Coordinates	41°52′55″N87°37′40″N
title	Fortune
image file	2007 Fortune 500 cover.jpg
editor	Andy Serwer
editor title	Managing Editor
frequency	Bi-weekly
total circulation	845,043
circulation year	2011
category	Business Magazines
publisher	Time, Inc., a Time Warner company.
firstdate	1930
country
language	English
website	fortune.com
issn	0015-8259 }}

''Fortune'' is a global business magazine published by Time Inc.'s Fortune|Money Group. Founded by Henry Luce in 1930, the publishing business, consisting of ''Time'', ''Life'', ''Fortune'', and ''Sports Illustrated'', grew to become Time Warner. In turn, AOL grew as it acquired Time Warner in 2000 when Time Warner was the world's largest media conglomerate. ''Fortune's'' primary competitors in the national business magazine category are ''Forbes'', which is also published bi-weekly, and ''BusinessWeek''. The magazine is especially known for its annual features ranking companies by revenue. CNNMoney.com is the online home of ''Fortune'', in addition to ''Money''.

History and organization

''Fortune'' was founded by ''Time'' co-founder Henry Luce in February 1930, four months after the Wall Street Crash of 1929 that marked the onset of the Great Depression. Briton Hadden, Luce's partner, wasn't enthusiastic about the idea—which Luce originally thought to title ''Power''—but Luce went forward with it after Hadden's February 27, 1929 death (probably of septicemia).

Luce wrote a memo to the Time, Inc. board in November 1929, "We will not be over-optimistic. We will recognize that this business slump may last as long as an entire year."

Single copies of that first issue cost $1 at a time when the Sunday ''New York Times'' was only 5¢. At a time when business publications were little more than numbers and statistics printed in black and white, ''Fortune'' was an oversized 11"×14", using creamy heavy paper, and art on a cover printed by a special process. ''Fortune'' was also noted for its photography, featuring the work of Margaret Bourke-White and others. Walker Evans served as its photography editor from 1945-1965.

An urban legend says that art director T. M. Clelland mocked up the cover of the first issue with the $1 price because nobody had yet decided how much to charge; the magazine was printed before anyone realized it, and when people saw it for sale, they thought that the magazine must really have worthwhile content. In fact, there were 30,000 subscribers who had already signed up to receive that initial 184-page issue.

During the Great Depression, ''Fortune'' developed a reputation for its social conscience, for Walker Evans and Margaret Bourke-White's color photographs, and for a team of writers including James Agee, Archibald MacLeish, John Kenneth Galbraith, and Alfred Kazin, hired specifically for their writing abilities.

''Fortune'' became an important leg of Luce's Time/Life media empire, which has grown to become Time Warner. For many years ''Fortune'' was published as a monthly, but as of January, 1978, it is published twice a month. It considers its purview the entire field of business, including the people, trends, companies, and ideas that characterize modern business.

Marshall Loeb was named managing editor in 1986 and stepped down in May 1994 upon hitting Time Inc.'s mandatory retirement age of 65, to be replaced by Walter Kiechel III, an executive editor at the publication. During his tenure at ''Fortune'', Loeb was credited with expanding the traditional focus on business and the economy with added graphs, charts and tables, as well as the addition of articles on topics such as executive life, and social issues connected to the world of business, such as the effectiveness of public schools and on homelessness.

While circulation of the business magazines sector has apparently slumped since 2000, ''Fortune'' claims their circulation has risen from 833,000 to 857,000 in that period.

In October of 2009, as a result of declining ad revenue and circulation, Fortune began publishing tri-weekly rather than bi-weekly.

''Fortune'' lists

A theme of ''Fortune'' is its regular publishing of researched and ranked lists. In the human resources field, for example, their Best Companies to Work For list is an industry benchmark. Its most famous lists rank companies by gross revenue and profile their businesses:

Fortune 500

Fortune 1000

Fortune Global 500

Fortune 40 Under 40

Fortune 100 Best Companies To Work For

Fortune America's Most Admired Companies

Fortune 50 Most Powerful Women in Business

Fortune 100 Fastest-Growing Companies

See also

Fortune Battle of the Corporate Bands

References

External links

Official website

List of 2008 100 Best Companies To Work For

Complete Downloadable List of Fortune 500/1000 Companies - 1955-2008

''Fortune'' Magazine covers since 2004

Category:Time Warner subsidiaries Category:American business magazines * Category:Monthly magazines Category:Publications established in 1930

da:Fortune de:Fortune (Zeitschrift) es:Fortune (revista) fa:فرچون (مجله) fr:Fortune (magazine) ko:포춘 (잡지) id:Fortune (majalah) it:Fortune lt:Fortune nl:Fortune (magazine) ja:フォーチュン (雑誌) no:Fortune pl:Fortune pt:Fortune ro:Fortune ru:Fortune (журнал) sv:Fortune (tidskrift) th:ฟอร์ชูน zh:财富 (杂志)

Coordinates	41°52′55″N87°37′40″N
name	Jason Abalos
birth date	January 14, 1985
birth place	Pantabangan, Nueva Ecija, Philippines
occupation	Actor
yearsactive	2005–present
awards	}}

Jason Jimenez Abalos (born January 14, 1985) is a Filipino actor. He was also a graduate of Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering Batch 2003 at Nueva Ecija University of Science and Technology.

Abalos is a member of ABS-CBN's circle of homegrown talents named Star Magic. He was discovered after joining Star Circle Quest, a reality show in search of new actors.

Abalos, 26, on August 7, 2008, won Best Performance by Male or Female, Adult or Child, Individual or Ensemble in Leading or Supporting Role award in the Young Critics Circle Annual Citation held at the Faculty Center Conference (Pulungang Recto, Bulwagang Rizal) Hall of the University of the Philippines Diliman, Quezon City. The award was for his role in the indie film “Adela,” directed by Adolf Alix, Jr. and starring Anita Linda (in the 2008 Cinemalaya Independent Film Festival).

On October 1, 2008, Abalos won the Best Actor in the 2008 Gawad Urian Awards for “Endo.”

He presently studies at UST.

