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JACK BENNY'S 20th ANNIVERSARY TELEVISION SPECIAL
BY STEVEN THOMPSON
Jack Benny was many things in show business. He was a monologist, an emcee, a violinist, an actor, a comedian and a sketch comic, all of which melded over more than four decades into the character we remember today as “Jack Benny.” One thing Jack Benny never was. though, was a nostalgia act.
Jack was always looking forward in his career, always trying new things and always being “in the moment.” His early radio career gave way to the more classic era but when Benny moved to television, he changed his format again. When he gave up his weekly TV slot in favor of live appearances and annual TV specials, he was still trying new things with hippie jokes and "hot" guests like The Beach Boys and Isaac Hayes. In spite of the big nostalgia boom of the late sixties/early seventies that brought back Jack’s Jello and Lucky Strike broadcasts in syndicated reruns, Jack refused to rest on his laurels and was always looking for the next big thing.
His main concession to the nostalgia boom was, in fact, his hour-long 1970 offering entitled JACK BENNY’S 20TH ANNIVERSARY TV SPECIAL. This was the one time Jack allowed himself to fully revel in where he had been, updating many of his legendary cast into the new era. Even then, when he could easily have done a 40th anniversary, he chose to only celebrate the beginnings of his TV career, not radio.
The show begins, naturally, with announcer Don Wilson. Don had long since become much more than just an announcer in the proceedings but had been absent since the weekly gig went away. The first thing one notices is the distinctive sound that shows that Don has aged and now has false teeth. On camera, he gives a typically cynical introduction to the star as he had done countless times before. He gets so fed up he finally tells Jack to introduce himself!
For a change, Jack reminisces in his monologue, noting his eighteen years in radio before TV. Of course, Jack’s radio show was actually on for twenty-THREE years. More proof of aging. The memory is always the first to go. He talks about Phil Harris, conspicuously absent from this show. A popular Disney voice actor at that point and a frequent guest on sportsman programs, it’s possible Jack just couldn’t afford Phil's asking price.
Dinah Shore is brought out to schmooze and sing and cameos from fellow radio vets Red Skelton and Dean Martin follow.
After that, a highlight of the show: Jack and Rochester show up at the Airport in a variation of the classic sketch done dozens of times before, usually set at train stations. Eddie Anderson, Jack’s most popular sidekick long before the Civil Rights era, grins from ear to ear to be back with Benny. Veterans Benny Rubin, Frank Nelson and Mel Blanc are dutifully trotted out here to do their old shtick to perfection. The highlight of the sketch, however, is Dennis Day, still looking and sounding boyish but showing Jack just what he’s been up to in recent years--his 9 kids!
Bob Hope, a frequent guest on Jack Benny’s early TV shows, appears next with an award for our star. Frank Sinatra then arrives for a HORN BLOWS AT MIDNIGHT joke and a song.
A real treat comes up next with a brief taped appearance from Jack’s wife and long-time co-star Mary Livingstone. Mary had long had a phobia of appearing on TV and had had to leave the series. This was her first TV appearance since then and her final appearance with Jack on the air. She looks great and sounds great but is obviously reading her lines. Lucille Ball cameos in Mary’s scene.
Offered up next is a delightful montage of legendary guest star clips from Jack's long-running series with everyone from Bogart, Cooper and Monroe to Fred Allen, Liberace and President Harry Truman showing up.
That’s about as nostalgic as Jack Benny gets because the very next scene is a brief sketch speculating on the cast yet another twenty years on!
But Jack wouldn’t make it another twenty nor would various others of the group. At that time no one knew that, of course. Jack had another four years to go and they were some of his most successful yet as he toured college campuses, appeared with symphonies and was, at the time of his passing, about to revive his long-dormant movie-acting career with a starring role in Neil Simon’s THE SUNSHINE BOYS.
We’re lucky today in that we see the big picture. We can see Jack at every point on his timeline and know that from his very first radio appearance he just kept looking to the future. JACK BENNY’S 20TH ANNIVERSARY TV SPECIAL was simply a pleasant way for him to do yet another show for his fans, by that point both young and old.
I was eleven years old when I saw this special on NBC in 1970. I knew Jack from his various guest appearances and some old movies but mainly, I loved his specials. Since they didn’t appear every single week, they really were special…and this one introduced me to characters and concepts I would come to know all too well in later years as I eagerly listened to every one of Jack’s radio programs I could find. In time, hundreds of them!
No, Jack Benny was never a nostalgia act. He had long since transcended his own past to become something much better—a living legend.
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Steven Thompson is a freelance writer who also does research, interviews, transcription, editing and proofreading. I've previously linked to his excellent, entertaining and informative blogs and web pages on this site. In fact, sometimes I get the feeling that Steven is my brother from another mother...my favorite pop culture year is 1966; Steven has a blog for that. I'm a big Monkees and 1970s/1980s comics book fan; Steven writes about them. I'm obviously a big fan of Jack Benny...and Steven writes about him. His "Booksteve" blog can be found here:
Booksteve's Library, Steven's blog page
And from Kliph Nesteroff's "Classic Television Showbiz" blog, here is the "Jack Benny's 20th Anniversary" special:
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