What's My Line - A sad & heartfelt goodbye to Fred Allen | BUZZR 

Fred Allen is a great example of how impermanent fame can be. Allen was a gifted writer and comedian, with a smart, acerbic wit. In his time, he was as big a star as there was, a household name, as famous as Jack Benny or Bob Hope. There wasn't anyone in America who owned a radio who didn't know who Fred Allen was. Today, he's completely forgotten.

Poor John Daley having to speak sadly twice about passing of Fred Allen and yrs later Dorothy Kilgallen Mr Daley did it as the gentleman he was

BuzzR TV is still showing these great and funny shows. Fred Allen was a gem.

I was only 2years old when what's my line was on but I watch it every night on buzzer,I really liked Frank Allen he was full of humor and what I noticed about him he always stood up when he should the countestent hands especially the ladies he was a real gentleman .

Wow, as of this date (June 30th, 2021) Ms Akiyoshi is still with us and still performing. She's 91.

I distinctly remember watching this episode. It was a minute ago.

What a beautiful tribute to Fred Allen by John Charles Daly.

My dad was a big Fred Allen fan and we listened to his program regularly.

Who misses Remington typewriters?

This woman is Ann Landers! As soon as I saw her face, I recognized her. I can't imagine a time when Ann Landers wasn't famous, but apparently, this is that time!!!!

A wonderful show and a great tribute to a great man. Think of all of these things are on RU-vid now what a pity if all of this was lost not just the show but seeing all of the great now deceased actors actresses musicians authors artists etc. this is helping to keep their names alive. The best tribute you could have.

I liked Steve Allen's goodbye to Fred at the end of the program.

Fred Allen was my great great uncle.

I love this show. Miss Kilgallen was so throughly when her questions.

I love this show ...

So many years ago😘😢...Now they have all passed😢🙏...Grew up watching the show🙏❤️😢

Very well done. Also, it's so nice to listen to these shows where people could talk correctly without "like" or "uhhh: or "you-know-what-I'm-saying" sprinkled through their prose. A more refined period of culture.

it's hard to believe that a heartfelt goodbye from one year before I was born can still bring tears to my eyes at the loss of Fred Allen

Nine years later, they did they same tribute to Dorothy Kilgallen when she passed away. It's hard to believe that she was on the show Sunday night, and then she was found dead the next morning. And that's sad. May Fred Allen, Dorothy Kilgallen, Arlene Francis, Bennett Cerf, John Daly, Wally Bruner, Larry Blyden, Soupy Sales, and all of the other deceased celebrities who were both the panelists and the Mystery Guests on What's My Line rest in peace. Amen.

Sad to see Fred Allen gone here. I always enjoy listening to Mr. ALLEN on my old radio tape cassettes. RIP.. Jacques Plante was not just any goalie though, he was one of the greatest ever, and he was the first to ever wear a mask, and did it of his own accord against the desires of his head coach. But, when you are JACQUE PLANTE, you get your way, especially after his face was torn up on a shot by fellow Hall of Famer Andy Bathgate who was mad at Plante for no doubt, stickwork, and deliberately fired the puck at the last second toward PLANTE's maskless "melon". After being stitched up with the game delayed for several minutes because spare goalies were not used unless they as amateurs were called out of the stands for emergencies, or called up from the minors to replace a starting goalie who was slumping or injured and out for awhile, or a few games, back then in a six-team NHL, J.PLANTE told his Coach in 1959, TOE BLAKE, that if he couldn't wear the mask, and it was very crude, he was not going back in. He got his wish, and made history. Later, Plante actually made masks with his own company producing them after he retired. The great PLANTE, and that is an understated compliment, was a game changer..yet Andy Brown was the last maskless holdout in..1974.. After that season, the bare face was never seen again on goalies while the puck was moving unless it was on ANDY BROWN who jumped to the WHA a rival, short-lived one, league, to the NHL, that produced four franchises still operating today in the NHL, three of them in different cities..winning 8 STANLEY CUPS total, FIVE BY ONE TEAM, four of them with the greatest offensive player of all time, a guy named WAYNE GRETZKY.. Plante himself died too soon. And, much like Fred Allen, Plante went young too, at 56, coaching and team owning in Switzerland just before his death in 1986, I believe. Yep..

