Shark Bytes

Never Jumped .....Gracie was the original Lucy. Bea was the original Ethel. Why are they not running it somewhere ...???

Of course it never jumped the shark. It died an honorable death. The reason it ended production was because Gracie could no longer do the show because of her health. George did attempt a spinoff with some of the characters carried over, but it was no use without Gracie. He was her straight man, Mr. Gracie Allen. Sadly, she died in 1964, at about the same time George was beginning a short-lived series called Wendy And Me. He finally broke out on his own ten years later. When his best friend, Jack Benny, died suddenly in 1974, the producers of the upcoming movie The Sunshine Boys needed a replacement for Benny, who was to co-star in the film. Burns, of course, took the role, and won an Oscar for Best Supporting Actor. Then he finally became a star in his own right.

The fact that the series lasted as long as it did is no reason to EVER suggest it "jumped the shark". However, there were a lot of changes: for instance, there were four "Harry Mortons" during the entire run of the series- and Larry Keating seemed to be the best of them. The writing staff shifted from time to time (Paul Henning only worked on the first two "live" seasons), as did the producer/directors {Levy/Cordova/Amateau}. There was the "live" show, and the filmed version
[primarily for business reasons, so that George could sell the series in syndication for his and Gracie's "annuity"], and a sub-supporting cast that changed over the years (including Rolfe Sedan and Judi Meredith). The only reason the show left the air was because of Gracie's health. It got so, in the later years, that George dreaded telling her they were renewed for another season, because her physical health [in addition to her frequent migraine headaches] began to deteriorate very slowly by the mid-'50s, and she KNEW it. By early 1958, her vision and breathing capacity were bothering her, and EVERYONE knew it. So, when the moment came in February 1958 when George asked her one evening, "You really want to stop?", she said, "I really do"- and that was it. To him, that was worse than being bitten by a shark.

Not only did this show never jump, it anti-jumped. It actually got better as it went on. If you doubt me, dig up a vid of some of the REALLY early episodes (the ones they don't syndicate). And Larry Keating, the last of the Harry Mortons (there were 4 in all, but only 2 in syndication) was the best of them. For those who didn't like the Ronnie Burns episodes, I point out that one of the very best episodes was in that cache (the one with the Stanislovski Method). (my favorite episode, though, is the one where they keep getting locked out of the houses. "Gracie! Did you lock the door?!?" "No, but I will! >")

I too caught this show in the 80s when it was being rerun on cable. At the time, I had to have been in my early teens, but man this was the most hilarious thing I think I had ever seen on TV. More recently I did get see a few episodes on cable and it still cracks me up to watch it. There was never a bad episode. Ok, a few dull ones maybe; it isn't exactly riveting television, but the comedy itself is timeless and never crude - something that I don't think a single sitcom does today. It was the true forerunner for shows like Newhart, Cosby, and I'm sure a few others in between that I can't think of right now. It definitely deserves a place in the "Never Jumped" Hall of Fame, but will probably never make it now that time has buried it into obscurity.

The problem with the advertising wasn't so much that it made its way into the script as that, in a sense, it didn't. If you listen to their radio shows, with Bill Goodwin advertising Maxwell House Coffee, the commercials were actually entwined into the plot itself - most memorably when Goodwin was buttering up James Mason about how great the British were, and then Mason made the mistake of offering him a cup of tea. "How dare you insult me like that! I drink nothing but Maxwell House Coffee!" It was brilliant... but when they moved to television, they must have lost the writer who knew how to do it. (You know how you lose things when you move.) Harry Von Zell's commercials always seemed to be unnaturally pasted onto an otherwise seamless script. It was really a pity.

Never Jumped. Having heard several of their radio shows (I love Mel Blanc's ironically named Happy Postman!) and seen some of their live shows on public domain VHS, I look forward every Sunday to see the next episode of Burns and Allen. It would be nice if TV Land would show The Jack Benny Progran in a double bill with George and Gracie since Benny is such good friends with the Burns'. Anyway, kudos to TV Land for preserving whatever heritage they can by showing as much of '50s programming as possible and here's hoping there is still enough of an audience to keep The George Burns and Gracie Allan Show on the air!

