On this day in 1955, Jack Benny's popular radio program went off the air after more than two decades. Benny was born in Illinois, and his violin and comedy act made him a vaudeville star in the 1920s. He made a number of popular films in the 1930s and 1940s, and debuted on his own radio show in 1932. Benny launched a TV show in 1952, which ran until 1965.
Benny has two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. One for movies located at 6690 Hollywood Boulevard and a second for television located at 6370 Hollywood Boulevard.
Benny is buried in Hillside Memorial Park in Culver City, CA.
Benny appeared three times as the Mystery Guest on episodes of What's My Line?
Benny once tried to get the silent Marx Brother, Harpo, to talk on his show but to no avail. Harpo Marx appeared but he did not speak.
Rochester used to always joke about his boss's hairpieces saying that "Mr. Benny has hair at home he hasn't used yet" but in real life Jack Benny did not wear a toupee.
In interviews Benny always admitted his true age whereas his radio/TV personna was always 39 years old.
Benny served as the emcee for President Truman's Inaugural Ball in 1949.
Benny hosted the Academy Awards ceremony in 1944 and 1947.
Violinist Isaac Stern was a close friend of Benny despite the comic fun Benny used to have with Stern's instrument.
A waitress once returned Benny's generous tip to him. She said she preferred the illusion of Benny as a stingy old man.
A middle school in his hometown of Waukegan, IL is named after Benny. The school's nickname is the 39ers after the age Benny always claimed to be.
Jack Benny was 5 feet 8 inches tall.
Politically, Benny was a lifelong Democrat.
Benny won a Golden Globe in 1958 for Best TV Show.
Benny's TV/radio personna drove a Maxwell automobile. Mel Blanc provided the voice of the car on radio.
Benny was preparing to star in The Sunshine Boys when his health failed. Good friend George Burns ended up replacing him.
Benny's 1945 film The Horn Blows at Midnight was a box office failure and this flop became a running gag on his radio and TV programs.
Benny co-starred with Carole Lombard, Robert Stack, and Lionel Atwill in the classic 1942 comedy To Be or Not to Be.
Benny's memoirs were entitled Sunday Nights at Seven. Daughter Joan completed the book after her father's death. (
Lucky Strike Tobacco was Benny's longest running sponsor.
Benny's TV show ran from 1950 to 1964 on CBS. It ran for an additional year on NBC before cancellation.
During all the years Benny's radio program aired on NBC he never actually met NBC President David Sarnoff until after he left the network for CBS.
Benny and good friend Fred Allen had a "feud" on radio for many years.
The theme song for Jack's radio and TV programs was Love in Bloom.
Jimmy Stewart and his wife Gloria appeared on several episodes of Jack's TV show as his "neighbors." Earlier on radio, actor Ronald Colman and his real life wife had played Benny's "neighbors."
Benny's radio program was broadcast from New York when it premiered in 1932 but it moved to Los Angeles in 1936.
Benny was one of the first performers to cast an Afro-American on his show when he hired Eddie Anderson to play his "chauffeur" Rochester Van Jones.
Benny's wife, Mary Livingstone, had to retire from the act in 1958 after developing a severe case of stage fright.
Jack Benny's radio program aired on NBC from 1932 to 1948 and on CBS from 1948 to 1955.
Benny and his wife had an adopted daughter named Joan.
Jack married Mary Livingstone (real name Sadie Marks) in 1927. She became an integral part of his comedy act on stage, radio, and TV.
Benny served in the Navy during World War I.
Benny originally changed his name to Ben K. Benny before settling on Jack Benny as his stage moniker.
In 1911, the Marx Brothers offered to take the 17 year old Benny on the road with them as part of their act but Benny's mother nixed the idea.
Benny began studyling to play the violin at age 6.
Jack Benny's father was a saloon owner.
Benny was born in Chicago but grew up in nearby Waukegan.
Benny's final television appearance was on one of Dean Martin's Celebrity roasts in 1974. The episode aired after Benny's death.
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