Television

Agimat: Ang Mga Alamat ni Ramon Revilla: Bianong BulagNagsimula sa PusoEva Fonda''YsabellaStar Magic PresentsVietnam RoseStar Circle Quest

Year !! Title !! Character !! Station
rowspan="5"	2011	Reputasyon	Boyet
100 Days (TV Series)	100 Days To Heaven	Brando Rivera
Mara Clara (2010 TV series)	Mara Clara	Jonathan
Maalaala Mo Kaya	Maalaala Mo Kaya: Tsinelas	Joe
Showtime (TV series)	Showtime	Himself/Judge
rowspan="4"	2010	|	Biano Salvador/Bianong Bulag	ABS-CBN
Precious Hearts Romances Presents: Alyna (TV series)	Alyna	Dominic Del Carmen
Your Song: Love Me, Love You	Javier
Agua Bendita (TV series)	Agua Bendita	Paco "Tot" Barrameda
rowspan="7"	2009	|	Jim Ortega	ABS-CBN
Maalaala Mo Kaya	Maalaala Mo Kaya: Storybook	TeeJay
Tiagong Akyat	Agimat: Ang Mga Alamat ni Ramon Revilla presents Tiagong Akyat	Vincent Fajardo
May Bukas Pa	Andrew (in a special guest role)
Kambal sa Uma	Dino
Maalaala Mo Kaya	Maalaala Mo Kaya: Pendant	Alex
The Singing Bee (Philippine game show)	The Singing Bee	Team Celebrity Player (Pieta) w/ Jestoni & Janus they won 2 Million Pesos Jackpot
rowspan="8"	2008	|	Joel	ABS-CBN
Pieta (TV series)	Pieta	Efren Vargas
Maalaala Mo Kaya	Maalaala Mo Kaya:Journal	Jonathan
Maalaala Mo Kaya	Maalaala Mo Kaya:Dollhouse
Love Spell	Love Spell: Double
ASAP '08	Himself (part of the Full Circle)
Your Song (TV series)	Your Song: Muntik Na Kitang Mahal	Eric
Your Song (TV series)	Your Song: 241	Glenn
2007	|	Rino	ABS-CBN
rowspan="6"	2006	Star Magic Presents: Sabihin Mo Lang ||		ABS-CBN
Love Spell	Love Spell: Home Switch Home	Sylvester
Da Adventures of Pedro Penduko	Komiks Presents: Da Adventures of Pedro Penduko	Duwende (for real)
Pilipinas, Game KNB?''	Himself (Celebrity Player/Defending Winner)
Maalaala Mo Kaya	Maalaala Mo Kaya: Cap	Chako
Maalaala Mo Kaya	Maalaala Mo Kaya: Swing	Benji
rowspan="2"	2005	|	JR Hernandez	ABS-CBN
ASAP Fanatic	Himself/Co-Host (part of SCQ Teens)
2004	Star Circle National Teen Quest ||	Himself	ABS-CBN

Organization

Scouts Royale Brotherhood

Movies

Year	Title
2008	Motorcycle
2008	Adela
2007	Regal Films>My Kuya's Wedding
2007	Endo
2006	Star Cinema>First Day High
2006	White Lady
2006	GMA Films>I Wanna Be Happy
2006	All About Love (2006 film)>All About Love

References

External links

Category:Filipino actors Category:Filipino child actors Category:Filipino film actors Category:Filipino television actors Category:Filipino television personalities Category:Star Magic Category:Star Circle Quest Category:Living people Category:1985 births Category:Ilocano people

tl:Jason Abalos

Herb Chambers (Herbert G. Chambers) is owner and CEO of Herb Chambers Companies, a group of 46 car dealerships in the greater Boston MA area. A directory of Herb Chambers Car Dealerships lists their OEM brand portfolio in Massachusetts and New England.

Early life and career

Herb Chambers was born in Dorchester, Massachusetts and attended English High School of Boston. After completing his high school education, Herb Chambers then served four years in the United States Navy, acquiring rank E-5.

After getting out of the Navy, Chambers began working as a copy machine repairman in Cambridge, Massachusetts. By the time he was 22, he started his own copier distribution company that he eventually sold for $80 million.

Chambers started a business with borrowed money from his parents. He fixed copy machines door-to-door.

Herb Chambers started his automotive business after purchasing a Cadillac dealership in New London, Connecticut, in 1985. His decision to purchase the business was based on his own poor buying experience at the dealership. As Herb Chambers improved the operations of this first car dealership, he started the Herb Chambers Companies.

Herb Chambers currently lives in Old Lyme, Connecticut and Boston, and also has an exotic car collection.

Exotic Car Collector

In 2007, The Boston Globe featured an article and photo gallery highlighting Herb Chambers' car collection. Chambers' collection of rare automobiles includes the McLaren F1, Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren, Ferrari Daytona Spyder, Ferrari Daytona Coupe, 2006 Ford GT, Porsche 959 Supercar, 2006 Porsche GT, Cadillac Eldorado Biarritz Convertible, Ford Model B (1932) and a 1955 Mercedes-Benz 300SL that was raced in the 1983 Cannonball Run.

References

External links

The Herb Chambers Companies Official Web Site

Herb Chambers Complaints and Commentary

Herb Cares (Complaints, Reviews and Feedback)

Herb Chambers Videos

Category:Living people

Coordinates	41°52′55″N87°37′40″N
name	George Burns
birth name	Nathan Birnbaum
birth date	January 20, 1896
birth place	New York City, New York, U.S
death date	March 09, 1996
death place	Beverly Hills, California, U.S. Interred: Forest Lawn Memorial Park, Glendale, California
other names	Nattie
occupation	Actor, comedian, writer
religion	Jewish
years active	1902–1996
spouse	Gracie Allen (1926–64; her death; 2 children)
website	georgeburns.com }}

George Burns (January 20, 1896 March 9, 1996), born Nathan Birnbaum, was an American comedian, actor, and writer.

He was one of the few entertainers whose career successfully spanned vaudeville, film, radio, television and movies, with and without his wife, Gracie Allen. His arched eyebrow and cigar smoke punctuation became familiar trademarks for over three quarters of a century. Beginning at the age of 79, Burns' career was resurrected as an amiable, beloved and unusually active old comedian, continuing to work until shortly before his death, in 1996, at the age of 100.

Early life

Nathan Birnbaum was the ninth of 12 children born to Louis and Dorothy (Bluth) Birnbaum in New York City. His father was a substitute cantor at the local synagogue but did not work very often. During the influenza epidemic of 1903, Louis contracted the flu and died. Nattie (as he was known to his family) started working in 1903 after his father's death, shining shoes, running errands, and selling newspapers. When he landed a job as a syrup maker in a local candy shop at the age of seven, Nattie Birnbaum was discovered, as he recalled many years later:

Burns quit school in the fourth grade to go into show business full-time. Like many performers of his generation, he tried practically anything he could to entertain, including working with a trained seal, trick roller skating, teaching dance, singing, and adagio dancing in small-time vaudeville. During these years, he began smoking cigars and later in his older years was characteristically known as doing shows and puffing on his cigar. He adopted the stage name by which he would be known for the rest of his life. He claimed in a few interviews that the idea of the name originated from the fact that two star major league players (George H. Burns and George J. Burns, unrelated) were playing major league baseball at the time. Both men achieved over 2000 major league hits and hold some major league records. Burns also was reported to have taken the name George from his brother Izzy (who hated his own named so he changed it to "George"), and the Burns from the Burns Brothers Coal Company (he used to steal coal from their truck).

He normally partnered with a girl, sometimes in an adagio dance routine, sometimes comic patter. Though he had an apparent flair for comedy, he never quite clicked with any of his partners, until he met a young Irish Catholic lady in 1923. "And all of a sudden," he said famously in later years "the audience realized I had a talent. They were right. I did have a talent—and I was married to her for 38 years."

