Ben Blue (born Benjamin Bernstein; 9 December 1901 – 7 March 1975) was a Canadian-American actor and comedian]]
In 1951, Blue began concentrating on managing and appearing in nightclubs in Hollywood and San Francisco, California. He once appeared in a Reno, Nevada nightclub called the Dollhouse where he lost $25,000 to its owner, Bill Welch. Blue and Maxie Rosenbloom owned and performed at Slapsie Maxie's, Hollywood's top nightclub in the 1940s. Again, in the 1960s he opened a nightclub in Santa Monica, California, called Ben Blue's. It quickly became the "in" place and night after night was packed with top celebrities. Blue closed the club three years later because of health problems. Blue made the cover of TV Guide′s June 11, 1954 Special Issue along with Alan Young, headlining an edition that covered that season's summer replacement shows. He also made appearances in TV shows such as The Jack Benny Program and The Milton Berle Show.
In 1958 he had major surgery. In 1958 he starred in a television pilot called Ben Blue's Brothers, in which he played four different parts. The show did not get picked up by a network, but the pilot was seen in 1965.
thumb|right|With [[Lucille Ball on a Jack Benny TV special (1968)]]
In 1964 Blue was indicted by a federal grand jury on six counts of tax evasion for the non-payment of more than $39,000 (approximately $ today) in income taxes from the nightclub he operated, the Merry-Go-Round, in Santa Monica, California. The case was contested for five years, before he pled no contest to a single count of evading corporate tax. He was fined $1,000, with the payment suspended. He was ordered to pay $600 (approximately $ today) monthly alimony. The judge told him: "You are no exception to the rule that theatrical careers do not last long, and yours already has been a long one." Blue later married Axie Mae Dunlap (1916—1990). Their two children were sons Tom and Robert.
Death
Blue died in Hollywood, California, on March 7, 1975. He was interred in the Hillside Memorial Park Cemetery in Culver City, California.
Legacy
After his death, his career papers covering 1935 to 1955 were deposited in the Special Collections at the University of California, Los Angeles Library.
Filmography
- The Arcadians (1927) - Simplicitas Smith
- College Holiday (1936) - Stage Hand
- Follow Your Heart (1936) - Himself
- Turn Off the Moon (1937) - Luke
- High, Wide, and Handsome (1937) - Zeke
- Artists and Models (1937) - Jupiter Pluvius
- Thrill of a Lifetime (1937) - Skipper
- The Big Broadcast of 1938 (1938) - Mike
- College Swing (1938) - Ben Volt
- Cocoanut Grove (1938) - Joe De Lemma
- Paris Honeymoon (1939) - Sitska
- Panama Hattie (1942) - Rowdy
- For Me and My Gal (1942) - Sid Simms
- Thousands Cheer (1943) - Chuck Polansky
- Broadway Rhythm (1944) - Felix Gross
- Two Girls and a Sailor (1944) - Ben
- Two Sisters from Boston (1946) - Wrigley
- Easy to Wed (1946) - Spike Dolan
- My Wild Irish Rose (1947) - Hopper
- One Sunday Afternoon (1948) - Nick
- It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World (1963) - Biplane pilot
- The Russians Are Coming, the Russians Are Coming (1966) - Luther Grilk
- The Busy Body (1967) - Felix Rose
- A Guide for the Married Man (1967) - Technical Adviser (Shoeless)
- Where Were You When the Lights Went Out? (1968) - Man with a Razor
- The Sky's the Limit (1975) - Ben