Gracie Allen

thumb|Gracie Allen, [[George Burns and children aboard Matson flagship Lurline just before they sailed for Hawaii, 1938]]

Grace Ethel Cecile Rosalie Allen (July 26, 1895 – August 27, 1964) was an American vaudevillian, singer, actress, and comedian who became internationally famous as the zany partner and comic foil of husband George Burns, her straight man, appearing with him on radio, television and film as the duo Burns and Allen.

For her contributions to the television industry, Allen was honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6672 Hollywood Boulevard. She and Burns were inducted into the Television Hall of Fame in 1988.

Costar Bea Benaderet said of Allen in 1966, "She was probably one of the greatest actresses of our time."

Early life

Allen was born in San Francisco, to George Allen and Margaret Theresa ("Molly") Allen (née Darragh; later Mrs. Edward Pidgeon), who were both of Irish Catholic descent. She made her first appearance on stage at age three, and was given her first role on the radio by Eddie Cantor. She graduated from Star of the Sea Convent School, for girls, in 1914, and during that time became a talented dancer.</blockquote>

She soon began performing Irish folk dances with her three sisters, who were billed as "The Four Colleens".

Allen was born with heterochromia, giving her two different color eyes, one blue and one green. Her left arm and shoulder were badly scarred when a boiling pot of tea fell on her as a child; as a result, she wore long-sleeved dresses throughout her life. Allen also suffered from crippling migraine headaches.

Birthdate myth

Some discrepancy exists as to her date of birth. Depending on the source, Allen is alleged to have been born on July 26 in 1895, 1896, 1902, or 1906. All public vital records held by the city and county of San Francisco were destroyed in the earthquake and great fire of April 1906. Her husband George Burns professed not to know exactly how old she was, though it was presumably he who provided the date of July 26, 1902 that appears on her death record. Allen's crypt marker also shows her year of birth as 1902.

Among Allen's signature jokes was a dialogue in which she would claim that she was born in 1906. Her foil would press her for proof or corroborating information, and she would reply that her birth certificate had been destroyed in the earthquake. Her foil would point out that she was born in July, but that the earthquake was three months earlier in April. Allen would simply smile and reply: "Well, it was an awfully big earthquake."

Presumably the most reliable information comes from U.S. Census data collected on June 1, 1900 that shows Grace Allen, age four (born in July 1895), along with her parents and five siblings. This proves that Allen was born before 1900 and indicates that the birthdate of July 26, 1895 may be correct. Additionally, the yearbook from her senior year of high school has been located; its 1914 date is consistent with her having been born in 1895. In his book Gracie: A Love Story, Burns explained that he had noticed that Allen's straight lines were bringing more laughs than did his punchlines, so he cannily flipped the act, making himself the straight man so that Allen would elicit the laughter. Audiences immediately fell in love with Allen's character, which combined the traits of naivete, zaniness and innocence. The reformulated team, focusing on Allen, toured the country, eventually headlining in major vaudeville houses. Many of their famous routines were preserved in one- and two-reel short films, including Lambchops (1929), made while the couple was still performing on the stage.

Burns attributed all of the couple's early success to Allen, ignoring his own brilliance as a straight man.

<blockquote>"The character was simply the dizziest dame in the world, but what made her different from all the other Dumb Doras was that Gracie played her as if she were totally sane, as if her answers actually made sense." - George Burns</blockquote>

Radio

In the early 1930s, like many stars of the era, Burns and Allen graduated to radio. The show was originally a continuation of the flirtation act from their vaudeville and short-film routines. In 1935, famed composer and arranger Ferde Grofe joined them as musical director. Burns realized that they were too old for that type of material Burns and Allen embarked on a cross-country whistle-stop campaign tour on a private train, performing their live radio show in various cities. In one of her campaign speeches, Gracie said, "I don't know much about the Lend-Lease Bill, but if we owe it, we should pay it." Another typical quip on the campaign trail was: "Everybody knows a woman is better than a man when it comes to introducing bills into the house." The Surprise Party mascot was the kangaroo, and its motto was "It's in the bag." As part of the gag, Duell, Sloan and Pearce published a book, How to Become President by Gracie Allen (in reality, written by Burns and Allen writer Charles Lofgren) that included photographs from their nationwide campaign tour and the Surprise Party convention. Allen received an endorsement from students at Harvard University.

Allen was also the subject of one of S. S. Van Dine's Philo Vance mystery novels, The Gracie Allen Murder Case. Allen said: "S.S. Van Dine is silly to spend six months writing a novel when you can buy one for $2.95."

In another publicity stunt, Allen played a piano concert at the Hollywood Bowl (and later at Carnegie Hall).