Gracie Allen

Grace Ethel Cecile Rosalie Allen was born into an Irish Catholic show business family and educated at Star of the Sea Convent School in San Francisco, California in girlhood. She began in vaudeville around 1909, teamed as an Irish-dance act, "The Four Colleens", with her sisters, Bessie, Hazel, and Pearl.

She met George Burns and the two immediately launched a new partnership, with Gracie playing the role of the "straight man" and George delivering the punchlines as the comedian. Burns knew something was wrong when the audience ignored his jokes but snickered at Gracie's questions. Burns cannily flipped the act around: After a Hoboken, New Jersey performance in which they tested the new style for the first time, Burns's hunch proved right. Gracie was the better "laugh-getter," especially with the "illogical logic" that formed her responses to Burns's prompting comments or questions.

Allen's part was known in vaudeville as a "Dumb Dora" act, named after a very early film of the same name that featured a scatterbrained female protagonist, but her "illogical logic" style was several cuts above the Dumb Dora stereotype developed by American cartoonist Chic Young, as was Burns's understated straight man. The twosome worked the new style tirelessly on the road, building a following, as well as a reputation for being a reliable "disappointment act" (one that could fill in for another act on short notice). Burns and Allen were so consistently dependable that vaudeville bookers elevated them to the more secure "standard act" status, and finally to the vaudevillian's dream: the Palace Theatre in New York.

Burns wrote their early scripts, but was rarely credited with being such a brilliant comedy writer. He continued to write the act through vaudeville, films, radio, and, finally, television, first by himself, then with his brother Willie and a team of writers. The entire concept of the Burns and Allen characters, however, was one created and developed by Burns.

As the team toured in vaudeville, Burns found himself falling in love with Allen, who was engaged to another performer at the time, Benny Ryan. After several attempts to win her over, he finally succeeded (by accident) after making her cry at a Christmas party. She told a friend that "if George meant enough to her to make her cry she must be in love with him".

They were married in Cleveland, Ohio on January 7, 1926, somewhat daring for those times, considering Burns's Jewish and Allen's Irish Catholic upbringing. They adopted their daughter, Sandra, in 1934 and son, Ronnie, in 1935. (For her part, Allen also endeared herself to her in-laws by adopting his mother's favorite phrase, used whenever the older woman needed to bring her son back down to earth: "Nattie, you're such a schmuck," using a diminutive of his given name. When Burns's mother died, Allen comforted her grief-stricken husband with the same phrase.)

In later years Burns admitted that, following an argument over a pricey silver table centerpiece Allen wanted, he had a very brief affair with a Las Vegas showgirl. Stricken by guilt, he phoned one of his best friends, Jack Benny, and told him about the indiscretion. However, Allen overheard the conversation and Burns quietly bought the expensive centerpiece and nothing more was said. Years later, he discovered that Allen had told one of her friends about the episode finishing with "You know, I really wish George would cheat on me again. I could use a new centerpiece."

Stage to screen

Getting a start in motion pictures with a series of comic short films, their feature credits in the mid- to late-1930s included ''The Big Broadcast''; ''International House'' (1933), ''Six of a Kind'' (1934), ''The Big Broadcast of 1936'', ''The Big Broadcast of 1937'', ''A Damsel in Distress'' (1937) in which they danced step for step with Fred Astaire, and ''College Swing'' (1938), in which Bob Hope made one of his early film appearances.

Burns and Allen were indirectly responsible for the Bob Hope and Bing Crosby series of "Road" pictures. In 1938, William LeBaron, producer and managing director at Paramount, had a script prepared by Don Hartman and Frank Butler. It was to star Burns and Allen with Bing Crosby, who was then already an established star of radio, recordings and the movies. The story did not seem to fit the comedy team's style, so LeBaron ordered Hartman and Butler to rewrite the script to fit two male co-stars: Hope and Crosby. The script was titled ''Road to Singapore'' and it made motion picture history when it was released in 1940.

Radio stars

Burns and Allen first made it to radio as the comedy relief for bandleader Guy Lombardo, which did not always sit well with Lombardo's home audience. In his later memoir, ''The Third Time Around'', Burns revealed a college fraternity's protest letter, complaining that they resented their weekly dance parties with their girl friends to "Thirty Minutes of the Sweetest Music This Side of Heaven" had to be broken into by the droll vaudeville team.

In time, though, Burns and Allen found their own show and radio audience, first airing on February 15, 1932 and concentrating on their classic stage routines plus sketch comedy in which the Burns and Allen style was woven into different little scenes, not unlike the short films they made in Hollywood. They were also good for a clever publicity stunt, none more so than the hunt for Gracie's missing brother, a hunt that included Gracie turning up on other radio shows searching for him as well.

The couple was portrayed at first as younger singles, with Allen the object of both Burns's and other cast members' affections. Most notably, bandleaders Ray Noble (known for his phrase, "Gracie, this is the first time we've ever been alone") and Artie Shaw played "love" interests to Gracie. In addition, singer Tony Martin played an unwilling love interest of Gracie's, in which Gracie "sexually harassed" him, by threatening to fire him if the romantic interest wasn't returned. In time, however, due to slipping ratings and the difficulty of being portrayed as singles in light of the audience's close familiarity with their real-life marriage, the show adapted in the fall of 1941 to present them as the married couple they actually were. For a time, Burns and Allen had a rather distinguished and popular musical director: Artie Shaw, who also appeared as a character in some of the show's sketches. A somewhat different Gracie also marked this era, as the Gracie character could often be found to be mean to George.

George Your mother cut my face out of the picture.
Gracie Oh, George, you're being sensitive.
George I am not! Look at my face! What happened to it?
Gracie I don't know. It looks like you fell on it.

Or

Census Taker What do you make?
Gracie I make cookies and aprons and knit sweaters.
Census Taker No, I mean what do you earn?
Gracie George's salary.

As this format grew stale over the years, Burns and his fellow writers redeveloped the show as a situation comedy in the fall of 1941. The reformat focused on the couple's married life and life among various friends, including Elvia Allman as "Tootsie Sagwell," a man-hungry spinster in love with Bill Goodwin, and neighbors, until the characters of Harry and Blanche Morton entered the picture to stay. Like ''The Jack Benny Program'', the new ''George Burns & Gracie Allen Show'' portrayed George and Gracie as entertainers with their own weekly radio show. Goodwin remained, his character as "girl-crazy" as ever, and the music was now handled by Meredith Willson (later to be better known for composing the Broadway musical ''The Music Man''). Willson also played himself on the show as a naive, friendly, girl-shy fellow. The new format's success made it one of the few classic radio comedies to completely re-invent itself and regain major fame.

Supporting players

The supporting cast during this phase included Mel Blanc as the melancholy, ironically named "Happy Postman" (his catchphrase was "Remember, keep smiling!"); Bea Benaderet (later Cousin Pearl in ''The Beverly Hillbillies'', Kate Bradley in ''Petticoat Junction'' and the voice of Betty Rubble in ''The Flintstones'') and Hal March (later more famous as the host of ''The $64,000 Question'') as neighbors Blanche and Harry Morton; and the various members of Gracie's ladies' club, the Beverly Hills Uplift Society. One running gag during this period, stretching into the television era, was Burns's questionable singing voice, as Gracie lovingly referred to her husband as "Sugar Throat." The show received and maintained a Top 10 rating for the rest of its radio life.

