November
16, 1970
Produced
by: Irving Fein, Stan Harris
Directed
by: Stan Harris, Paul Heslin
Written
by: Hal Goldman, Al Gordon, Hilliard Marks, Hugh Wedlock Jr.
Starring
the Cast of “The Jack Benny Program”
Jack
Benny
(Himself) was
a Beverly Hills neighbor of Lucille Ball’s and the two were
off-screen friends. Benny appeared on “The Lucy Show” as Harry
Tuttle (a Jack Benny doppelganger) in “Lucy
and the Plumber” (TLS S3;E2),
later did a voice over cameo as himself in “Lucy
With George Burns” (TLS S5;E1),
and played himself in “Lucy
Gets Jack Benny’s Account” (TLS S6;E6).
He was seen in four episodes of “Here’s Lucy.” Benny and Ball
appeared on many TV variety and award shows together. He died in
1974, a few weeks after taping “An
All-Star Party for Lucille Ball.”
Mary
Livingstone
(Herself) married
Jack Benny in 1927 and the pair remained together until his death in
1974. Initially an actor who appeared on Benny’s radio and
television programs, she retired from show business in 1958, at the
same time as Gracie Allen, wife of George Burns. Her voice (lip
synched by Lucy) was used in “Lucy and Jack Benny’s Biography”
(HL S3;E11). She died in 1983.
This
is Livingstone’s first appearance on her husband’s television show in
fifteen years.
Don
Wilson
(Announcer. Himself) was
a portly man with a deep resonating voice that made him very popular
with sponsors in the early days of radio. He teamed with Jack Benny
on radio and when Benny made the move to television, Wilson made the
move as well, until 1965, when “The Jack Benny Program” ended.
Dennis
Day
(Himself) was
an Irish singer who’s name and career were synonymous with Jack
Benny’s, working with the comedian on radio and TV. It was Benny
who gave him his big break in 1939 and Benny who kept him employed as
a singer and naive comic sidekick. His “Gee,
Mr. Benny!” became
a well-known catchphrase. Day would play second banana to the
comedian until Benny’s death in 1974. Day played an elderly
bachelor hunting on a 1967 episode of “The
Lucy Show” (S6;E7).
Day died at age 72 of Lou Gehrig’s disease.
Day’s
real-life wife, Peggy
Almquist,
and his ten children Tommy,
Pat, Margaret, Eileen, Danny, Therese, Cathy, Mary Kate
and twins Michael
and
Paul.
The childrens’ surname was McNulty,
Day’s birth name. None of the family are credited.
Eddie
Anderson
(Rochester) was
Jack Benny’s valet and sidekick first on radio and then on
television. He co-starred with Lucille Ball on “Stars in the Eye”
(1952) and one other Jack Benny special in 1969.
Mel
Blanc
(Sy / Airport Voice) is
best known as the voice of Bugs Bunny and other Warner Brothers
characters, but had acted with Lucille Ball on radio and in the 1950
film The
Fuller Brush Girl.
He did some voice dubbing (ADR) on “Lucy Goes To The Air Force
Academy: Part 2” (HL S2;E2) in 1969.
Frank
Nelson
(Ticket Clerk) is
the only actor to play two recurring roles on “I Love Lucy”:
Freddie Fillmore and Ralph Ramsey. He also appeared as six other
characters. He appeared in the
first
of
the “The Lucy–Desi Comedy Hours” as well as a 1963 episode
of “The Lucy Show.”
Benny
Rubin
(Information Desk Clerk) played
the snarky Hollywood Bus Driver in “The
Tour” (ILL S4;E30).
His first “Lucy Show” appearance was in “Lucy and the Runaway
Butterfly” (S1;E29) and he was also seen in “Lucy and Viv Open a
Restaurant” (S4;E20) in 1964.
Guest
Stars
Lucille Ball (Janet, Benny’s Maid) played all of the women in Jack Benny’s life (including Mary Livingstone) on her own show in “Lucy and Jack Benny’s Biography” (HL S3;E11) which aired just one week after this special. Benny paid tribute to Lucy on “An All-Star Party for Lucille Ball” (1974) just prior to his death.
