The Dennis Day Show
The Dennis Day Show is an American comedy/variety show that aired from 1953 to 1954 on NBC. The series stars singer and radio and television personality Dennis Day, whose career otherwise was rooted as a supporting cast member of the long-running The Jack Benny Program on CBS and later NBC.[1]
The Dennis Day Show | |
---|---|
Day with Cliff Arquette and Jeri Lou James, 1953 | |
Also known as | The RCA Victor Show The RCA Victor Show Starring Dennis Day |
Genre | Variety show |
Written by | Paul Henning Roland MacLane Dick Conway |
Directed by | Rod Amateau |
Starring | Dennis Day Cliff Arquette |
Country of origin | United States |
Original language(s) | English |
No. of seasons | 2 |
Production | |
Camera setup | Multi-camera |
Running time | 25 mins. |
Release | |
Original network | NBC |
Picture format | Black-and-white |
Audio format | Monaural |
Original release | February 8, 1952 – August 2, 1954 |
Overview
From 1952 to 1953, Day hosted the related RCA Victor Show Starring Dennis Day,[1] which on February 8, 1952, included the first episode of Day's own subsequent series. The RCA Victor Show aired at 8 pm Fridays. In the spring of 1952, the RCA Victor Show alternated with The Ezio Pinza Show, starring Italian opera singer Ezio Pinza, also sponsored by RCA.[2]
In the revamped The Dennis Day Show, Day portrays a single bachelor who lives in a Hollywood apartment priced above his income level, but considers this arrangement essential to his hopes of succeeding in show business. Cliff Arquette portrays Charley Weaver, a name he later adopted for his own show business career. This Charley Weaver is the custodian in Day's building.[3] Other supporting cast members were Hal March and Jeri Lou Jones.[2] One of the writers for the Day series was Paul Henning, later with The Real McCoys and The Beverly Hillbillies.[4]
On April 12, 1954, one of the last episodes of the series was entitled "The Party Pooper", with Elisha Cook, Jr. as a guest star. Among Day's directors was Rod Amateau (son-in-law to George Burns) later in the same role with CBS's The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis. Other occasional cast members were the comedian Billy Barty, who plays a leprechaun in one segment, Parley Baer, also a regular on The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet and subsequently The Andy Griffith Show, and George O'Hanlon, later the voice of George Jetson on ABC's The Jetsons.[4]
The Dennis Day Show aired at 9 pm ET on Mondays opposite the third season of CBS's I Love Lucy, starring Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz. It preceded Robert Montgomery Presents on NBC.[5]
References
- "Dennis Day". parabrisas.com. Retrieved January 21, 2011.
- Alex McNeil, Total Television, p. 211
- "The Jack Benny Show; The Dennis Day Show". lifeisamovie.com. Retrieved January 22, 2011.
- "The Dennis Day Show". Internet Movie Data Base. Retrieved January 21, 2011.
- Alex McNeil, Total Television, 1953-1954 network television schedule, appendix