Pauline "Eppie" Lederer was responsible for the "Ask Ann Landers" syndicated newspaper column from 1955 until her death in 2002. She divorced her husband, Jules Lederer in 1975. Her identical twin sister, Pauline Esther Philips, who was known by her pen name Abigail Van Buren, was responsible for the "Dear Abby" newspaper column and she and her sister were rivals and acrimonious with each other.

ahhh, such a display of *class*

He was taking a late night walk along 57th Street in New York City when he suffered a heart attack and he died. He was only 61 when he died.

What a huge lost to this show, I quite like Fred, he was a true Gentleman a funny human being 😪💖💯

Great show! And I've got to get myself one of those Univac 120s!

Thanks a lot for the upload, and also for having left the ads, which are actually also very interesting. Seeing those interchangable letters, and the different lettertypes available for the Remington typewriters in their 6 colours, I loved it. I think it took some special kind of humour to make the WML-shows really work. That is why Jerry Lewis wasn't at all an added value, but why the nice sarcasm of Fred Allen did. I'm not surprised to read he was one of the influences of Groucho Marx. A few years later, the panel again lost a precious member, when Dorothy Kilgallen was found dead at her home, far too young to go. I'm a bit flabbergasted to see how stylish the people that came to this show were, how feminine the women still were, paying attention to the smallest details such as gloves. Women have obtained more rights by now, but that came with a certain price, that cannot all be blamed on "progress" alone. All good things often have less good things as consequences, a bit like with nuclear energy....

John Daly was a gentleman as well it was hard on him to to announce Fred Allens death.

What a very sad and very heartbreaking show this must of been to all involved 🥺😪

Jacques Plante is one of the top five NHL goalies of all time.

This was a RARITY where I knew every contestant on the program....( I'm sure I would have been stumped when it aired).

“She took the words right out my mouth and that’s just unsanitary.”

This was really fun. TY for sharing it. God Bless You & stay safe. Even though it's been a long time, RIP Fred Allen.

Mr.Allen was a wonderful entertainer,a beautiful writer.,and sounded like a frog 🐸 through it all!💖🌹💖

Originally telecast on March 18, 1956.

Nothing like black and white TV to advertise all the new Remington typewriter colors.

What a trip, that's Toshiko Akiyoshi in 1956! She's still alive (94) and played a lot in NYC in the 80s.

When I think of Fred Allen, other than his WML appearances, l think of how he was often cited as one of the radio personalities who was unable to (or didn't have the time to, because of his death) make the transition to television that other radio stars like Bob Hope and Jack Benny were able to.

Cyd Charisse was the prettiest thing that ever came out of Amarillo, Texas

Mrs. Lederer wrote under the name Ann Landers and was "Dear Abby" Abilgail Van Buren's twin sister. They hated one another.

I like the mystery guest. Mostly to see who is still famous today or well known

I always liked the friendly competition between Jack Benny & Fred Allen.

How odd that they didn't even give Mrs Lederer's pen name - Ann Landers - as I am sure she ("Ask Ann Landers'} was syndicated nationally by then. I knew her the minute she came in! (And remember her sister, "Dear Abby?"

I have been watching several episodes on BUZZR. It's a great channel. I am looking forward to seeing the episode with Diana Ross & The Supremes.

i've always enjoyed the John Daly era of "What's My Line".

Toshiko Akiyoshi (秋吉 敏子 or 穐吉 敏子 will be 91 on December 12th 2020 (still with us as of 8/20/20) She was so cute here!

That Japanese girl was probably the only non-English speaking contestant that they ever had on there. But she was just a sweet girl.

26:23 - Computers were down to 'office-sized' in 1956! :)

Jacques Plante?? They didn't automatically know who Jacques Plante was?? When I started following sports in 1959, when I was 9 years old, pretty immediately I knew all about him. Maybe those extra 3 years made a big difference, but I don't know -- they assumed the panel wouldn't just KNOW....

The typewriters they advertised looked really neat.

Mrs. Jules Ledere was Ann Landers

Mrs. Jules Lederer was Ann Landers, the advice columnist. Her twin sister was Dear Abby.

Oh my goodness! Mrs Jules Leaderer is Ann Landers, advice columnist. Our city had 2 newspapers. She was Dear Ann in one of them, and her twin sister was Dear Abby (bbigail Van Buren) in the 2nd one.. How fun to see her on the show.

Note the absence of John Daly, Bennett Cerf, and Steve Allen wearing the show's requisite tuxedoes this one time.

