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Fred Allen--The Fred Allen Show (1945-1949)

(4,5 Sterne; 9 Bewertungen)

The surviving installments of the master satirist's final series, on NBC, for Blue Bonnet Margarine and Tetley Tea through 1947 and Ford Motor Company in 1948-49. Including the "Allen's Alley" for which he's remembered best---with announcer Kenny Delmar as Senator Claghorn, Parker Fennelly as Titus Moody, Minerva Pious as Mrs. Nussbaum, and Peter Donald as Ajax Cassidy, with Alan Reed as Falstaff Openshaw in the first several installments. Among Allen's classics here include the famous "King for a Day" climax to the Allen-Benny "feud," satires of "Oklahoma!" ("Picadilly") and "HMS Pinafore" ("Brooklyn Pinafore," featuring then-Brooklyn Dodgers manager Leo Durocher), the immortal "Mr. and Mrs. Breakfast Show" satire with Tallulah Bankhead (in two different versions, yet) and several jabs at the giveaway shows that were the bane of his radio existence, including his classic "Break the Contestant" sketch. There are some who say much of his topical humour hasn't dated well, but you'll never think so while you listen. And can you think of a better way to end a long and distinguished run as an old-time radio host than with Henry Morgan and Jack Benny as his guests? "The echo of forgotten laughter" is what Fred Allen thought the radio comedian had to show for all the years of work, according to the way he ended his first memoir, "Treadmill to Oblivion." Here's the rest of the evidence that proves he was wrong for once. The laughter is never forgotten. Especially in Fred Allen's hands.

This recording is part of the Old Time Radio collection.

Chapters

FredAllen-451007 The Fred Allen Show-Auditions, with Edgar Bergen and Charlie M…

27:06

FredAllen-451021 The Fred Allen Show-Hillbilly Music (Guest Frank Sinatra)

28:24

FredAllen-451028 The Fred Allen Show-Charlie McCarthy Sues for Slander

28:57

FredAllen-451104 The Fred Allen Show-Mash Notes (Guest Martha Raye)

29:16

FredAllen-451111 The Fred Allen Show-Charlie the Chicken (Guest Monty Woolley)

29:53

FredAllen-451118 The Fred Allen Show-Renting a House (Guest Boris Karloff)

23:45

FredAllen-451125 The Fred Allen Show-Brooklyn Pinafore I (Guest Leo Durocher)

29:22

FredAllen-451216 The Fred Allen Show-Seeking a Radio Job (Guest Lauritz Melchoi…

30:31

FredAllen-451230 The Fred Allen Show-Radio Shows in Russia

28:46

FredAllen-460106 The Fred Allen Show-Take It or Leave It (Guest Phil Baker)

28:16

FredAllen-460113 The Fred Allen Show-Carmen (Guest Maurice Evans)

29:47

FredAllen-460120 The Fred Allen Show-A Movie on Fred's Life (Guest George Jesse…

28:31

FredAllen-460203 The Fred Allen Show-Picadilly (Oklahoma Parody, with Beatrice …

27:56

FredAllen-460210 The Fred Allen Show-Les Miserables Reprise (with Orson Welles)

28:45

FredAllen-460224 The Fred Allen Show-Hillbilly Drama (Arthur Treacher)

24:20

FredAllen-460303 The Fred Allen Show-Les Miserables Reprise (Guest Orson Welles)

28:46

FredAllen-460310 The Fred Allen Show-Banana Man's Lament (with Carmen Miranda)

30:02

FredAllen-460331 The Fred Allen Show-Charlie the Chicken (with Monty Woolley)

29:53

FredAllen-460414 The Fred Allen Show-Brooklyn Pinafore II (Guest Leo Durocher)

23:36

FredAllen-460428 The Fred Allen Show-Racing Form Trial (Guest Bert Lahr)

29:36

FredAllen-460505 The Fred Allen Show-Mr. and Mrs. Breakfast Show (Guest Tallula…

28:53

FredAllen-460512 The Fred Allen Show-Cairo (Guest Sydney Greenstreet)

29:15

FredAllen-460526 The Fred Allen Show-King for a Day (Guest Jack Benny)

28:54

FredAllen-460623 The Fred Allen Show-50th Anniversary of the Telephone Company …

30:23

FredAllen-461013 The Fred Allen Show-Mikado (Guest Tony Martin)

25:08

FredAllen-461027 The Fred Allen Show-Mr. and Mrs. Breakfast Show Reprise (Guest…

29:07

FredAllen-470302 The Fred Allen Show-Murder in the Penthouse (Guests the Quiz K…

29:56

FredAllen-470316 The Fred Allen Show-Picadilly (Reprise-Guests Beatrice Lillie,…

27:22

FredAllen-470323 The Fred Allen Show-Suing Fred Over Picadilly Rights (Guests R…

26:27

FredAllen-470406 The Fred Allen Show-The Shoshlik Shanty (Guest Gregory Ratoff)

46:04

FredAllen-470511 The Fred Allen Show-The Hollywood Mikado (Guest Bing Crosby)

26:14

FredAllen-470525 The Fred Allen Show-Gimmick With a Microphone

26:59

FredAllen-470525 The Fred Allen Show-Gimmick With a Microphone (Guest Rudy Vall…

26:59

FredAllen-470615 The Fred Allen Show-Fred the Boarder (with Ozzie and Harriet)

27:49

FredAllen-471019 The Fred Allen Show-The Perfect Crime (Guest James Mason)

29:32

FredAllen-471026 The Fred Allen Show-Selling Life Stories with Jack Haley

30:20

FredAllen-471026 The Fred Allen Show-The Haley and Allen Show (Guest Jack Haley)

30:20

FredAllen-471214 The Fred Allen Show-New Year's Eve Plans (Guest George Jessel)

