Jack Benny was one of the 20th century’s most beloved comedians: a star of vaudeville, the golden age of radio, movies and television. He actually invented the situation comedy on radio. And he could milk a laugh by scanning (slowly turning and looking at) the audience — extending a laugh seconds longer than any other comedian. He helped pioneer 20th century comedy that was more attitude than just setup/joke setup/joke.
Mel Blanc was a comedian who became a legend in cartoons. He did the voices for most Warner Brothers cartoons (Bugs Bunny, Sylvester, Tweety, Daffy Duck, Yosemite Sam, Porky Pig and more) and later on for Barney Rubble and Dino on The Flintstones.
But he was also one of Benny’s favorite co-performers. And Benny’s favorite routine was reportedly the “Si Sy” routine. Here’s a version of it done on television with Benny and Blanc in their glory — and a taste of Benny’s violin talents thrown in.
For students of comedy (particularly for young comedians who want to study “the masters”) note:
–How Benny extends a laugh by scanning the audience.
–How Benny’s timing throughout is so natural it doesn’t seem like timing. But watch it a second time and you can see how every response and glance is timed perfectly.
–His perfect chemistry with Blanc, who stays in character all the time and also had impeccable timing.
A final note. The Benny radio show was WAY before my time and I remember him mostly as a younger looking old man with a TV show in the 60s (this color clip is from that era), right before he left the air. But I have gone back and studied his radio programs and early TV and Benny performances on radio and TV are an instructional manual on verbal timing, body language and stage presence (notice how likable he is). Any routines he ever did with Blanc were among his best.
This post and others on comedians here are NOT posted as “nostalgia” but as examples of comedy at its best — comedy preserved to be enjoyed and studied again and again. You can still get some good dvd collections
of his programs.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vIa7GYstYOQ
Joe Gandelman is a former fulltime journalist who freelanced in India, Spain, Bangladesh and Cypress writing for publications such as the Christian Science Monitor and Newsweek. He also did radio reports from Madrid for NPR’s All Things Considered. He has worked on two U.S. newspapers and quit the news biz in 1990 to go into entertainment. He also has written for The Week and several online publications, did a column for Cagle Cartoons Syndicate and has appeared on CNN.