Ball receives no screen credit but gets a verbal thank you from Benny at show’s conclusion. Lucy has three lines and 30 seconds screen time!
Frank
Sinatra
(Himself) had appeared on “The Jack Benny Program” in 1951. Benny
returned the favor by appearing on “The Frank Sinatra Show” that
same year. Sinatra inadvertently appeared on “I Love Lucy” when
a clip from his film Guys
and Dolls was
inserted into “Lucy and the Dummy” (ILL S5;E3) in 1955.
Sinatra
is billed as ‘Special Guest Star’ in the opening credits.
Bob
Hope
(Himself) was
born Lesley Townes Hope in England in 1903. During his extensive
career in virtually all forms of media he received five honorary
Academy Awards. In 1945 Desi Arnaz was the orchestra leader on Bob
Hope’s radio show. Ball and Hope did four films together. He
appeared as himself on the season
6 opener
of
“I Love Lucy.” He did a brief cameo in a 1964 episode of “The
Lucy Show.”
When
Lucille Ball moved to NBC in 1980, Hope appeared on her welcome
special.
He died in 2003 at age 100.
Dinah
Shore
(Herself) was
born Fannye Rose Shore in 1916. She was a singer, actress, and
television personality, and the top-charting female vocalist of the
1940s. She rose to prominence as a recording artist during the Big
Band era, but achieved even greater success a decade later, in
television, mainly as hostess of a series of variety programs. She
later changed her named to Dinah after her success with the song of
the same name. She was famous for blowing a kiss to her audiences
(“Mwah!”) at the end of each show. She appeared on “Here’s
Lucy” as herself in 1971. Her passions were golf, cooking, and
painting. Shore died in 1994.
Dean
Martin (Himself)
was
born Dino Paul Crocetti in Steubenville, Ohio, in 1917. He made his
screen debut in a short playing a singer in Art Mooney’s band, but
his first big screen role was 1949’s My
Friend Irma
with
Jerry Lewis. This began a partnership that would be one of the most
successful screen pairings in cinema history. Later, he also worked
frequently members of “the Rat Pack”: Frank Sinatra, Joey Bishop,
Peter Lawford, and Sammy Davis Jr. His persona was that of a playboy,
usually seen with a glass of booze and a cigarette. Martin and
Lucille Ball appeared on many TV variety and award shows together and
made the TV movie “Lucy Gets Lucky” in 1975. He played himself
(and his stunt man double) on “The Lucy Show” on Valentine’s Day
1966. He died on Christmas Day in 1995 at age 78.
Martin
receives no screen credit but gets a verbal thank you from Benny at
show’s conclusion
Red
Skelton
(Western Union Messenger)
was
born Richard Skelton in 1913. He left school after the third grade to
join a traveling medicine show and from there entered vaudeville. His
first film was Having
Wonderful Time in
1938, which is where he first met Lucille Ball. The pair went on to
appear together in Du
Barry Was a Lady
(1943),
Thousands
Cheer
(1943),
Ziegfeld
Follies
(1945),
and The
Fuller Brush Girl
(1950).
Skelton played himself on “Lucy Goes To Alaska” (LDCH 1959). He
did two episodes of “The Jack Benny Program” in 1956 and 1958.
He died in 1997 at the age of 84.
Skelton
receives no screen credit but gets a verbal thank you from Benny at
show’s conclusion
George
Burns
(Voice of the Talking Telegram) was
born Nathan Birnbaum in New York City in January 1896. He married
Gracie Allen in 1926 and the two formed an act (Burns and Allen) that
toured in vaudeville. They had their own hit show “The George Burns
and Gracie Allen Show” first on radio then on CBS TV from 1950 to
1958, airing concurrently with “I Love Lucy.” He appeared as
himself on “The
Lucy Show” (S5;E1)
in
1966 as well as doing a cameo on “Lucy
and Jack Benny’s Biography” (HL S3;E11)
in
1970. After Allen’s death in 1964, Burns reinvented himself as a
solo act. In 1976 he won an Oscar for playing one of The
Sunshine Boys.