27:21

FredAllen-471228 The Fred Allen Show-Suing to Return Fred's Cuckoo Clock (with …

27:05

FredAllen-480104 The Fred Allen Show-Psycopathic Spectacular (Guest James Mason)

29:31

FredAllen-480328 The Fred Allen Show-Husband and Wife Radio Show (with James an…

29:54

FredAllen-480411 The Fred Allen Show-One Long Pan with Basil Rathbone

28:47

FredAllen-480418 The Fred Allen Show-The Author Meets His Match (Guest James Fa…

29:30

FredAllen-480425 The Fred Allen Show-Scalping Baseball Tickets (Guest Leo Duroc…

29:28

FredAllen-480502 The Fred Allen Show-The J.P. Morgan Court of Human Relations (…

29:01

FredAllen-480509 The Fred Allen Show-Break the Contestant (Guest Don McNeil)

28:45

FredAllen-480523 The Fred Allen Show-Fred Wants to Do Bing Crosby's Life Story …

30:57

FredAllen-480606 The Fred Allen Show-Quiz Program and Soap Opera (Guest Jack Ei…

29:06

FredAllen-480627 The Fred Allen Show-Cease the Melody (Guest Jack Benny)

29:05

FredAllen-481024 The Fred Allen Show-A Prize For Listeners Missing Any Contest …

28:49

FredAllen-481107 The Fred Allen Show-Sam Shovel, Private Eye (Guest Arthur Trea…

29:19

FredAllen-481128 The Fred Allen Show-George Jessel Tries to Sneak Into the Roxy

28:57

FredAllen-481205 The Fred Allen Show-TV Commercials (Guest Henry Morgan)

29:10

FredAllen-481226 The Fred Allen Show-Maine Murder Trial

27:29

FredAllen-490109 The Fred Allen Show-Literary Panel (Guest H. Allen Smith)

28:57

FredAllen-490123 The Fred Allen Show-Traveling Salesman (Jack Haley)

29:13

FredAllen-490130 The Fred Allen Show-Fred Tries to Get Rudy Vallee Into TV

29:17

FredAllen-490206 The Fred Allen Show-Planning a Television Show (Guest Bert Lah…

28:41

FredAllen-490213 The Fred Allen Show-Murder Case (Guest Doc Rockwell)

29:03

FredAllen-490320 The Fred Allen Show-Mob Buster (Guest Victor Moore)

28:53

FredAllen-490626 The Fred Allen Show-The Final Fred Allen Show (Guests Jack Ben…

28:52

Bewertungen

Fred Allen a tormented wit.

(5 Sterne)

Fred Allen was a true wit of his time. From the beginning of his radio career he was beset with problems, hitting him from all directions. He was one stages most talented wits when he was lured onto radio in 1932. Allen was the under-paid and over-worked performers of his time. On the Linit Bath Revue, his first sponsor was too cheap to allow Fred to have an outside writer. Therefore, Fred had to do it all,create, write & edit his show every week. All of which Linit paid him: $1000.00 a week. Fred worked 7 days a week, sometimes, most times writing & rewriting the final scripts until 4a.m. in the morning, just before the final rehearsal, before air time. He never made the kind of money his long time vaudeville friend Jack Benny did. Fred never got the type on monetary support from all of his sponsors. All he got from them was guff & criticism. Same too with the networks he worked for and from the advertising agencies who thought the knew what the public wanted. Fred was the only man who knew, & he proved his point week in and week out, when he won the constant battles with the networks, agencies, & the sponsors. Please enjoy these shows, from the 1943 Peabody Award Winner, Fred Allen.

One of Radio's Great Observers

(5 Sterne)

So much has been written about Fred Allen, there is little to say here. Allen was assisted by top writers Nat Hiken and Aaron Ruben (and bitter when Ruben went to work for Milton Berle) but his personal stamp dominates the shows. He moves from groaner puns to wit pretty easily. Allen complained his sponsor wanted him to use guest stars, but he did it well for the most part. Of course, his shows with Jack Benny were loved by fans then and now; "King For a Day" was, in a way, the template for a Benny TV show with Groucho Marx. Allen wasn't above re-using sketches, so we get several parodies of 'Oklahoma', the husband-wife radio morning shows, and the 'Allen-Judge McKeester trials.' All were solid. It's regretful many Allen broadcasts have not made it into public venues, such as the night NBC faded his broadcast for 20 seconds, or when Larry Storch made an early guest appearance. Still, there's plenty to enjoy here. Times have changed, so the One Long Pan routines may make one cringe. But Allen was attempting to parody the "oriental detective" films of the era, not ridicule a race of people. Some of these files are running a little off speed.

Fred Allen is really, really good

(5 Sterne)

and I really love his jokes. He's hilarious to me. The review below me gives a lot of detail about the man I did not know about such as he was the "lowest paid" (at a thousand a week! During that time?? ) sure it's not "low pay" but in comparison to other celebrities maybe. IF so maybe the other people were jealous of his genius that's why they underpaid him. I don't know but in my opinion his show is the smartest and Ive always found myself cracking up at his way, way off the wall ad libs his weird sketches are out of this world. I feel badly I missed hearing his show when it was new. We in this generation got cheated out of all of the good things Thanks to the guy who uploaded these, because these are great.

Mr. Aaallen!

(5 Sterne)

Funny, talented cast! Love Minerva Pious the woman stooge as she was billed. She is featured in the not-to-be-missed old time radio program here called BEHIND THE MIKE (1940-42, available LV) in the episode STOOGEDOM. Great comic relief for time travelers bored with 21st c. so-called entertainment, like me. But positively!

you have to be really dumb to enjoy this,horrible.

(1 Sterne)