New network

In the fall of 1949, after twelve years at NBC, the couple took the show back to its original network CBS, where they had risen to fame from 1932 – 1937. Their good friend Jack Benny reached a negotiating impasse with NBC over the corporation he set up ("Amusement Enterprises") to package his show, the better to put more of his earnings on a capital-gains basis and avoid the 80 percent taxes slapped on very high earners in the World War II period. When CBS executive William S. Paley convinced Benny to move to CBS (Paley, among other things, impressed Benny with his attitude that the performers make the network, not the other way around as NBC chief David Sarnoff reputedly believed), Benny in turn convinced several NBC stars to join him, including Burns and Allen. Thus did CBS reap the benefits when Burns and Allen moved to television in 1950.

Television

On television, ''The George Burns & Gracie Allen Show'' put faces to the radio characters audiences had come to love. A number of significant changes were seen in the show:

A parade of actors portrayed Harry Morton: Hal March, ''The Life Of Riley'' alumnus John Brown, veteran movie and television character actor Fred Clark, and future ''Mister Ed'' co-star Larry Keating.

Burns often broke the fourth wall, and chatted with the home audience, telling understated jokes and commenting wryly about what show characters were doing or undoing. In later shows, he would actually turn on a television and watch what the other characters were up to when he was off camera, then returned to foil the plot.

When announcer Bill Goodwin left after the first season, Burns hired veteran radio announcer Harry Von Zell to succeed him. Von Zell was cast as the good-natured, easily-confused Burns and Allen announcer and buddy. He also became one of the show's running gags, when his involvement in Gracie's harebrained ideas would get him fired at least once a week by Burns.

The first shows were simply a copy of the radio format, complete with lengthy and integrated commercials for sponsor Carnation Evaporated Milk by Goodwin. However, what worked well on radio appeared forced and plodding on television. The show was changed into the now-standard situation comedy format, with the commercials distinct from the plot.

Midway through the run of the television show the Burns' two adopted children, Sandra and Ronald, began to make appearances: Sandy in an occasional voice-over or brief on-air part (often as a telephone operator), and Ronnie in various small roles throughout the 4th and 5th season. Ronnie joined the regular cast in season 6. Typical of the blurred line between reality and fiction in the show, Ronnie played George and Gracie's on-air son, showing up in the second episode of season 6 ("Ronnie Arrives") with no explanation offered as to where he had been for the past 5 years of the show. Originally his character was an aspiring dramatic actor who held his parents' comedy style in befuddled contempt and deemed it unsuitable to the "serious" drama student. When the show's characters moved back to California in season 7 after spending the prior year in New York City, Ronnie's character dropped all apparent acting aspirations and instead enrolled in USC, becoming an inveterate girl chaser.

Burns and Allen also took a cue from Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz's Desilu Productions and formed a company of their own, McCadden Corporation (named after the street on which Burns's brother lived), headquartered on the General Service Studio lot in the heart of Hollywood, and set up to film television shows and commercials. Besides their own hit show (which made the transition from a bi-weekly live series to a weekly filmed version in the fall of 1952), the couple's company produced such television series as ''The Bob Cummings Show'' (subsequently syndicated and rerun as ''Love That Bob''); ''The People's Choice'', starring Jackie Cooper; ''Mona McCluskey'', starring Juliet Prowse; and ''Mister Ed'', starring Alan Young and a talented "talking" horse. Several of their good friend Jack Benny's 1953-55 filmed episodes were also produced by McCadden for CBS.

''The George Burns Show''

''The George Burns & Gracie Allen Show'' ran on CBS Television from 1950 through 1958, when Burns at last consented to Allen's retirement. The onset of heart trouble in the early 1950s had left her exhausted from full-time work and she had been anxious to stop but couldn't say no to Burns.

Burns attempted to continue the show (for new sponsor Colgate-Palmolive on NBC), but without Allen to provide the classic Gracie-isms, the show expired after a year.

''Wendy and Me''

Burns subsequently created ''Wendy and Me'', a situation comedy in which he co-starred with Connie Stevens, Ron Harper, and J. Pat O'Malley. Burns acted primarily as the narrator, and secondarily as the advisor to Stevens' Gracie-like character. The first episode involved the middle-aged Burns watching with amusement the activities of his young upstairs neighbor on his television set, just as he would watch the Burns and Allen television show while it was unfolding to get a jump on what Gracie was up to in its final two seasons. Again as in the Burns and Allen television show, George frequently broke the fourth wall by commenting directly to viewers. The series only lasted a year. In a promotion, Burns had joked that "Connie Stevens plays Wendy, and I play 'me'."

Allen's death

After fighting a long battle with heart disease, Gracie Allen suffered a fatal heart attack in her home on August 27, 1964 at the age of 69. She was entombed in a mausoleum at Forest Lawn Memorial Park Cemetery. In his second book, ''They Still Love Me in Altoona'', Burns wrote that he found it impossible to sleep after her death until he decided to sleep in the bed she used during her illness. He also visited her grave once a month, professing to talk to her about whatever he was doing at the time — including, he said, trying to decide whether he really should accept the ''Sunshine Boys'' role Jack Benny had to abandon because of his own failing health. He visited the tomb with Ed Bradley during a ''60 Minutes'' interview on November 6, 1988.

''The Sunshine Boys''

After Gracie's death George immersed himself in work. McCadden Productions co-produced the television series ''No Time for Sergeants'', based on the hit Broadway play; George also produced Juliet Prowse's 1965-'66 NBC situation comedy, ''Mona McCluskey''. At the same time, he toured the U.S. playing nightclub and theater engagements with such diverse partners as Carol Channing, Dorothy Provine, Jane Russell, Connie Haines, and Berle Davis. He also performed a series of solo concerts, playing university campuses, New York's Philharmonic Hall and winding up a successful season at Carnegie Hall, where he wowed a capacity audience with his show-stopping songs, dances, and jokes.

In 1974, Jack Benny signed to play one of the lead roles in the film version of Neil Simon's ''The Sunshine Boys'' (Red Skelton was originally the other). Benny's health had begun to fail, however, and he advised his manager Irving Fein to let longtime friend Burns fill in for him on a series of nightclub dates to which Benny had committed around the U.S.

Burns, who enjoyed working, accepted the job. As he recalled years later: :"The happiest people I know are the ones that are still working. The saddest are the ones who are retired. Very few performers retire on their own. It's usually because no one wants them. Six years ago Sinatra announced his retirement. He's still working."

But Benny was never able to work on ''The Sunshine Boys'', as he'd been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, from which he died soon thereafter (December 26, 1974). Burns, heartbroken, said that the only time he ever wept in his life other than Gracie's death was when Benny died. He was chosen to give one of the eulogies at the funeral and said, "Jack was someone special to all of you but he was so special to me…I cannot imagine my life without Jack Benny and I will miss him so very much." Burns then broke down and had to be helped to his seat. People who knew George said that he never could really come to terms with his beloved friend's death.

