Phil Foster

Phil Foster (1913-1985) was a comedian and actor who initially made his reputation as a nightclub comic but later was a regular on Laverne & Shirley as Laverne's father Frank DeFazio. In the 1950s, Foster promoted himself as "Brooklyn's Ambassador to the USA," while a series of theatrical shorts moved him to being ambassador to the world. His Brooklyn-themed routines were preserved on records, including a 1954 single "A Brooklyn Baseball Fan," with "The Kids On The Corner" as the B side. Both sides were lip synced to multiple times by the Muppets on Sam and Friends. Foster's 1957 recording "Listen All You Bachelors" (B side of "Let's Keep the Dodgers in Brooklyn") was on Jim Henson's list of recordings for use on Sam and Friends or related appearance, but actual usage is unconfirmed.Shemin, Craig. Sam and Friends: The Story of Jim Henson's First Television Show. p. 531
Foster started out as a dramatic actor before performing stand-up. He was a frequent guest star on the radio variety series The Big Show (1951-1952), again most often doing Brooklyn bits. He appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show, had a cameo in the Jerry Lewis movie The Patsy as a recording engineer, and returned to his dramatic roots in the 1973 film Bang the Drum Slowly (with Robert De Niro). Garry Marshall brought him back to Hollywood for a guest spot on The Odd Couple with Laverne & Shirley following. Afterwards, Foster made appearances on Fantasy Island, The Love Boat, and in occasional movies.
==Records used on Sam and Friends==
*"The Kids on the Corner." March 13, 1959 broadcast.ibid. p. 350
*"A Brooklyn Baseball Fan." April 22, 1959.ibid. p. 364
*"A Brooklyn Baseball Fan." April 18, 1960.ibid. p. 450
*"The Kids on the Corner." May 23, 1960.ibid. p. 459
*"A Brooklyn Baseball Fan" (excerpts used briefly as Sam's lines). October 10, 1960.ibid. p. 468
==Sources==
==External links==
*IMDb
*Discogs.com listing
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Category:Audio References