Jack Benny: We Remember
12/26/74 ~ NBC-TV
“This NBC News Special, which pays tribute to comedian Jack Benny aired the night of his death, and is hosted from Burbank by NBC News correspondent Tom Snyder and from New York City by Edwin Newman. The program includes interviews with actor/producer Sheldon Leonard, singer Dennis Day; actor/voice-over artist Mel Blanc; musician Johnny Green; violinist Isaac Stern; television personality Jack Paar; Mayor Robert Sabonjian of Waukegan, Illinois; and NBC president Herbert Schlosser. Highlights include: a retrospective of Jack Benny's career, which spanned from early days of radio to television; how the other characters in "The Jack Benny Show" were developed more and more as the programs went on; an interview with Benny about his reputation as a stingy character and whether his real personality is anything like that; footage from George Burns's nightclub act in Las Vegas, which called for Benny to wear a dress; a discussion between Snyder and his guests about their thoughts on the occasion of Benny's death; Paar's reminiscences about the first time he met Benny and Benny's influence on his own career in show business; the guests' greatest memories of Benny -- the comedian and the human being; a visit to Benny's hometown of Waukegan; and a clip from Benny's "Second Farewell Special" which aired on January 24, 1974”. This half hour special aired during the Tonight Show scheduled spot, and was broadcast with no commercial interruptions. A-