Tuesday, January 6, 2009

RARE CLIP FROM THE VERY FIRST TONIGHT SHOW HOSTED BY STEVE ALLEN-CIRCA SEPTEMBER 27,1954 - AND A SKETCH WITH HIS MOTHER FROM A 1959 VARIETY SHOW

IN FALL OF 1954, THE STEVE ALLEN SHOW, WHICH HAD AIRED IN LATE NIGHT, LOCALLY, ON NEW YORK'S WNBC-TV (THEN WNBT-TV) FOR ABOUT A YEAR, DEBUTED ON THE NBC TELEVISION NETWORK AS NBC'S TONIGHT, STARRING STEVE ALLEN.HE WAS A TRUE VIDEO INNOVATOR, WHOSE WORK INSPIRED CARSON,LETTERMAN,LENO AND O'BRIEN,BY THEIR OWN ADMISSION. HE AD-LIBED HIS OPENING MONOLOGUE AND MUCH OF THE MATERIAL IN THE NINETY MINUTES THAT WOULD AIR LIVE,EACH NIGHT, FIVE NIGHTS A WEEK. FOR A WHILE HE HOSTED TONIGHT AND A SUNDAY NIGHT, NBC VARIETY SHOW. IN 1956 HE LEFT TONIGHT TO HOST THE SUNDAY VARIETY SHOW AND TO MAKE FILMS, LIKE UNIVERSAL'S BENNY GOODMAN STORY. BORN ON 12/21/21, HE WENT ON TO HOST SEVERAL TALK AND VARIETY PROGRAMS, APPEAR IN FILMS AND TELEVISION SERIES,AUTHOR MANY BOOKS AND WRITE HUNDREDS OF ORIGINAL SONGS BEFORE HE PASSED AWAY IN 2000. HIS MOTHER WAS VAUDEVILLE COMEDY STAR, BELLE MONTROSE, WITH WHOM HE PERFORMS, BELOW,IN THIS RARE CLIP ,FROM HIS 1959 NBC-TV VARIETY BELOW. ENJOY!!!







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