Burns replaced Benny in the film as well as the club tour, a move that turned out to be one of the biggest breaks of his career; his wise performance as faded vaudevillian Al Lewis earned him an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor, and secured his career resurgence for good. At the age of 80, Burns was the oldest Oscar winner in the history of the Academy Awards, a record that would remain until Jessica Tandy won an Oscar for ''Driving Miss Daisy'' in 1989.

''Oh, God!''

In 1977, Burns made another hit film, ''Oh, God!'', playing the omnipotent title role opposite singer John Denver as an earnest but befuddled supermarket manager, whom God picks at random to revive His message. The image of Burns in a sailor's cap and light springtime jacket as the droll Almighty influenced his subsequent comedic work, as well as that of other comedians. At a celebrity roast in his honor, Dean Martin adapted a Burns crack: "When George was growing up, the Top Ten were the Ten Commandments."

Burns appeared in this character along with Vanessa Williams on the September 1984 cover of Penthouse magazine, the issue which contained the infamous nude photos of Williams, as well as the first appearance of underage pornographic film star Nora Kuzma, better known to the world as Traci Lords. A blurb on the cover even announced "Oh God, she's nude!"

''Oh, God!'' inspired two sequels ''Oh, God! Book II'' (in which the Almighty engages a precocious schoolgirl (Louanne Sirota) to spread the word) and ''Oh, God! You Devil''—in which Burns played a dual role as God and the Devil, with the soul of a would-be songwriter (Ted Wass) at stake.

Burns also provided the voice of God in John Denver's TV special ''Montana Christmas Skies''.

Later films

After guest starring on ''The Muppet Show'', Burns appeared in ''Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band'', the film based on the Beatles' album of the same name.

Burns did a movie with Art Carney and Lee Strasberg in 1979 called ''Going in Style''.

Burns continued to work well into his nineties, writing a number of books and appearing in television and films. One of his last films was ''18 Again!'', based on his half-novelty, country music based hit single, "I Wish I Was 18 Again." In this film, he played a self-made millionaire industrialist who switched bodies with his awkward, artistic, eighteen-year-old grandson (played by Charlie Schlatter).

His last feature film role was the cameo role of Milt Lackey, a 100 year old stand-up comedian, in the comedy mystery ''Radioland Murders''.

Author

Burns was a bestselling author who wrote a total of 10 books:

Final years

When Burns turned 90 in 1986, the city of Los Angeles, California renamed the northern end of Hamel Road "George Burns Road." City regulations prohibited naming a city street after a living person, but an exception was made for Burns. In celebration of Burns's 99th birthday in January 1995, Los Angeles, California renamed the eastern end of Alden Drive "Gracie Allen Drive." Burns was present at the unveiling ceremony (one of his last public appearances) where he quipped, "It's good to be here at the corner of Burns & Allen. At my age, it's good to be anywhere!" George Burns Road and Gracie Allen Drive cross just a few blocks west of the Beverly Center mall.

George Burns' patter in his nightclub routine poked humor at his age. Burns would say, "I was born when Grover Cleveland was President." The girl replied, "I know him—he managed a baseball team." Burns would say, "I will now sing a modern patriotic song," singing, "I'll be waitin' for you Bill when you get back from San Juan Hill; because Bill McKinley sent you on your way." By this time, Burns fans knew of President McKinley, President Cleveland and the Spanish-American War only from history books.

Burns's stage persona in his final phase of professional life was that of an amorous senior citizen, which became a running gag for the rest of his career. In 1988, he received the Kennedy Center Honors and had booked himself to play the London Palladium and Caesars Palace for his 100th birthday, even joking that "I can't die, I'm booked".

In 1990 Mr. Burns appeared at a fundraiser at the Myerhoff Symphony Hall in Baltimore with Eartha Kitt and impressionist Jimmy James. He quipped to Scott Sherman, agent from the Atlantic Entertainment Group; "I was here in 1945...they liked me so much they decided to have me back.."

Death

In July 1994, Burns fell in his bathtub and underwent surgery to remove fluid that had collected on his brain. His health began to decline afterward. All performances celebrating his 100th birthday were canceled. In January 1995, 99 year old Burns made one of his last public appearances at the unveiling of a street named in his honor, and in December of that year, Burns was well enough to attend a Christmas party hosted by Frank Sinatra, where he reportedly caught the flu, which weakened him further. On January 20, 1996, he celebrated his 100th birthday, but was no longer mobile enough to perform or even attend a birthday party taking place that night and instead spent the evening at home. He did release a statement joking how he would love for his 100th birthday to be "a night with Sharon Stone''."

On March 9, 1996, just forty-nine days after his milestone birthday, Burns died in his Beverly Hills home of cardiac arrest. His funeral was held three days later at the Wee Kirk o' the Heather church in Forest Lawn Memorial Park Cemetery, Glendale. George Burns was buried in his best dark blue suit, light blue shirt and red tie along with three cigars in his pocket, his toupee, his watch that Gracie had given him, his ring, and in his pocket, his keys and his wallet with 10 $100 bills, a five and three ones.

As much as he looked forward to reaching the age of 100, Burns also stated that he looked forward to death, saying that the day he died, he would be with Gracie again in heaven. Upon being interred with Gracie, the crypt's marker was changed to, "Gracie Allen & George Burns—Together Again." George had said that he wanted Gracie to have top billing.

Legacy

Burns is the subject of Rupert Holmes's one-actor play ''Say Goodnight Gracie''. It played Broadway during the 2002-03 season with Frank Gorshin, and continues to tour North America with Alan Safier as George Burns.

In the movie ''Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home'', the two humpback whales are named George and Gracie after Burns and Allen.

Hooters restaurants had signs which, prior to George's death, read, "We even card George Burns;" following his death, they were changed to say, "We even carded George Burns."

''The Simpsons'' referenced Burns in the Season 5 episode titled "Rosebud". In the show, Burns is the younger brother of Montgomery Burns. The character of Mr. Burns, as a kid, leaves his family to live with a rich man (who is actually his paternal grandfather). His father makes the comment, "Oh well. At least we still have his little brother George." The camera flashes to a kid-sized George Burns, who sings a line in his style and then says, "Trust me, it'll be funny when I'm an old man."

In an episode of ''Boy Meets World'', Corey Mathews claims an old educational puberty film starred George Burns.

In the film ''For the Boys'', the characters played by Bette Midler and James Caan talk about how their comedy act will be "bigger than Burns and Allen, bigger than Hope and Crosby".

In an episode of ''Mad About You'', Paul Reiser's character is working on a documentary on the history of television. In one scene he is reviewing classic television shows, and the viewer can hear Gracie saying, "Well, if we were married they'd call me Mrs. Burns."

In ''Eminem'''s duel rap song "Guilty Conscience", there is a reference to George Burns: "Think about it before you walk in the door first; Look at the store clerk, she's older than George Burns."

