The Jackie Gleason Show was a popular television variety show that starred Jackie Gleason and ran in a variety of incarnations, from 1952 to 1970. A variety show is a show with a variety of acts, often including music and comedy skits, especially on television. ... Jackie Gleason and Audrey Meadows in a staged publicity shot for The Honeymooners. ... 1952 was a leap year starting on Tuesday (link will take you to calendar). ... 1970 was a common year starting on Thursday. ...

The former series originated on the DuMont Network under the title Cavalcade of Stars. After original host Jerry Lester quit the show in 1950, Gleason--who had made his mark on the first television incarnation of the Life of Riley sitcom--stepped into Cavalcade and became an immediate sensation. In 1952 CBS president William S. Paley lured Gleason away to his network, and the series was retitled The Jackie Gleason Show. DuMont may be used to refer to one of several things: Allen B. DuMont was a U.S. inventor, industrialist, and pioneer in the early years of television. ... 1950 was a common year starting on Sunday (link will take you to calendar). ... The Life of Riley was an American situation comedy that appeared on both radio and television in the 1940s and 1950s. ... A sitcom or situation comedy is a genre of comedy performance originally devised for radio but today typically found on television. ... 1952 was a leap year starting on Tuesday (link will take you to calendar). ... CBSs first color logo, which debuted in the fall of 1965. ... William S. Paley (September 28, 1901 - October 26, 1990) was an executive who built CBS from a small radio network to the dominant television network in America. ...

The show typically opened with a monologue from Gleason, followed by sketch comedy involving Gleason and a number of regular performers (including Art Carney) and a musical interlude featuring the June Taylor Dancers. Gleason portrayed a number of recurring characters, including supercilious millionaire Reginald Van Gleason III; friendly Joe the Bartender; loudmouthed braggart Charlie Bratton; mild-mannered Fenwick Babbitt; and a put-upon character known only as the Poor Soul, who Gleason always performed in pantomime. By far the most memorable character, however, was blowhard Brooklyn bus driver Ralph Kramden, featured in a series of skits known as "The Honeymooners"; these were so popular that in 1955 Gleason suspended the variety format and filmed The Honeymooners as a regular half-hour sitcom. The show's original format and title returned in 1956 and continued until 1959, when Gleason began an ill-fated stint as host of a game show called You're in the Picture (which lasted only one episode, and led to Gleason offering an on-air apology to his viewers the following week). An equally unsuccessful attempt at a talk show followed. A monologue is a speech by one person directly addressing an audience. ... Sketch comedy consists of a series of short comedy scenes, or sketches, commonly between one and ten minutes long. ... Art Carney (November 4, 1918 - November 9, 2003) was an American actor. ... June Taylor (about 1918-17 May 2004) was an American choreographer. ... Pantomime may refer to two different types of performing arts. ... 1955 is a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Cover a book about the Honeymooners. ... A sitcom or situation comedy is a genre of comedy performance originally devised for radio but today typically found on television. ... 1956 was a leap year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 1959 was a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... A game show is a radio or television program involving members of the public or celebrities, sometimes as part of a team, playing a game, perhaps involving answering quiz questions, for points or prizes. ... A talk show (U.S.) or chat show (Brit. ...

In 1962 Gleason returned to the tried-and-true variety format with his American Scene Magazine. Like his earlier shows, American Scene was initially filmed live in New York City; after two seasons, production moved to Miami, Florida. In 1966 the title once again became The Jackie Gleason Show, and would remain so until the show's cancellation in 1970. By this point the episodes included well-known guest stars and skits that were later collected as The New Honeymooners. The regular cast of the new variety show included Gleason and old sidekick Art Carney; Milton Berle was a frequent guest star. 1962 was a common year starting on Monday (link will take you to calendar). ... Midtown Manhattan, looking north from the Empire State Building, 2005 New York City (officially named the City of New York) is the most populous city in the United States, and is at the center of international finance, politics, communications, music, fashion, and culture. ... The Miami skyline, as it is seen from the northeast on Biscayne Bay. ... 1966 was a common year starting on Saturday (link goes to calendar) // Events January January 1 - In a coup, Colonel Jean-Bédel Bokassa ousts president David Dacko and takes over the Central African Republic. ... 1970 was a common year starting on Thursday. ... Milton as Mad Man Mooney (right), with Sweetums in The Muppet Movie. ...