The Red Skelton Show was a staple of American television for almost two decades, from the early 1950s through the early 1970s. [It was to second to Gunsmoke (1955-1975) and it was third to The Ed Sullivan Show (1948-1971) during that time.] Skelton, who had previously been a radio star, had appeared in several motion pictures as well. Although his television series is largely associated with CBS, where it appeared for over 15 years, it actually began and ended on NBC. During its run, the program received three Emmy Awards, for Skelton as best comedian and the program as best comedy show during its initial season, and an award for comedy writing in 1960. Gunsmoke was a long-running old-time radio and television Western drama program set in Dodge City, Kansas during the settlement of the American West. ... Ed Sullivan. ... Red Skelton Bernard Richard Red Skelton (July 18, 1913 – September 17, 1997) was an American comedian born in Vincennes, Indiana who started in vaudeville as a teenager, worked his way up to Broadway shows, secondary roles in MGM movies, radio performances and finally popularity in the early days of... Films are produced by recording actual people and objects with cameras, or by creating them using animation techniques and/or special effects. ... A television program is the content of television broadcasting. ... CBS (Columbia Broadcasting System) is a major television network and radio broadcaster in the United States. ... The National Broadcasting Company or NBC is an American television broadcasting company based in New York Citys Rockefeller Center. ... An Emmy Award. ...

Origins, 1950s

Skelton's network television program began at the start of the 1951 fall season on NBC. After two seasons on Sunday nights, the program was picked up by CBS in the fall of 1953 and moved to Tuesday night, the time slot with which it would become primarily associated during most of his run. After his first CBS season the program was moved to Wednesday night and expanded to an hour for the summer of 1954 only; it was then reduced back to a half hour and returned to Tuesday night, where it would remain for the next sixteen years.

Format during the 1960s

In 1963, the program was again expanded to a full hour and remained in this longer format for the balance of its CBS run. The format of the program itself during this period was quite simple.

Opening Monologue

Skelton opened with a monologue. The monologue often lapsed into character humor, with two of the recurring bits being "George Applebee", a perennially henpecked husband into whom Red transformed by donning heavy black-rimmed spectacles and a misshapen derby hat, and "Gertrude and Heathcliff, the Two Seagulls", which he performed by crossing his eyes and sticking his hands into his armpits for "wings". (Johnny Carson, who was a writer on this program for a period, has reminisced about writing this spot.) Johnny Carson For the article about the Erskine College president, see Dr. John Carson John William Johnny Carson (October 23, 1925 – January 23, 2005) was an American actor, comedian and writer best known for his iconic status as the host of The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson. ...

Guest Star's Performance

This was followed by a performance by a guest star, often a singer. Musical accompaniment was generally provided by the orchestra of well-known bandleader David Rose, who was the composer of the show's familiar main musical theme, "Holiday for Strings". The guest then appeared with Red in a comedy sketch. David Rose was a British-born American songwriter, composer, arranger, and orchestra leader known as one of the most popular and distinctive mainstream instrumental pop composers of the 20th century. ...

