The Ken Murray Show

Never would I have dreamt, once upon a time, that Travalanche would grow to such an extent that a second post on comedian Ken Murray (1903-1988) would be warranted. But at the moment I happen to be neck deep in working on my next book Electric Vaudeville: A Century of Radio and TV Variety, and so we have opportunity to go a little deeper into his CBS variety program The Ken Murray Show (1950-53).

It’s funny that few remember Murray as they have his contemporaries like Ed Sullivan, Milton Berle, Sid Caesar, and many of the other variety show stars. He was well-known in his own time, but by the ’60s he was more interested in writing show business books and making home movies than making TV appearances, though he did show his head from time to time.

A visionary showman, Murray gave his TV show several unique features, many of them borrowed from his popular live revues, Ken Murray’s Blackouts. One was a line of chorus girls he called The Glamourlovelies. Among the cast were comedy cowgirl singer Laurie Anders (who later co-starred with Murray in the 1953 film The Marshall’s Daughter), and Darla Hood, formerly of Our Gang a.k.a. The Little Rascals. Murray was also the only tv variety show impresario I know of who featured dramatic sketches and one act plays as well as comic ones. Dramatic playlets had been a staple of vaudeville. Few of the television age attempted to revive that. The Ken Murray show was broadcast from New York for its first season. For the second season he moved his operation to his “home town” Hollywood.

And of course, since Murray knew everyone in show business stretching all the way back to his vaudeville days, The Ken Murray Show presented hundreds of top personalities ranging from Hollywood and stage stars and hit singers to grunt level hoofers and acrobats. Burt Lancaster! James Roach and His Bagpipers!Frank Sinatra!Beebe’s Hollywood Bears!Joe E. Brown!The Korn Kobblers!Gypsy Rose Lee!The Royal Northwest Mounted Police Chorus! And about two hundred others! Though, he was only on for three years, Murray may come in second only to Ed Sullivan when it came to reviving vaudeville.

For more on Ken Murray, see my original post here.

For more on the history of vaudeville, where Ken Murray got his start,please consult No Applause, Just Throw Money: The Book That Made Vaudeville Famous, and pleasestay tuned for my upcomingElectric Vaudeville: A Century of Radio and TV Variety.