Never jumped. One of the funniest shows ever -- and I'm under 50. Wish some cable channel would rerun it. George Burns is the greatest straight man ever -- too bad he had to do "Wendy & Me." And Harry Von Zell was an unbelievable foil.

"Timeless" is the word to describe this show, and I can prove it. I showed two very early episodes (well before George watched the action on a monitor in his den) to my college media students. They laughed, and not out of derision. They found the humor genuinely funny. And they marveled at the fact that, in the middle of the show, Harry von Zell took a minute or two to talk about the virtues of Carnation Evaporated Milk.

Wonderful show that never jumped the shark. The only thing I can add to the comments here is how underrated Bea Benaderet is, I only wish her later work had been more like this rather than "Petticoat Junction." She brings almost as much to this show as Burns and Allen.

I think "Burns and Allen" on the all-time great TV shows - classic in the true sense of the word! Great writing - witty, doesn't "dumb-down" to the audience, as so much current day sit-coms do. Kudos to TVLand for showing this show again, although only once a week, on Sunday morning. I watched this show on CBN 20 years ago - enjoyed it then, and enjoy it now. Classic comedy. I am reminded of a comment George made in his book, "Grace, A Love Story". George was wondering about the source of the long-time success of the show. Off in the background, Gracie is saying, "Now children, it's cold outside, so if you want to go swimming, be sure to wear your sweaters!" The camera goes back to George, who says, "I think I just found out the reason for the show's success, and her name is Gracie." The real life love between George and Gracie is evident in the show. I think Desi/Lucy, who many regard as being such a good couple, was not evident to me. Lucy was so afraid of Desi, it was like a father/daughter relationship, where she always was afraid of his disapproval, and inciting his anger. Not my idea of a healthy marriage. George and Gracie, in comparison, had such respect/love/admiration for each other, and complimented each other so well. I'd like to see this show get a bigger audience, it deserves to be watched and appreciated so much more. It's a fine gem that needs to be brought out of storage to shine again!

I've watched the show in re-runs, spanning all the cast/ location changes, and I think that they pulled off a brilliantly smooth, endearing and thoroughly entertaining show. What others may call a lapse or stumbling point just goes to prove that here were the true innovators of the upcoming impromptu shows, forerunners of wacky off-the-wall comedy such as was later seen in Laugh-In or Monty Python's Flying Circus. I enjoyed all the developments- from Ronnie's entrance to the many Harry Mortons to their moves and the focus shift to Ronnie and his pals- it kept things rolling in a fresh, true-to-life fashion. I believe they never "jumped the shark" because the consistent thread of lighthearted humor, "go with the flow" attitude, and their affection and respect for one another endured and was the only connectivity needed!

Sometime after 1952, when the sets became realistic and the show turned into a sitcom. Also, Fred Clark was the best Harry Morton, but I don't know how long his term as Blanche's husband lasted.

No JTS moment. The smoothest and most intelligently handled way of substituting actors in the same character was handled by George Burns. When his next door neighbor had a professional commitment in either Hollywood or Broadway, Burns brought the new actor in front of the audience, said that the original actor had another acting commitment and said that from now on the new actor would be playing the role. Incidentally, while opposite personalities and acting methods, both proved great in the role. The substitution was seamless.

I wasn't around when this show first broadcast, but caught it in reruns in the late seventies. This show and it's wonderful actors were brilliant. It's also no surprise to me that one of the shows top writer's was Paul Henning, of Green Acres fame. It's a pity it isn't rerun more often. As for the changes in 'Harry Morton's' there were a grand total of four. (Hal March, John Brown, Fred Clark, & Larry Keating.) The cool thing is that they all had distinct separate personalities. I liked Larry Keatings, stuffy, Harry Morton the best. As for the commercials being part of the show,it was a necessary evil. The Beverly Hillbillies (another Henning creation) did some really funny commercials that I wish were left in the show.