Comedy Sketches

The sketches were usually built around one of Red's many characters, including "Deadeye", an incredibly inept sheriff in the Old West; "San Fernando Red", a shady real estate agent (named for the San Fernando Valley, which was still a largely rural area well outside Los Angeles at the time that the show began); "Cauliflower McPugg", a punchdrunk boxer, Clem Kadiddlehopper, a hick who was identified in at least one sketch as being from Cornpone County, Tennessee, and "Freddie the Freeloader". Freddie was a bum with a heart of gold, who was played by Skelton (and in one episode in 1961, by Ed Sullivan.) in clown makeup reminiscient of Emmett Kelly but somehow not as sad. Freddie could be either a speaking character or totally pantomimed. In fact, in its later years the show generally finished with "The Silent Spot", with Skelton pantonmiming Freddie or another silent character. (It was hard for some younger viewers to accept that such an overwhelmingly visual, physical performer had once been a staple of radio.) After "The Silent Spot", the show closed with Red looking into the camera and saying sincerely, "Good night and may God bless." Sheriff is both a political and a legal office held under English common law, Scots law or U.S. common law, or the person who holds such office. ... Great Basin region, typical American West The Western United States has played a significant role in history and fiction. ... Real estate is a legal term that encompasses land along with anything permanently affixed to the land, such as buildings. ... San Fernando Valley The San Fernando Valley is an urbanized valley in southern California, lying mostly within the city limits of Los Angeles. ... Rural area in Dalarna, Sweden Sheep eating grass in rural Australia Rural areas are sparsely settled places away from the influence of large cities and towns. ... This article is about the largest city in California. ... Joe Louis and Rocky Marciano at Madison Square Garden, 1951 Julio Cesar Chavez and Ivan Robinson at the Staples Centre, Los Angeles, 2005 Amir Khan of Britain and Mario Cesar Kindelan Mesa of Cuba at the Athens Olympics, 2004 Boxing, nicknamed the sweet science and also called pugilism or prizefighting... Hick (also country hick or country bumpkin) is a derogatory term for a person from a rural area. ... State nickname: Volunteer State Official languages English Capital Nashville Largest city Memphis Governor Phil Bredesen (D) Senators Bill Frist (R) Lamar Alexander (R) Area  - Total  - % water Ranked 36th 109,247 km² 2. ... Ed Sullivan Edward Vincent Sullivan (September 28, 1901 – October 13, 1974) was an American entertainment writer and television host, best known as the emcee of a popular TV variety show that was at its height of popularity in the 1950s and 1960s. ... A clown participating in a Memorial Day parade A clown today is one of various types of comedic performers, on stage, television, in the circus and rodeo. ... Emmett Kelly (1898 – March 28, 1979), a native of Sedan, Kansas, was an American circus performer, who created the memorable clown figure Weary Willie, based on the hobos of the Depression era. ... Pantomime may refer to two different types of performing arts. ... God is the term used to denote the Supreme Being believed by many people, and especially followers of monotheistic religions, to be the creator, ruler and/or the sum total of, existence. ...

The Show's Final Years, 1970-1971

CBS ended its association with the program in the spring of 1970. This apparently marked the beginning of one of several attempts by CBS to downplay programming whose primary appeal was to "Middle America", an audience more rural and also somewhat older than that generally desired by network television advertisers, who generally choose to be associated with programming appealing to younger, "hipper", and more urban audiences. Middle America is an American colloquialism used—in contrast to coastal America—to describe a region of the United States that, geographically, comprises the bulk of the nation. ... Rural area in Dalarna, Sweden Sheep eating grass in rural Australia Rural areas are sparsely settled places away from the influence of large cities and towns. ... Generally speaking, advertising is the promotion of goods, services, companies and ideas, usually by an identified sponsor. ... Urban culture is the culture of cities. ...

The Move to NBC, 1970

At least in part due to Skelton's iconic status, the program was picked by up NBC in the fall of 1970. However, the program that it aired was quite different than the one that Skelton's CBS audience was used to seeing. The new set was dark, devoid of the backdrops that viewers had seen on CBS. The show was cut back to its original half-hour length. It was moved from Tuesday to Monday nights.

But perhaps the biggest change was that, for the first time, the show incorporated "regulars" beyond Skelton, Rose, and Rose's orchestra. A repertory company of young comic actors and actresses was added, as were The Burgundy Street Singers, previously seen on network television when 1950s folk singing star Jimmie Rodgers had made an abortive comeback to network television on ABC two years earlier. This article does not cite its references or sources. ... This article does not cite its references or sources. ... James Frederick Rodgers (born September 18, 1933) is sometimes classed as a rock and roll singer, but his style was more typical of traditional pop music. ... The American Broadcasting Company (ABC) is a television and radio network in the United States. ...

The new format never really worked; the audience sensed that there was little chemistry between Skelton and his young colleagues. The program ended in March of 1971, although selected programs from this final season were rerun on NBC on Sunday nights during the summer of 1971, so it could be said that Skelton's network television career ended exactly where it had begun.

Skelton's Later TV Career

Skelton continued to make appearances for many years afterwards, increasingly as a nostalgic figure, but was never again a regular feature of network television programming. He was awarded the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences Governors Award, a lifetime achievement award, in 1986. There is also a song called Nostalgia by Cracker from their second album Kerosene Hat. ...