In a ''Far Side'' cartoon, a futuristic city is shown with flying cars and a theater billboard stating, "TONIGHT ONLY, GEORGE BURNS."

Filmography

;Features:

''The Big Broadcast'' (1932)

''International House'' (1933)

''College Humor'' (1933)

''Six of a Kind'' (1934)

''We're Not Dressing'' (1934)

''Many Happy Returns'' (1934)

''Love in Bloom'' (1935)

''Here Comes Cookie'' (1935)

''The Big Broadcast of 1936'' (1935)

''College Holiday'' (1936)

''A Damsel in Distress'' (1937)

''College Swing'' (1938)

''Honolulu'' (1939)

''The Solid Gold Cadillac'' (1956) (narrator)

''The Sunshine Boys'' (1975)

''Oh, God!'' (1977)

''Movie Movie'' (1978)

''Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band'' (1978)

''Just You and Me, Kid'' (1979)

''Going in Style'' (1979)

''Oh, God! Book II'' (1980)

''Oh, God! You Devil'' (1984)

''18 Again!'' (1988)

''A Century of Cinema'' (1994) (documentary)

''Radioland Murders'' (1994)

''2010 Mars Men'' (2012) (footage only)

;Short Subjects:

''Lambchops'' (1929)

''Fit to Be Tied'' (1930)

''Pulling a Bone'' (1931)

''The Antique Shop'' (1931)

''Once Over, Light'' (1931)

''100% Service'' (1931)

''Oh, My Operation'' (1932)

''The Babbling Book'' (1932)

''Your Hat'' (1932)

''Let's Dance'' (1933)

''Hollywood on Parade No. A-9'' (1933)

''Walking the Baby'' (1933)

''Screen Snapshots: Famous Fathers and Sons'' (1946)

''Screen Snapshots: Hollywood Grows Up'' (1954)

''Screen Snapshots: Hollywood Beauty'' (1955)

''All About People'' (1967) (narrator)

''A Look at the World of Soylent Green'' (1973)

''The Lion Roars Again'' (1975)

Discography

Albums

Year	Album	Chart Positions		Label
		! width="50"	! width="50"
1980	''I Wish I Was Eighteen Again''			Mercury

Singles

Year	Single	Chart Positions					Album
		! width="45"	! width="45"	CAN Country	CAN	CAN AC
	"I Wish I Was Eighteen Again"
"The Arizona Whiz"
1981	"Willie, Won't You Sing a Song with Me"						Single only

Radio series

''The Robert Burns Panatella Show'' 1932–1933; CBS

:In their debut series, George and Gracie shared the bill with Guy Lombardo and his orchestra. The pair launched themselves into national stardom with their first major publicity stunt, Gracie's ongoing search for her missing brother.

''The White Owl Program'' 1933–1934; CBS

''The Adventures of Gracie'' 1934–1935; CBS

''The Campbell's Tomato Juice Program'' 1935–1937; CBS

''The Grape Nuts Program'' 1937–1938; NBC

''The Chesterfield Program'' 1938–1939; CBS

''The Hinds Honey and Almond Cream Program'' 1939–1940; CBS

:This series featured another wildly successful publicity stunt which had Gracie running for President of the United States.

''The Hormel Program'' 1940–1941; NBC

:Advertised a brand new product called Spam; this show featured musical numbers by jazz great Artie Shaw.

''The Swan Soap Show'' 1941–1945; NBC, CBS

:This series featured a radical format change, in that George and Gracie played themselves as a married couple for the first time, and the show became a full-fledged domestic situation comedy. This was George's response to a marked drop in ratings under the old "Flirtation Act" format (as he later recalled, he finally realized "our jokes are too young for us").

''Maxwell House Coffee Time'' 1945–1949; NBC

''The Amm-i-Dent Toothpaste Show'' 1949–1950; CBS

TV series

''The George Burns and Gracie Allen Show'' 1950–1958; CBS

:Broadcast live every other week for the first two seasons, 26 episodes per year. Starting in the third season, all episodes were filmed and broadcast weekly, 40 episodes per year. A total of 291 episodes were created.

''The George Burns Show'' 1958–1959; NBC

:An unsuccessful attempt to continue the format of ''The George Burns and Gracie Allen Show'' without Gracie, the rest of the cast intact.

''Wendy and Me'' 1964–1965; NBC

:George plays narrator in this short-lived series, just as he had in ''The George Burns and Gracie Allen Show'', but with far less on-screen time, as the focus is on a young couple played by Connie Stevens and Ron Harper. Stevens is, essentially, playing a version of Gracie's character.

''George Burns Comedy Week'' 1985; CBS

:Another short-lived series, a weekly comedy anthology program whose only connecting thread was George's presence as host. He does not appear in any of the actual storylines. He was 89 years old when the series was produced.

References

Further reading

''George Burns'' by Martin Gottfried, published by Simon & Schuster, 1996

External links

Official George Burns website

Home of George Burns & Gracie Allen-Radio Television Mirror-December 1940 (page 17)

Category:1896 births Category:1996 deaths Category:American film actors Category:American television actors Category:American radio actors Category:Best Supporting Actor Academy Award winners Category:American stand-up comedians Category:Vaudeville performers Category:American buskers Category:American Jews Category:Jewish actors Category:Jewish comedians Category:Burials at Forest Lawn Memorial Park (Glendale) Category:American centenarians Category:People from New York City Category:Saturn Award winners Category:Grammy Award winners Category:Kennedy Center honorees

an:George Burns de:George Burns es:George Burns fr:George Burns id:George Burns it:George Burns he:ג'ורג' ברנס nl:George Burns ja:ジョージ・バーンズ no:George Burns pl:George Burns pt:George Burns ro:George Burns ru:Джордж Бёрнс sr:Џорџ Бернс sh:George Burns fi:George Burns sv:George Burns tl:George Burns yo:George Burns

Coordinates	41°52′55″N87°37′40″N
name	Gracie Allen
birth name	Grace Ethel Cecile Rosalie Allen
birth date	July 26, 1895
birth place	San Francisco, California, U.S.
death date	August 27, 1964
death place	Los Angeles, California, U.S.
occupation	Actress, comedienne
years active	1924–1958
spouse	2 children }}

Grace Ethel Cecile Rosalie Allen (July 26, 1895 – August 27, 1964), known as Gracie Allen, was an American comedian who became internationally famous as the zany partner and comic foil of husband George Burns. For contributions to the television industry, Gracie Allen was honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6672 Hollywood Boulevard.

Early life

Gracie Allen was born in San Francisco, California, to George Allen and Molly Darragh, who were of Irish Catholic extraction. She made her first appearance on stage at age three and was given her first chance ''On Air'' by Eddie Cantor. She was educated at the Star of the Sea Convent School and during that time became a talented dancer. She soon began performing Irish folk dances with her three sisters, who were billed as "The Four Colleens." In 1909 Allen joined her sister, Bessie, as a vaudeville performer. At a performance in 1922 Allen met George Burns and the two formed a comedy act. The two were married on January 7, 1926, in Cleveland, Ohio.

