The Fred Allen Show

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“The Fred Allen Show” ran under its various names from 12-25-32 to 6-26-49. Fred Allen was a sharp wit, but was also influenced by Will Rogers and accordingly brought topical political humor into his repertoire. Another big part of his show was the Allen’s Alley segments, starring Alan Reed, and John Brown. Over the years, he had more big guests to name, but some included Edward G. Robinson, Jack Benny, Bing Crosby, Ozzie & Harriet Nelson, and Carmen Miranda.

Orson Welles guested on:
11-8-39
10-18-42
3-3-46

The 10-18-42 show was aimed at the troops in WWII, and Welles starred in a production of “Les Miserables.” At the top of the show, Allen billed him as “a boy prodigy who lived up to it.” The program kicked off with Irving Berlin’s “This is the Army, Mr. Jones.”

The 3-3-46 episode centered around another rendering of “Les Mis,” included an Allen’s Alley sketch, and began with a segment of Allen’s monologue in which he skewered Jack Benny, mostly by insulting his intelligence.

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