Great show!

John said "Fred(based on widow)would want us to continue on as if he were here,"but I don't believe it--you can do that next week.A memorial would have cleared the air--and Fred would have loved it.This way,there's an elephant in the room--named Fred Allen.

Jacques Plante is the goaler who introduced the face mask to the NHL.

I also noticed that both the panelists and John Daly didn't have their names out in front.

Portland Hoffa Allen was also the Mystery Guest on there as well.

Also on here is a video of the network news announcing the deaths of Bennett Cerf, John Daly, and Arlene Francis. Isn't it ironic that they all died in years ending with the number 1? Bennett Cerf died in August of 1971. John Daly died in February of 1991. And Arlene Francis died in May of 2001; just 3 1/2 half months before 9/11.

Jacques Plante also invented the goalie mask.

Sad ending 😢😞😔😭😭😭

Fred died from a heart attack.Dorothy was assassinated by the CIA....

🎉very good Bennett...ive never seen u get it that fast

I recognized her as soon as she came out at the introduction....did not know however she was so short.

It only took me about a minute to recognize Ann Landers. When she turned to talk to John, I knew I recognized that face, and Ann used to have her picture in the top corner of her articles. I was struggling to remember who she was, then her last name 'Lederer' kicked in, and I thought of Eppie Lederer as Ann Landers. So If I was on the panel, I would have had to disqualify myself. I guess she wasn't such a big name yet at the filming of this show, or Dorothy would certainly had known who she was. By the 70s, she was big all over the country along with her sister Dear Abby, Abigal Van Buren.

Mrs. Jules Lederer is columnist Ann Landers 😮

What was the date of this broadcast? And I wonder why he had those bags under his eyes. That was possibly heart related ?

Normally, when a professional sports figure would appear on the show other than as a panelist, he would be a recognizable mystery guest and the panelists would be blindfolded. Here, even though Jacque Plante was well known in the sport of hockey and the New York Rangers were one of only six teams in the NHL, the producers of the show did not seem to have a problem with having him appear as an ordinary person. Bennett, a very intelligent individual, figured that since Jacque appeared to be a French Canadian, and the Montreal Canadians were in town to play the Rangers, he must be a hockey player. Bennett did not seem to know that Plante was the renown goalie of the Stanley Cup champion Montreal Canadians.

Omg the commercial for that typewriter …. Easy as just switching out letters lol

Was Fred'd Death in the Sunday Morning papers, or was it too late?

Cyd Share-iss or Cyd Share-ease?

Who would have wanted to go through all that trouble of changing keys on a typewriter for different fonts and symbols?

The advice to the lovelorn lady looks like Ann Landers....

I meant Fred Allen

Was it customary at this time for women not to rise & greet the departing contestant? I notice the male panelists rise & greet the departing contestants, but the women never do?

Who didn't know Jacques Plante?

They are pronouncing Jacques last name wrong.

“100”

Toshiko Akiyoshi is still alive she is 94 years old in 2024 Amazing she outlived everyone on the whats my line panel

Ann Landers.

Ann Landers!

Ann landers?

How did Dorothy come up with jazz when the Japanese artist came on?!? Mt first thought would have been classic.

A great player who created the goaltenders mask and died too young from stomach cancer and lost a young son too early

What's is the sad and heartfelt tribute to Fred Allen?

the second guest looked like Adrienne Barbeau.

What reason do people die?? Age NO, 1 Corinthians 15:22 For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive.

Office size Univac? Big office

These sophisticates in the northeast didnt know jaque plante? i knew his name and didnt follow hockey until years after plante retired.

Guess none of them were hockey fans.

R.I.P. GENE DYRDEK

Couldn't stand that arrogant smart a.

Sounds like Steve and Dorothy unintentionally made a dig at the Japanese pianist. They were in conference asking each other if she could be a model. Then they both made the comment that you don’t have to be pretty to be a model. A rather insulting thing to say. I thought she was pretty.

Did they insult that girl by saying she was not pretty enough to be a model?

Bet the guy at 27:22 felt like a putz.

The “Model” comments certainly wouldn’t fly today….

I expected better of Dorothy.

RU-vid, GET RID OF THE COMMERCIALS.

No hockey fans on the panel, nobody read Ann Landers.

50 dollars in 56 was equal to 566 dollars today. Wow