He was also known for playing the title role in Oh,
God! (1978)
and its 1984 sequel Oh,
God! You Devil.
Burns
and Ball appeared on many TV variety and award shows together. He
died at the age of 100.
Burns
receives no screen credit but gets a verbal thank you from Benny at
show’s conclusion
David
Westberg
(Helicopter Pilot)
Verbal
credit from Don Wilson at show’s conclusion.
Trained
Penguins
(courtesy
of Sea World San Diego) formerly worked for Jack Benny in “Jack Benny’s Birthday Special” (February 17, 1969).
TRIVIA
This
is the last television show that reunited the entire cast of the Jack
Benny
radio show. Most of the cast made appearances on Jack Benny’s
television show as well.
Jack
Benny had his own radio program since 1932. He brought the program to
television (along with his radio regulars) on October 28, 1950. Jack
remained thirty-nine-years-old, kept his money in his basement, and
drove his old Maxwell car, just as he had done on radio. The
television show ran until 1965. For the first five years, the show
aired concurrently on radio and television. The TV program produced
931 episodes. It won an Emmy Award for best comedy show in 1961.
In
October 1964, Lucille Ball was featured on a program where she played
Mrs. Paul Revere. After the regular half hour show was canceled,
Benny embarked on a series of bi-annual specials. Lucille Ball
appeared on three of these specials.
This
show was sponsored by Timex.
As
always, Jack Benny’s theme song is “Love in Bloom.”
In
the subsequent special “Everything You Always Wanted to Know About
Jack Benny But Were Afraid to Ask” (March 10, 1971), Phil Harris
thinks he’s arrived in time for Benny’s “20th Anniversary” show, but Benny tells him that it was four months ago.
Lucy,
Benny, Bob Hope, Dean Martin, George Burns, and Red Skelton, all
appeared in the patriotic TV special “Swing Out, Sweet Land”
which aired two weeks after this special on November 29, 1970.
THE SHOW
Announcer
Don Wilson introduces Jack Benny, live on stage. He gets sidetracked saying how ungrateful Benny is. Jack watches from the wings and
finally comes on stage to rebuke Wilson.
Benny:
“You
were just supposed to introduce me!”
Wilson:
“Introduce
yourself!” (He walks off)
After
a few opening remarks about his years on television and radio, Benny
introduces Dinah
Shore,
who was also a guest on his very first TV show in 1950. They
reminisce about that show. Dinah sings “All
of a Sudden My Heart Sings” by
Harold
J. Rome, Henri Laurent Herpin, and Jean-Marie Blanvillain.
Dean
Martin knocks on Jack’s dressing room door to wish him a happy
anniversary and dance “The
Anniversary Waltz”
with him. They sing and dance out the door. The bit lasts less than 30
seconds.
After
a commercial message from Timex, Red
Skelton
skips on dressed as a Western Union messenger to give Jack Benny a
telegram. He makes Benny laugh when he says “I’m a dreamer, aren’t
I?” while holding his hand out for a tip. He is on screen / stage
for less than a minute.
Skelton
has delivered a talking telegram from George Burns, which instructs
Jack to hold it up to his ear to hear the message.
Voice
of George Burns:
“Only
an idiot would stand before 40 million people holding a telegram up
to his ear.”
Benny
has recruited Rochester to drive him to the airport for his trip to
Mexico City.
Wondering about the departure time, he asks at the
information booth, manned by Benny
Rubin.
Whatever Benny asks him, his answer is “I dunno.”
The ticket
clerk is played by Frank
Nelson,
who greets him with his trademark “Yeeeeeeeeees?”
At
the airport, Benny runs into Dennis
Day,
his wife Peggy, and their ten (!) children.
Rochester
gives Benny’s overweight luggage to a Mexican man (Mel Blanc) on the
same flight.
In response to everything Benny asks, he says “si”.
The man’s name is “Sy”.
He has a sister named
“Sue.”
Blooper
Alert!
Despite this familiar old “si / Sy / Sue” routine, Benny
mistakenly calls Rubin “Sue” then corrects himself saying “si”
before Rubin chimes in “Sy”.
Benny
hears hears a flight announcement that says his trip is delayed.