Birth date mystery

Depending on the source, Gracie Allen might have been born on July 26 in 1895, 1896, 1902, or 1906. All public records held by the City and County of San Francisco were destroyed in the earthquake and great fire of April 1906. Her husband, George Burns, also professed not to know exactly how old she was, though it was presumably he who provided the date July 26, 1902, which appears on her death record. Her crypt marker also shows her year of birth as 1902. Allen used to claim that she was born in 1906 but, when pressed for evidence, she would say that her birth certificate had been destroyed in the earthquake. When the person she was telling pointed out that she was born in July but the earthquake was three months earlier in April, she would simply smile and say, "Well, it was an ''awfully big'' earthquake." The most reliable information comes from the U.S. Census data collected on June 1, 1900. According to the information in the Census records for the State of California, City and County of San Francisco, enumeration district 38, family 217, page 11-A, one Grace Allen — daughter of George and Maggie Allen, and youngest sister of Bessie, Hazel and Pearl Allen — was born in California in July 1895. In the census taken on April 15, 1910, however, for San Francisco's 39th Assembly District, Enumeration District 216, Page 5A, Grace Allen is listed as being 13 (instead of 14). It should be further noted, however, that census enumerators received their information by word of mouth, often from third parties, and discrepancies between ages from one decade's census to another are not uncommon in this time period.

Double act

The Burns and Allen act began with Allen as the straight man, setting up Burns to deliver the punchlines — and get the laughs. In his book ''Gracie: A Love Story'' Burns later explained that he noticed Allen's straight lines were getting more laughs than his punchlines, so he cannily flipped the act over —- he made himself the straight man and let her get the laughs. Audiences immediately fell in love with Allen's character, who combined the traits of stupidity, zaniness, and total innocence. As is often the case with performers who play dumb, Gracie was, in reality, highly intelligent. The reformulated team, focusing on Allen, toured the country, eventually headlining in major vaudeville houses. Many of their famous routines, including "Lambchops" were preserved on early one- and two-reeler short films made while the couple was still performing on the stage. George Burns attributed all of the couple's early success to Allen, modestly ignoring his own brilliance as a straight man. He summed up their act in a classic quip: "All I had to do was say, 'Gracie, how's your brother?' and she talked for 38 years. And sometimes I didn't even have to remember to say 'Gracie, how's your brother?'"

Radio

In the early 1930s, like many stars of their era, Burns and Allen graduated to radio. The show was originally a continuation of their original "flirtation act" (as their vaudeville and short film routines had been). Burns realized that they were simply too old for that material ("Our jokes were too young for us", he later remarked) and changed the show's format in the fall of 1941 into the situation comedy vehicle for which they are best remembered: a working show business married couple negotiating ordinary problems caused by Gracie's "illogical logic," usually with the help of neighbors Harry and Blanche Morton, and their announcer, Bill Goodwin (later replaced by Harry von Zell during the run of their television series).

Publicity stunts

Burns and Allen frequently used running gags as publicity stunts. During 1932-33 they pulled off one of the most successful in the business: a year-long search for Allen's supposedly missing brother. They would make unannounced cameo appearances on other shows, asking if anyone had seen Allen's brother. Gracie Allen's real-life brother was apparently the only person who didn't find the gag funny, and he eventually asked them to stop. (He dropped out of sight for a few weeks, at the height of the publicity.)

In 1940 the team launched a similar stunt when Allen announced she was running for President of the United States on the Surprise Party ticket. Burns and Allen did a cross-country whistlestop campaign tour on a private train, performing their live radio show in different cities. In one of her campaign speeches Gracie said, "I don't know much about the Lend-Lease Bill, but if we owe it we should pay it." Another typical Gracie-ism on the campaign trail went like this: "Everybody knows a woman is better than a man when it comes to introducing bills into the house." The Surprise Party mascot was the kangaroo; the motto was "It's in the bag." As part of the gag, Allen (in reality, the Burns and Allen writers) published a book, ''Gracie Allen for President'', which included photographs from their nationwide campaign tour and the Surprise Party convention. Allen went on to receive 42,000 votes in the general election in November 1940; only six other female United States presidential and vice-presidential candidates have received more votes in a presidential election.

Allen was also the subject of one of S.S. Van Dine's famous Philo Vance mystery novels, ''The Gracie Allen Murder Case''. Typically, she couldn't resist a classic Gracie Allen review: "S.S. Van Dine is silly to spend six months writing a novel when you can buy one for two dollars and ninety five cents."

Another publicity stunt had her playing a piano concerto at the Hollywood Bowl (and later at Carnegie Hall). The Burns and Allen staff hired a composer to write the Concerto for Index Finger, a joke piece that had the orchestra playing madly, only to pause while Allen played a single (incorrect) note with one finger. On her final "solo," she would finally hit the right note, causing the entire orchestra to applaud. In fact, the actual index-finger playing was done off-stage by a professional pianist.

Television

Around 1948 Burns and Allen became part of the CBS talent raid. Their good friend (and frequent guest star) Jack Benny had decided to jump from NBC over to CBS. William S. Paley, the mastermind of CBS, had recently made it openly clear that he believed talent and not the network made the difference, which was not the case at NBC. Benny convinced Burns and Allen (among others) to join him in the move to CBS. The Burns and Allen radio show became part of the CBS lineup and a year later they also brought their show to television. They continued to use the formula which had kept them longtime radio stars, playing themselves only now as television stars, still living next door to Harry and Blanche Morton. They concluded each show with a brief dialogue performance in the style of their classic vaudeville and earlier radio routines.

Allen retired in 1958, and Burns tried to soldier on without her. The show was re-named ''The George Burns Show'' with the cast intact except for Allen. The locale of the show was changed from the Burns home to George Burns' office, with Blanche Morton working as Burns' secretary so she could help Allen keep an eye on him. Allen's absence was only too obvious and impossible to overcome. The renamed show barely lasted a year.

Films

In the early 1930s, Burns and Allen made several short films, preserving several of their classic vaudeville routines on celluloid. They also made two films with W. C. Fields—''International House'' (1933) and ''Six of a Kind'' (1934)—and starred with Fred Astaire in ''A Damsel in Distress'', a musical with an original score by George Gershwin, which introduced the song "A Foggy Day". It was Astaire's first film without dancing partner Ginger Rogers. (Astaire and Rogers had decided to work apart for a while—a career move only, since the two remained good friends.) Astaire was to star in the picture, but co-star Joan Fontaine was not a dancer and he was reluctant to dance on screen alone. He also felt the script needed more comic relief to enhance the overall appeal of the film.

George Burns and Gracie Allen had each worked in vaudeville as dancers (aka "hoofers") before forming their act. When word of the project reached them, they called Astaire and were asked to audition. Burns then contacted an act he had once seen that performed a dance using brooms. For the next several weeks, he and Allen worked at home to learn the complicated routine. When they presented the "Whisk Broom Dance" to Astaire, he was so taken by it, that he had them teach it to him and it was added to the film. Throughout the picture Burns and Allen amazed audiences and critics (many did not know either of them could dance) as they "effortlessly" kept pace with the most famous dancer in the films. Their talents were further highlighted as they matched Astaire step by step during the demanding "Funhouse Dance".

