| Description |
1 online resource |
| Contents |
Becoming Benny : the development of Jack Benny's character-focused comedy for radio -- "What are you laughing at, Mary" : Mary Livingstone's comic voice -- Masculine gender identity in Jack Benny's humor -- Eddie Anderson, Rochester, and race in 1930s radio and film -- Rochester and the revenge of Uncle Tom in the 1940s and 1950s -- The commercial imperative : Jack Benny, advertising and radio sponsors -- Jack Benny's inter-media juggling of radio and film -- Benny at war with the radio critics -- Jack Benny's turn towards television |
| Summary |
"Jack Benny became one of the most influential entertainers of the 20th century--by being the top radio comedian, when the comics ruled radio, and radio was the most powerful and pervasive mass medium in the US. In 23 years of weekly radio broadcasts, by aiming all the insults at himself, Benny created Jack, the self-deprecating "Fall Guy" character. He indelibly shaped American humor as a space to enjoy the equal opportunities of easy camaraderie with his cast mates, and equal ego deflation. Benny was the master of comic timing, knowing just when to use silence to create suspense or to have a character leap into the dialogue to puncture Jack's pretentions. Jack Benny was also a canny entrepreneur, becoming one of the pioneering "showrunners" combining producer, writer and performer into one job. His modern style of radio humor eschewed stale jokes in favor informal repartee with comic hecklers like his valet Rochester (played by Eddie Anderson) and Mary Livingstone his offstage wife. These quirky characters bouncing off each other in humorous situations created the situation comedy. In this career study, we learn how Jack Benny found ingenious ways to sell his sponsors' products in comic commercials beloved by listeners, and how he dealt with the challenges of race relations, rigid gender ideals and an insurgent new media industry (TV). Jack Benny created classic comedy for a rapidly changing American culture, providing laughter that buoyed radio listeners from 1932's depths of the Great Depression, through World War II to the mid-1950s"--Provided by publisher |
| Analysis |
american historian |
|
celebrity history |
|
contextualization |
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cultural appreciation |
|
dj |
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entertainers in the 20th century |
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everyman |
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fall guy |
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great depression |
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humor |
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influential entertainers |
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king of comedy |
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radio comedy |
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radio historian |
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radio history |
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relatable character |
| Bibliography |
Includes bibliographical references and index |
| Notes |
Online resource; title from digital title page (viewed on November 03, 2017) |
| Subject |
Benny, Jack, 1894-1974.
|
| SUBJECT |
Benny, Jack, 1894-1974 fast |
|
Jack Benny program (Radio program) http://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/n79064368
|
|
Jack Benny program (Radio program) fast |
| Subject |
Radio comedies -- United States -- History and criticism
|
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PERFORMING ARTS -- Reference.
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BIOGRAPHY & AUTOBIOGRAPHY -- Entertainment & Performing Arts.
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Radio comedies
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United States
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| Genre/Form |
Criticism, interpretation, etc.
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| Form |
Electronic book
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| LC no. |
2017021349 |
| ISBN |
9780520967946 |
|
0520967941 |
|