Another voice comes on the public address system to say:
Voice
(Mel
Blanc): “Attention
please. Attention! Plane leaving at gate five for Anaheim, Azusa,
and Cucamonga!”
This
is one of Mel Blanc’s earliest routines from the Jack Benny radio
show. Instead of a train station, here it is an airport.
Blanc’s
voice announces a flight for Alaska and three penguins
come toddling toward the gate. These three penguins were also
featured in
“Jack
Benny’s Birthday Special”
(February
17, 1969), which also starred Lucille Ball, Benny Rubin, Don Wilson,
and Dennis Day.
Bob
Hope does a monologue about Jack Benny. Benny joins him onstage and
Hope sings “Thanks
for the Memory”
(his theme song) with special lyrics about Benny’s age. In response,
Benny sings a few bars of “Love
in Bloom”
(his theme song) with special lyrics about Hope.
A
helicopter lands in the studio and Frank
Sinatra
steps out of it! Frank invites Benny to go to the movies after the
show. The double feature is The
Kissing Bandit (1948)
and The
Horn Blows at Midnight.
The
Kissing Bandit is
a film starring Sinatra that he loathed. The
Horn Blows at Midnight
is widely considered Benny’s worst film. Sinatra sings “I
Get A Kick Out of You” by
Cole Porter. Sinatra substitutes the alternate lyric “Some
like the perfume from Spain”
instead of “Some
get a kick from cocaine.”
However, instead of following with “I’m
sure that if I took even one sniff”
he sings “I’m
sure that if I took one look.”
After
a commercial, the scene is set in Jack Benny’s home, where Mary
Livingston picks up the telephone. It is Jack calling from the
studio. He asks her to join him after the show for supper.
Mary
calls her maid, Janet (Lucille Ball). Ball gets a huge round of applause from the studio audience.
Janet reveals that Mary’s been
on TV the whole time because Jack has hidden a camera behind a painting of
Betsy Ross!
Back
in the studio, Benny introduces film clips from his past 20 years.
Stars include Jimmy Stewart, John Wayne, Marilyn Monroe, Ed Sullivan,
Humphrey Bogart, Fred MacMurray, Kirk Douglas, Liberace, Tennessee
Ernie Ford, Nat King Cole, Ginger Rogers, Charles Boyer, George
Burns, Gracie Allen, Bob Hope, Bing Crosby, Milton Berle, Danny
Thomas, Frank Sinatra, Lucille
Ball,
David Niven, Carol Burnett, Raymond Burr, Johnny Carson, Andy
Williams, Rock Hudson, Dan Rowan, Dick Martin, Tom Smothers, Dick
Smothers, Cary Grant, Billy Graham, Lawrence Welk, Dan Blocker,
Robert Goulet, and Phyllis Diller.
Jack
Benny thinks ahead to what the next twenty years will bring. Flash
forward to Rochester with white hair and a cane answering the door to
a bald Don Wilson and a stooped over Dennis Day. A creaky Bob
‘Road-To-Medicare’ Hope joins them, supporting himself with a walking
stick. A gray-haired Dinah Shore comes through the door and blows
everyone one of her famous kisses “Mwaah!” The kiss sends her
reeling across the room. Jack skips down the stairs energetically,
not having age one iota since 1970 and distributes scripts to his
ancient co-stars. Even though Jack Benny died in 1974, only four
years after this special, he will forever be only 39 on TV.
After
the last commercial break, Jack takes a moment to thank his co-stars,
and all of his viewers throughout the world. The camera pulls back
to reveal an unfurled stack of computer printout and Benny starts
reading the names of his viewers – alphabetically!
“Mr. and Mrs. Tony Ames, Miss Terry Arco, Mr. and Mrs. Albert
Aaron, Mrs. Andrew Aaronson…”
This
Date in Lucy History
– November 16th
"The
French Revue”
(ILL S3;E7) – November 16, 1953
“Lucy
Becomes a Father”
(TLS S3;E9) – November 16, 1964
“Lucy the Diamond Cutter”
(HL S3;E10) – November 16, 1970
Papermoon Loves Lucy 
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