IN: John Florence Sullivan (May 31, 1894 - March 17, 1956), known professionally as Fred Allen, was an American comedian whose absurdist, topically pointed radio program The Fred Allen Show (1932-1949) made him one of the most popular and forward-looking humorists in the Golden Age of American radio. His best-remembered gag was his long-running mock feud with friend and fellow comedian Jack Benny, but it was only part of his appeal; radio historian John Dunning (in On the Air: The Encyclopedia of Old-Time Radio) wrote that Allen was radio's most admired comedian and most frequently censored. A master ad libber, Allen often tangled with his network's executives (and often barbed them on the air over the battles) while developing routines whose style and substance influenced fellow comic talents, including Groucho Marx, Stan Freberg, Henry Morgan and Johnny Carson; his avowed fans also included President Franklin D. Roosevelt and novelists William Faulkner, John Steinbeck and Herman Wouk (who began his career writing for Allen).

Allen gave vaudeville itself a timeline of 1875-1925 in Much Ado About Me, but he actually left vaudeville a few years earlier, moving to work in such Shubert Brothers stage productions as The Passing Show in 1922. The show played well in its runup to Broadway but lasted only ten weeks at the Winter Garden Theatre. Allen did, however, take something far more lasting from the show: one of the show's chorus girls, Portland Hoffa, who became his wife in 1927 and remained with him until his death. He also took good notices for his comic work in several of the productions, particularly Vogues and Greenwich Village Follies, and continued to develop his comic writing, even writing a column for Variety called "Near Fun." A salary dispute ended the column; Allen wanted only $60 a week to give up his theater work to become a full-time columnist, but his editor tried a sleight-of-hand based on the paper's ad rates to deny him. He spent his summer in Boston, honed his comic and writing skills even further, worked in a respectfully received duo that billed themselves as Fink and Smith, and played a few of the dying vaudeville houses. Allen returned to New York to the pleasant surprise that Portland Hoffa was taking instruction to convert to Roman Catholicism. After the couple married, Allen began writing material for them to use together ("With a vaudeville act, Portland and I could be together, even if we couldn't find any work"), and the couple divided their time between the show business circuit, Allen's New England family home and Old Orchard Beach, Maine, in summers.

How long did Broadway run?

OUT: lasted only ten weeks

IN: Ghomeshi was born on June 9, 1967 in London, England, to Iranian parents Farhang (Frank), a civil engineer, and Azar (Sara) Ghomeshi. When he was a child, he was teased by classmates, who called him "Blackie". According to Ghomeshi, he grew up in a Muslim household but elsewhere noted that his family was secularist and even celebrated Christmas and Easter. When Ghomeshi was seven, his father moved to Canada and got a job and Ghomeshi's family followed, first living in an apartment on Don Mills Road before settling in Thornhill, Ontario.

On November 26, 2014, following termination by the CBC, Ghomeshi turned himself in to Toronto Police and was charged with four counts of sexual assault and one count of overcoming resistance by choking, after an investigation that began on October 31, 2014. The charges concern three separate women. He appeared in court on the same day and was released on $100,000 bail on the conditions that he surrender his passport, stay within Ontario and live with his mother. Ghomeshi appeared in court again on January 8, 2015, and was charged with three additional counts of sexual assault related to three more women. In a court appearance on February 26, 2015, a judicial pretrial was set for March 27, 2015, and was later put over to April 28, 2015. His lawyer, Marie Henein, stated that he would plead not guilty to all charges. On October 1, 2015, Ghomeshi pleaded not guilty to one count of choking and four counts of sexual assault. The trial of Ghomeshi began on February 1, 2016, and lasted eight days. On March 24, 2016, the judge acquitted Ghomeshi of all charges on the basis that there was insufficient evidence to establish proof beyond a reasonable doubt. The inconsistency and "outright deception" of the witness' testimony had irreparably weakened the prosecution's case. Judge William Horkins accused the complainants of "lying or trying to conceal evidence from the court". A second trial for one additional charge was scheduled for June 2016. On May 11, 2016, however, the Crown withdrew the last remaining charge, re: the alleged sexual assault against Borel, after Ghomeshi signed a peace bond which does not include an admission of guilt. (The publication ban as to the name of the victim, Borel, was lifted on May 11, 2016.) According to Borel, Henein approached Borel's representation to ask for an alternative to a trial, and after several exchanges Ghomeshi agreed to apologize to Borel and did so formally. Afterwards, Borel issued a formal statement to the media, maintaining that Ghomeshi was guilty of sexual assault but that "a trial would have maintained his lie, the lie that he was not guilty, and would have further subjected me to the very same pattern of abuse that I am currently trying to stop".

What was he in trouble for?

OUT:
2014, following termination by the CBC, Ghomeshi turned himself in to Toronto Police and was charged with four counts of sexual assault and one count of overcoming resistance by choking,