The Entertainers
Encyclopedia
The Entertainers was a one-hour American
variety show
that aired on CBS from September 25, 1964 through March 27, 1965 on the 1964–1965 United States network television schedule. The series, produced by Joe Hamilton
, featured three stars, Hamilton's wife Carol Burnett
, Caterina Valente
, and Bob Newhart
. Burnett left her role in the Broadway
musical
Fade Out - Fade In
to star in the series and later was sued by the show's producers for doing so.
Each week, the series, originating from New York
, presented comedy sketches
and musical numbers performed by a regular repertory company
and one or two guest stars (such as Boris Karloff
, Phil Silvers
, and Chita Rivera
). Initially it aired on Friday night at 8:30pm ET/PT. In January 1965 it moved to Saturday night at 9:00pm ET/PT. Newhart and a few of the regular performers left the cast, and Burnett and Valente appeared as co-stars in every remaining episode.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
variety show
Variety show
A variety show, also known as variety arts or variety entertainment, is an entertainment made up of a variety of acts, especially musical performances and sketch comedy, and normally introduced by a compère or host. Other types of acts include magic, animal and circus acts, acrobatics, juggling...
that aired on CBS from September 25, 1964 through March 27, 1965 on the 1964–1965 United States network television schedule. The series, produced by Joe Hamilton
Joe Hamilton (producer)
Joseph Henry Hamilton was an American television producer and actor.Beginning his career as a comedian, Hamilton was spotted by actress Carol Burnett. He worked with her on the short-lived CBS variety show The Entertainers and her long-running eponymous series as executive producer and composer of...
, featured three stars, Hamilton's wife Carol Burnett
Carol Burnett
Carol Creighton Burnett is an American actress, comedian, singer, dancer and writer. Burnett started her career in New York. After becoming a hit on Broadway, she made her television debut...
, Caterina Valente
Caterina Valente
Caterina Valente is a singer, dancer, and actress. She was born into an Italian artist family; her father Giuseppe was a well-known accordion player, her mother, Maria Valente, a musical clown...
, and Bob Newhart
Bob Newhart
George Robert Newhart , known professionally as Bob Newhart, is an American stand-up comedian and actor. Noted for his deadpan and slightly stammering delivery, Newhart came to prominence in the 1960s when his album of comedic monologues The Button-Down Mind of Bob Newhart was a worldwide...
. Burnett left her role in the Broadway
Broadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
musical
Musical theatre
Musical theatre is a form of theatre combining songs, spoken dialogue, acting, and dance. The emotional content of the piece – humor, pathos, love, anger – as well as the story itself, is communicated through the words, music, movement and technical aspects of the entertainment as an...
Fade Out - Fade In
Fade Out - Fade In
Fade Out - Fade In is a musical with a book and lyrics by Betty Comden and Adolph Green and music by Jule Styne. The story involves the movie industry in the 1930s...
to star in the series and later was sued by the show's producers for doing so.
Each week, the series, originating from New York
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, presented comedy sketches
Sketch comedy
A sketch comedy consists of a series of short comedy scenes or vignettes, called "sketches," commonly between one and ten minutes long. Such sketches are performed by a group of comic actors or comedians, either on stage or through an audio and/or visual medium such as broadcasting...
and musical numbers performed by a regular repertory company
Repertory
Repertory or rep, also called stock in the United States, is a term used in Western theatre and opera.A repertory theatre can be a theatre in which a resident company presents works from a specified repertoire, usually in alternation or rotation...
and one or two guest stars (such as Boris Karloff
Boris Karloff
William Henry Pratt , better known by his stage name Boris Karloff, was an English actor.Karloff is best remembered for his roles in horror films and his portrayal of Frankenstein's monster in Frankenstein , Bride of Frankenstein , and Son of Frankenstein...
, Phil Silvers
Phil Silvers
Phil Silvers was an American entertainer and comedy actor, known as "The King of Chutzpah." He is best known for starring in The Phil Silvers Show, a 1950s sitcom set on a U.S...
, and Chita Rivera
Chita Rivera
Chita Rivera is an American actress, dancer, and singer best known for her roles in musical theater. She is the first Hispanic woman to receive a Kennedy Center Honors award...
). Initially it aired on Friday night at 8:30pm ET/PT. In January 1965 it moved to Saturday night at 9:00pm ET/PT. Newhart and a few of the regular performers left the cast, and Burnett and Valente appeared as co-stars in every remaining episode.
Repertory company
The repertory company included:- Art BuchwaldArt BuchwaldArthur Buchwald was an American humorist best known for his long-running column in The Washington Post, which in turn was carried as a syndicated column in many other newspapers. His column focused on political satire and commentary...
- Ruth BuzziRuth BuzziRuth Ann Buzzi is an American comedienne and actress of theatre, film, and television. She is especially known for her performances on the comedy-variety show Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In from 1968 to 1973.-Early life:...
