Jack Benny’s Comic Program; Remembering something wonderful

Terry Teachout

"The art of comedy underwent two radical transformations in the first half of the 20th century, both triggered by the emergence of new electronic technologies. With the coming in 1926 of network radio, vaudeville comedians who had previously performed their self-written routines over and over again in theaters across America were forced to depend on professional writers to supply them with a steady flow of fresh material for the weekly radio series that soon became their bread and butter. And with the coming of network television 21 years later, radio comedians had to develop ways of amusing audiences that could now hear and see them.

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"Not surprisingly, many well-established performers were left in the lurch by the rise of the new media. Moreover, some vaudevillians who, like Fred Allen, had successfully reinvented themselves for radio were unable to make the transition to TV. But a handful of exceptionally talented performers managed to move from vaudeville to radio to TV, and none did it with more success than Jack Benny, whose feigned stinginess, scratchy violin playing, slightly effeminate demeanor, and preternaturally exact comic timing made him one of the world’s most beloved performers. After establishing himself in vaudeville, he became the star of a comedy series,

"With the demise of nighttime network radio as an entertainment medium, the 931 weekly episodes of The Jack Benny Program became the province of comedy obsessives—and because Benny’s TV series was filmed in black-and-white, it is no longer shown in syndication with any regularity." . . . 

Jack Benny’s Comic Program