"Say good night, Gracie"

The legend was born of their vaudeville routine and carried over to both radio and television. As the show wrap-up Burns would look at Allen and say "Say good night, Gracie" to which she would usually simply reply "Good night." Popular legend has it that Allen would say, "Good night, Gracie." According to George Burns, recordings of their radio and television shows, and several histories of old-time radio (John Dunning's ''On the Air: The Encyclopedia of Old-Time Radio'', for example), Gracie never used the phrase. The confusion may have been caused by ''Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In''. Stars Dan Rowan and Dick Martin used a similar sign-off routine wherein Rowan would tell Martin to "Say good night, Dick." Martin's reply was always "Good night, Dick." It ''seemed'' like something Gracie Allen would have said.

George Burns himself said as much in an interview years later, adding that, surprisingly enough, no one ever thought of having Allen say "Good night, Gracie". However, the former Burns and Allen head writer, Paul Henning, did use the "say good night" bit in at least one episode of the ''Beverly Hillbillies'' (''The Richest Woman,'' aired January 5, 1966, two years before ''Laugh-In'' premiered. JED: "Say good night, Jethro." JETHRO: "Good night, Jethro.")

Private life

In the 1930s Burns and Allen adopted two children, Sandra Jean and Ronald John, after discovering they could not conceive their own. They agreed to raise the children as Catholics, then let them make their own religious choice as adults. Ronnie eventually joined the cast of his parents' television show playing George and Gracie's son, a serious drama student who disdained comedy. Sandy, by contrast, made only occasional appearances on the show (usually as a waitress or a clerk), and left show business to become a teacher.

As a child, Allen had been scalded badly on one arm, and she was extremely sensitive about the scarring. Throughout her life she wore either full or three-quarter length sleeves in order to hide the scars. The half-forearm style became as much a Gracie Allen trademark as her many aprons and her illogical logic. When the couple moved to Beverly Hills and acquired a swimming pool, Gracie put on a bathing suit and swam the length of the pool to prove to her children that she could swim. (She fought a longtime fear of drowning by privately taking swimming lessons.) She never put on a bathing suit or entered the pool again.

Allen was said to be sensitive about having one green eye and one blue eye (heterochromia), and there was some speculation that plans to film the eighth season of ''The Burns & Allen Show'' in color prompted her retirement. However, this seems unlikely, since a one-time-only color episode was filmed and broadcast in 1954 (a clip of which was seen on a recent CBS anniversary show). The reason she retired in 1958 was her health; George Burns noted more than once that she stayed with the television show as long as she did to please him, in spite of her health problems.

In later years Burns admitted that following an argument over a pricey coffee table Allen wanted, he had a very brief affair with a Las Vegas showgirl. Stricken by guilt, he phoned Jack Benny and told him about the indiscretion. However, Allen overheard the conversation and Burns quietly bought the expensive coffee table. Nothing more was said. Years later he discovered that Allen had told one of her friends about the episode finishing with, "You know, I really wish George would cheat on me again. I could use a new coffee table."

Death

Gracie Allen fought a long battle with heart disease, ultimately dying of a heart attack in Hollywood in 1964. She was interred in a crypt at the Freedom Mausoleum at Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Glendale, California. Burns was interred at her side when he died 32 years later. ("Gracie Allen and George Burns—Together Again," reads the engraving on the marker.)

Filmography

''Lambchops'' (1929) (short film)

''The Big Broadcast'' (1932) (first feature film)

''College Humor'' (1933)

''International House'' (1933)

''Many Happy Returns'' (1934) (first leading role)

''Six of a Kind'' (1934)

''We're Not Dressing'' (1934)

''Love in Bloom'' (1935)

''Here Comes Cookie'' (1936)

''A Damsel in Distress'' (1937) (first Fred Astaire movie without Ginger Rogers and first in which Burns and Allen danced)

''College Swing'' (1938)

''Honolulu'' (1939)

''The Gracie Allen Murder Case'' (1939) (without Burns—a "Philo Vance" mystery by S. S. Van Dine)

''Mr. and Mrs. North'' (1941) (second murder mystery without Burns)

''Two Girls and a Sailor'' (1944) (guest appearance and last movie)

Radio series

''The Robert Burns Panatella Show:'' 1932 - 1933 CBS

''The White Owl Program:'' 1933 - 1934 CBS

''The Adventures of Gracie:'' 1934 - 1935 CBS

''The Campbell's Tomato Juice Program:'' 1935 - 1937 CBS

''The Grape Nuts Program:'' 1937 - 1938 NBC

''The Chesterfield Program:'' 1938 - 1939 CBS

''The Hinds Honey and Almond Cream Program:'' 1939 - 1940 CBS

''The Hormel Program:'' 1940 - 1941 NBC

''The Swan Soap Show:'' 1941 - 1945 NBC, CBS

''Maxwell House Coffee Time:'' 1945 - 1949 NBC

''The Amm-i-Dent Toothpaste Show:'' 1949 - 1950 CBS

Gracie Award

The Gracie Award is presented by the American Women in Radio and Television to recognize and encourage positive and realistic portrayals of women in entertainment, commercials, news, features and other programs. Allen has twice been nominated to the National Women's Hall of Fame which has so far chosen not to induct her.

See also

''The George Burns and Gracie Allen Show:'' 1950-1958 CBS

References

Further reading

''I Love Her, That's Why!: An Autobiography'' by George Burns (1955, 2003) ISBN 0-758-13841-5

''The Third Time Around'' by George Burns (New York: Putnam, 1980), including transcripts of several classic Burns & Allen routines.

''Gracie: A Love Story'' by George Burns (1989) ISBN 0-140-12656-2

''Say Goodnight, Gracie: The Story of George Burns and Gracie Allen'' by Cheryl Blythe and Susan Hackett (1986, 1989) ISBN 1-559-58019-4

''The Great American Broadcast'' by Leonard Maltin (New York: Dutton, 1997)

''On the Air: The Encyclopedia of Old-Time Radio'' by John Dunning (New York: Oxford University Press, 1998)

External links

Home of George Burns & Gracie Allen-Radio Television Mirror-December 1940 (page 17)

Category:1895 births Category:1964 deaths Category:American comedians Category:American female singers Category:American film actors Category:American people of Irish descent Category:American radio actors Category:American stage actors Category:American television personalities Category:Burials at Forest Lawn Memorial Park (Glendale) Category:Deaths from myocardial infarction Category:Female United States presidential candidates Category:People from San Francisco, California Category:United States presidential candidates, 1940 Category:Vaudeville performers Category:Women comedians Category:Children of Entertainers

de:Gracie Allen es:Gracie Allen eo:Gracie Allen fr:Gracie Allen gl:Gracie Allen no:Gracie Allen pl:Gracie Allen pt:Gracie Allen ru:Аллен, Грейси fi:Gracie Allen sv:Gracie Allen