Evening star., 1936-03-15
Bv the Radio Editor.

THE Jack Benny program, which
the Nations radio critics have
chosen as the outstanding air
u attraction for the past two
years, and whose star they have
elected as their favorite microphone
comedian three years running, will
originate tonight in Washington. The
broadcast will be staged in the Ma
tional Press Club Auditorium at pm.
Along with Benny will be heard that
modern poetess, Mary Livingstone,
whose ode to Labor Day" will 60 down
In literary history as a twentieth CEN
tury classic; Kenny Baker, the tinid
tenor from California; Johnny Green,
composer conductor pianist, leading a
local orchestra, and Don Wilson, the
sports announcer, who turns in a
pretty good acting job every now and
then.
WHAT is the formula for the success
w of the Benny programs? Why is
1t that his suave, easy-going humor
seems to be making a consistently big
ger hit with listeners throughout the
country than that of his comic COL
leagues? To start out finding the an
sWers to these questions one might
visit small room in New York's Park
Central Hotel any Wednesday morn
ing. A knock on the door of Room
1910 about 9 O'Clock will bring a
hearty Come in" from a fellow named
Harry Conn. AS you walk in, you see
a solidly-built man-you'd guess he's
in his late thirties-Seated in front of
@ portable typewriter.
Conn is Bennys collaboration. He
never starts working on the Sunday
broadcast until the preceding Wednes-
day. What are you going to have
Sunday?" you ask Harry. He doesn't
know. will be the reply. well, isn't
it about time you get to thinking about
1t?" you continue.
You're telling me. And what do
you suppose this typewriter is for?" he
comes back-and then, The first
thing I have to do this morning is
work out a situation that will make a
good vehicle for Jack and his cast.
We always try to get something top
iCal-a current screen or stage success,
a public event about which there is a
lot of discussion or an episode which
has been planted on previous pro-
gram. Illustrative of the latter is the
famous 'feud' between Jack and Don
Bestor last year. This grew out of
the very simple notion of having Jack
not give Don a Christmas present
When this structure has been carefully
planned, begin thinking about gags
I UNDERLYING all of Benny's think
ing in building a show are two
principles which have governed his
comedy ever since he first faced the
microphone. Although he is the COM
edy star, the majority of the laughs
must go to the other members of the
cast; there must be good-natured kid
ding of the typical method of COM
mercial announcing.
In every script Jack Benny is the
underdog. Johnny Green comes on
ard flips few wisecracks at him.
Mary debates him further with a
VI WSI-dlI1CO GNCAA
Kenny Baker and Wilson take him
down a few pegs. With the result
that the sympathy of the listeners is
with Benny from the start. The
heckling of the star by his supporters
is a sound comedy formula, but it
brings even more laughs in the Benny
show, because, no matter how many
times they have heard them before,
members of the audience never expect
tenors, band leaders and announcers
to say anything funny. Neither Baker,
Wilson nor Green are trained actors,
and yet under Bennys I-atchful eye
they have become f1rst-rate comedy
players.
MARY LIVINGSTONE, who is Mrs.
~'A Benny outside of the studios,
rates a paragraph by herself. She
was not in the first Benny series. One
night Jack found his script running
short, and he signaled Mary, who was
in the audience, to step over to the
mike and ad-lib with him for minute
or two in order to fill out the remain
ing time. She made such hit on
this impromptu occasion that Jack has
kept her in the show as one of his
foils ever since.
In the matter of kidding the an
nouncements, Jack Benny is considered
a past master. There is too much
pompous commercial spelling on the
air, he feels. AS a result the product
he represents finds its way into Benny
comedy sequence at the most unex-