(joined in 1965) - Don Crichton
- John DavidsonJohn Davidson (entertainer)John Hamilton Davidson, Sr. is an American singer, actor and game show host known for hosting That's Incredible!, Time Machine, and Hollywood Squares in the 1980s, and a revival of The $100,000 Pyramid in 1991....
- Dom DeLuiseDom DeLuiseDominick "Dom" DeLuise was an American actor, comedian, film director, television producer, chef, and author. He was the husband of actress Carol Arthur from 1965 until his death and the father of: actor, director, pianist, and writer Peter DeLuise; actor David DeLuise; and actor Michael DeLuise...
- Tessie O'SheaTessie O'SheaTeresa Mary "Tessie" O'Shea was a Welsh entertainer and actress.Born in Cardiff to Nellie Theresa and James Peter O'Shea, a soldier who was the son of Irish emigrants, Tessie was reared in the British music hall tradition, appearing on stage as "The Wonder of Wales" as early as the age of six...
- The Ernie Flatt Dancers
- The Peter GennaroPeter GennaroPeter Gennaro was an American dancer and choreographer.-Biography:Gennaro was born in Metairie, Louisiana. He made his Broadway debut in the ensemble of Make Mine Manhattan in 1948. He followed this with Kiss Me, Kate and Guys and Dolls...
Dancers - The Harry Zimmerman Orchestra
Notable episodes
- September 25, 1964: The show premiered on CBS the same week The Cara Williams Show, The MunstersThe MunstersThe Munsters is a 1960s American family television sitcom depicting the home life of a family of monsters. It starred Fred Gwynne as Herman Munster and Yvonne De Carlo as his wife, Lily Munster. The series was a satire of both traditional monster movies and popular family entertainment of the era,...
, The Baileys of BalboaThe Baileys of BalboaThe Baileys of Balboa is an American sitcom that appeared on CBS in the 1964-1965 season on Thursdays at 9:30pm ET. The series lasted only one 26-episode season...
, Gomer Pyle-U.S.M.C., The ReporterThe Reporter (TV series)The Reporter is an American drama series that aired on CBS from September 25 to December 18, 1964. The series was created by Jerome Weidman and developed by executive producers Keefe Brasselle and John Simon.-Synopsis:...
, Gilligan's IslandGilligan's IslandGilligan's Island is an American television series created and produced by Sherwood Schwartz and originally produced by United Artists Television. The situation comedy series featured Bob Denver; Alan Hale, Jr.; Jim Backus; Natalie Schafer; Tina Louise; Russell Johnson; and Dawn Wells. It aired for...
, Mr. BroadwayMr. BroadwayMr. Broadway is a 13-episode CBS adventure and drama television series starring Craig Stevens , formerly of Peter Gunn, as New York City public relations specialist Mike Bell. The program aired at 9 p.m. Eastern time Saturdays from September 26 to December 26, 1964...
, and My Living DollMy Living DollMy Living Doll is an American science fiction sitcom that aired for 26 episodes on CBS from September 27, 1964 to September 8, 1965. This series was produced by Jack Chertok and was filmed at Desilu studios by Jack Chertok Television, Inc., in association with the CBS Television Network...
debuted on the network. - November 13, 1964: The show abandoned its usual format to present a full-hour documentaryDocumentary filmDocumentary films constitute a broad category of nonfictional motion pictures intended to document some aspect of reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction or maintaining a historical record...
about the Beatles' American tour. The Entertainers had premiered the same week the Beatles film A Hard Day's NightA Hard Day's Night (film)A Hard Day's Night is a 1964 British black-and-white comedy film directed by Richard Lester and starring The Beatles—John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr—during the height of Beatlemania. It was written by Alun Owen and originally released by United Artists...
began its theatrical run. - December 11, 1964: Thelma RitterThelma RitterThelma Ritter was an American supporting and character actress from the 1940s until her death in 1969.-Early life:...
joined show regulars Newhart, Valente, and Dom DeLuise. - December 25, 1964: Burnett, Valente, Buchwald and Newhart performed in a Christmas special.
- January 16, 1965: Burnett and Valente are co-hosts, with Boris KarloffBoris KarloffWilliam Henry Pratt , better known by his stage name Boris Karloff, was an English actor.Karloff is best remembered for his roles in horror films and his portrayal of Frankenstein's monster in Frankenstein , Bride of Frankenstein , and Son of Frankenstein...
and Chita RiveraChita RiveraChita Rivera is an American actress, dancer, and singer best known for her roles in musical theater. She is the first Hispanic woman to receive a Kennedy Center Honors award...
as their guest stars. The kinescopeKinescopeKinescope , shortened to kine , also known as telerecording in Britain, is a recording of a television program made by filming the picture from a video monitor...
copy of this episode, widely circulated among video collectors, is the most viewed outside of its original broadcast.