Milton Berle Show 48 03 23 Salutes The Coming Of Spring

The Berle Template

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Yowp

Nat Hiken and Aaron Ruben left Fred Allen's radio show to write for Milton Berle in his radio series before The Texaco Star Theatre (which had versions for radio and TV). The two came up with a format for not-yet-Uncle Milty that rarely varied from week to week. Each broadcast was a "Salute" to something. The show opened with Berle kibbitzing with high-brow announcer Frank Gallop. A double-talk spot with Al Kelly (always surnamed "Finster") followed. The middle commercial in this episode is by announcer Ken Roberts. Much like Allen's show, a popular tune is cut off after a few bars, a hand-bell rings and Gallop says "[name] Forum Tonight! [name] Forum Tonight! The question [gag]." Questions of the "audience" follow, with Jack Albertson, Billy Sands using both a fake name and a "real" name doing an impression of Arnold Stang (ending with him yelling "Ah, your mother's [gag], Pert Kelton as homemaker Tallulah Feeney and John Gibson as a wimpy guy named Featherfield always set up as some he-man. Dick Barney, in his best '40s crooner sound, providing a musical break. Berle follows with a sketch based in his home with wife Mary Shipp, annoying laughing neighbour Sam Harrison (Charlie Irving) and his wife Martha, who only says "Yes." Harrison ruins Berle's life. It's the same thing every week. The audio quality could be better in this one; the show is running too fast. Other episodes have bad phasing. A few have Don Pardo giving the network sign-off, but this one does not. Johnny Roventini shouts at the beginning and the end (but gets cut off as Berle runs late this time). The following season, Texaco kept much the same template on radio. But it was television where Berle made his historical impact.