Burns and Allen are one of the most beloved couple in old time radio. They got started, like many of the greats of old time radio, in vaudeville, which is really just the touring popular entertainment in America prior to movies. Gracie was the sparkplug of the act, always the center of attention. George played the foil, the guy vainly trying to make sense of the ditzy world of Gracie. By the early 30s, Gracie was probably the best known woman on radio. Gracie often sang in a voice that showed she was also an excellent comedienne songstress.
By the early 1940's, Burns decided that their act needed a change.He decided that the audience knew Gracie's and his reactions well enough that it would be possible to play off them, and create situations something like screwball comedy, but with the Burns and Allen touch. Jack Benny and Burns and Allen worked much the same way with their comedy.Vaudeville's snappy patter and give and take jokes, good even if the audience didn't know you, could be developed into running gags and put-downs based on character. Burns was always astute when it came to comedy - he lead the brainstorming sessions that wrote the shows, and carefully edited his writers with the final word on what was cut and what stayed. Elvia Allman play Gracie's friend Tootsie Sagwell and Gale Gordon and Hans Conried made frequent appearances.
So in 1942, George and Gracie became, in their characters, the perfectly normal husband and wife that is, if Gracie's non sequiturs and impulsive behavior could be considered perfectly normal. For Gracie, of course, it was perfectly normal, and the American public continued their love affair with her.The shows had names after the sponsors, such as Maxwell House Coffee Time, or The Ammident Show - it was the Burns and Allen show to the public. Other fine radio actors were a part of the fun. Mel Blanc did the happy postman, and was also famous for his zany characters on The Jack Benny Show, and his own Mel Blanc Show. Elliott Lewis, a veteran of many radio "bit" parts on the Burns and Allen shows of the 40s.
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Please enjoy these 273 old time radio episodes:
Air Date | Title | Synopsis | Rating |
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02.09.1943 | guest charles laughton |
+ The George Burns and Gracie Allen Show. February 9, 1943. Sponsored by: Swan Soap. Gracie is runn... | |
02.29.1944 | guest dorothy lamour | ||
10.03.1946 | guest eddie cantor |
+ Maxwell House Coffee Time. October 3, 1946. Sponsored by: Maxwell House Coffee, Birdseye Foods. W... | |
12.26.1946 | guest eddie cantor |
+ Maxwell House Coffee Time. December 26, 1946. Sponsored by: Maxwell House Coffee, La France Blui... | |
04.21.1949 | guest eddie cantor |
+ Maxwell House Coffee Time. April 21, 1949. Sponsored by: Maxwell House Coffee. The big Maxwell Ho... | |
08.31.1943 | guest frank sinatra |
+ The Burns and Allen Show. August 31, 1943. Sponsored by: Swan Soap, Vimms. The first show of the ... | |
01.06.1949 | guest gregory peck |
+ Maxwell House Coffee Time. January 6, 1949. Sponsored by: Maxwell House Coffee. Gracie sees a Gre... | |
10.26.1943 | guest hedy lamarr |
+ The Burns and Allen Show. October 26, 1943. Sponsored by: Swan Soap. Tootsie Sagwell is trying t... | |
09.03.1948 | guest james mason |
+ The George Burns and Gracie Allen Show. November 15, 1954. CBS-TV net origination, syndicated rebr... | |
12.16.1948 | guest james mason |
+ Maxwell House Coffee Time. February 17, 1949. Sponsored by: Maxwell House Coffee. Gracie tells gu... | |
11.16.1946 | guest louella parsons |
+ The George Burns and Gracie Allen Show. September 12, 1944. Program #47. CBS net origination, AFR... | |
01.25.1944 | guest paul heinreid |
+ The George Burns and Gracie Allen Show. January 25, 1944. Sponsored by: Swan Soap. Guest Paul Hen... | |
09.21.1943 | guest ray miland |
+ The Burns and Allen Show. September 21, 1943. Sponsored by: Swan Soap, Vimms. Tootsie Sagwell is ... | |
04.07.1949 | guest robert montogomery |
+ Maxwell House Coffee Time. April 7, 1949. NBC net, KNX, Sponsored by: Maxwell House Coffee. Gues... | |
02.16.1943 | guest veronica lake |
+ The George Burns and Gracie Allen Show. February 16, 1943. Sponsored by: Swan Soap. Tootsie Sagwe... | |
11.16.1943 | guest walter pidgeon |
+ The George Burns and Gracie Allen Show. November 16, 1943. Sponsored by: Swan Soap. Guest Walter ... | |
01.18.1944 | guest william bendix |
+ The George Burns and Gracie Allen Show. January 18, 1944. Sponsored by: Swan Soap. Guest Willi... | |
02.01.1944 | guest william powell |
+ The George Burns and Gracie Allen Show. February 1, 1944. Sponsored by: Swan Soap. Guest William ... | |
03.15.1950 | h and r blockhead | ||
05.09.1946 | harpo marx guest |
+ Maxwell House Coffee Time. May 9, 1946. Sponsored by: Maxwell House Coffee, Jell-O Pudding. Graci... | |
03.06.1940 | hats off to gracie |
+ The Hinds Honey and Almond Cream Program. March 6, 1940. Sponsored by: Hinds Honey and Almond Cre... | |
11.24.1942 | hit by a club |
+ The George Burns and Gracie Allen Show. November 24, 1942. Sponsored by: Swan Soap. "The Beverly ... | |
11.21.1944 | hotel room shortage | ||
04.17.1947 | house is built over a swamp |
+ Maxwell House Coffee Time. April 17, 1947. Sponsored by: Maxwell House. Gracie is still trying to... | |
01.02.1947 | housewifes guild |
+ Maxwell House Coffee Time. January 2, 1947. Gracie and her neighbor, Blanche Morton, decide to fo... |
Arthur
Steve
Chris
Kelly
Sarah
Milven
Patrick
Jennifer
Gregory
Westfall
Linda
Vickie
Gary
Milven
Sandra
Ralph
Lynne
Gllen
Robert
Tom
Muhammad
Robert
Philip
Cindy
Antoinette
Kenny
Sunny
Janice
Treayvaughan
Treayvaughan
Patrica
stephanie
Elizabeth
Thomas
Nick
Bonnie
Sue
Philip
Sue
Edward
Denise
Darlynne
Elaine
Margarat
Carol
Augustine
Kevin
Bren
Rochelle
Lalo
Auntwendy
Sandra
Joyce
Sherry
Loren
Robert
Barbra
Betty
Juanita
Dwayne
Paul
Lisa
Mark
Vergell
Mike
BURNS AND ALLEN
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