sleep. He and Mary go
clothes shopping later that day, but it turns out to
be an ordeal for the exhausted Jack.
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