Films

right|thumb|[[Six of a Kind lobby card with W.C. Fields, Mary Boland and Allen, 1934]]

In the early 1930s, Burns and Allen appeared in several short films in which they performed some of their classic vaudeville routines. They also appeared in two full-length movies with W. C. Fields: International House (1933) and Six of a Kind (1934). Burns and Allen also appeared in three out of the four Big Broadcast ensemble comedies including The Big Broadcast (1932) with Bing Crosby, The Big Broadcast of 1936 (1935) with Crosby, and The Big Broadcast of 1937 (1936) with Jack Benny. They were also in We're Not Dressing (1934), billed directly under Crosby and Carole Lombard.

In 1937, Burns and Allen starred with Fred Astaire in A Damsel in Distress, a musical with an original score by George Gershwin that introduced the song "A Foggy Day". It was Astaire's first RKO film without dancing partner Ginger Rogers. Astaire's costar Joan Fontaine was not a dancer, and he was reluctant to dance on screen alone. He also felt the script needed more comic relief to enhance the overall appeal of the film. Burns and Allen had each worked in vaudeville as dancers before forming their act, and when word of the project reached them, they called Astaire and he asked them to audition. Their good friend and frequent guest star Jack Benny had already departed NBC for CBS, and CBS head William S. Paley made it clear that he believed that talent, not the network, made the difference, which was not the case at NBC. Benny convinced Burns and Allen (among others) to join him in the move to CBS. The Burns and Allen radio show became part of the CBS lineup, and a year later, they also brought their show to television as The George Burns and Gracie Allen Show. They continued to use the formula that had kept them longtime radio stars, playing themselves only now as television stars, still living next door to Harry and Blanche Morton. They concluded each show with a brief dialogue performance in the style of their classic vaudeville and earlier radio routines. Burns always ended the show with, "Say goodnight, Gracie", to which Allen simply replied, "Goodnight" (Allen never said, "Goodnight, Gracie", as legend has it).

Allen retired in 1958, and Burns tried to continue without her. The show was renamed The George Burns Show with the cast intact except for Allen. The show's setting was changed from the Burns home to his office, with Blanche working as Burns' secretary so that she could help Allen keep an eye on him. "The show had everything it needed to be successful except Gracie," recalled Burns. "The audience was so used to seeing this cast working with Gracie that everybody kept waiting for her to open the door and walk in. The television critics reviewed Gracie's absence more than the show itself." An 1895 birth year would place her age at death as 69. Her remains were entombed in a crypt at the Freedom Mausoleum in the Sanctuary of Heritage at Forest Lawn Memorial Park.

Burns' remains were interred at her side in 1996 when he died at the age of 100. The marker on the crypt was changed from "Grace Allen Burns—Beloved Wife And Mother (1902–1964)" to "Gracie Allen (1902–1964) and George Burns (1896–1996)—Together Again".

Filmography

Lambchops (1929; short) as Gracie the Girlfriend
The Big Broadcast (1932; first feature film) as Gracie
International House (1933) as Nurse Allen
College Humor (1933) as Herself
Six of a Kind (1934) as Gracie Devore
We're Not Dressing (1934) as Gracie
Many Happy Returns (1934, first leading role) as Herself
Love in Bloom (1935) as Gracie Downey
Here Comes Cookie (1935) as Herself
The Big Broadcast of 1936 (1935) as Herself
The Big Broadcast of 1937 (1936) as Mrs. Platt
College Holiday (1936) as Calliope 'Gracie' Dove
A Damsel in Distress (1937) as Gracie
College Swing (1938) as Gracie Alden
Honolulu (1939) as Millie De Grasse
The Gracie Allen Murder Case (1939; without George Burns – a "Philo Vance" mystery by S. S. Van Dine) as Herself
Mr. and Mrs. North (1941; second murder mystery film without Burns) as Pamela North
Two Girls and a Sailor (1944, guest appearance without Burns; last movie role) as Herself

Radio series

The Robert Burns Panatella Show: 1932–1933, CBS
The White Owl Program: 1933–1934, CBS
The Adventures of Gracie: 1934–1935, CBS
The Campbell's Tomato Juice Program: 1935–1937, CBS
The Grape Nuts Program: 1937–1938, NBC
The Chesterfield Program: 1938–1939, CBS
The Hinds Honey and Almond Cream Program: 1939–1940, CBS
The Hormel Program: 1940–1941, NBC
The Swan Soap Show: 1941–1945, NBC, CBS
Maxwell House Coffee Time: 1945–1949, NBC
The Amm-i-Dent Toothpaste Show: 1949–1950, CBS

Gracie Award

The Gracie Award is presented by the Alliance for Women in Media to recognize exemplary programming created by women, for women and about women in radio, television, cable and web-based media, including news, drama, comedy, commercials, public service, documentary and sports. The awards program encourages the realistic and multifaceted portrayal of women in entertainment, news, features and other programs. Allen has twice been nominated to the National Women's Hall of Fame, though she has not been inducted. She has been honored by James L. Brooks, who named Gracie Films after her.

References

External links

Home of George Burns & Gracie Allen-Radio Television Mirror – December 1940 (page 17)