During television’s Golden Age, as it’s called, many different entertainers took to the airwaves like “The Great One.”
In the 1950s, a lot of these people were comedians or those called vaudevillians. Their acts may have been seen by people attending nightclubs or movie theaters.
Still, there were a certain few who managed to stand out among the crowd. One such individual went through his own personal and professional struggles for a number of years. Being an MC at different New York City nightclubs, along with dipping a toe in the movie world, was all well and good.
But this person’s big breakthrough happened due to the world of television. He got a break when fulfilling a star role on Dumont Television’s “Cavalcade of Stars” show. Yet his success would lead another television network, CBS, to reach out and sign him up.
Developing A Cast Of Characters Worked Well
When Jackie Gleason signed that deal with CBS, he not only brought himself to the network. He happened to make sure that he had a number of different characters to portray. After all, “The Great One” was the star of The Jackie Gleason Show and knew he needed more than himself to present to viewers.
He would dress up according to the character’s own identity. For instance, Gleason dressed up like a dapper well-to-do man about town to play Reggie Van Gleason III. He’d wear dirty overalls and carry around a tool box when playing Rudy the Repairman. Then, Gleason would put on a wool jacket and pants, along with a dour face, to become The Poor Soul.
But his most famous character came through The Honeymooners. The sketch was one of Jackie Gleason’s favorites to do. On Dumont, Gleason played bus driver Ralph Kramden, who came home to his wife Alice, played by Pert Kelton.
When “The Great One” came to CBS, Kelton did not remain a part of the cast. She was replaced by Audrey Meadows, who would put her own stamp on playing Alice. Art Carney and Joyce Randolph, who played neighbors Ed and Trixie Norton, came on over to CBS, too.
‘The Great One’ Turned His Character Into A Sitcom
Viewers started to really like seeing The Honeymooners sketches as a part of Jackie Gleason’s weekly variety show. In fact, Gleason himself didn’t mind playing Ralph one bit.
As an hour-long variety show, “The Great One” (Gleason picked up that nickname from Orson Welles) knew that different characters needed sketches to fill that time. Yet when viewers expressed their joy and happiness over seeing what Ralph, Alice, Norton, and Trixie would get themselves into regularly, a decision was made.
There would be half-hour-long sketches in the show, totally dedicated to The Honeymooners. Yet CBS wanted more. The network’s idea was to make The Honeymooners into a sitcom. Gleason signed a large contract that would secure him for doing two seasons of this sitcom.
When The Honeymooners started airing as a sitcom on CBS, viewers tuned in. But NBC and ABC also had programming to counter Gleason’s sitcom. The show aired during the week, not in the familiar Saturday night spot Gleason cemented with his variety show.
After One Season, ‘The Great One’ Said Enough
So, Jackie Gleason and his cast put together 39 episodes of The Honeymooners. Ratings were not where they were for the variety show. Upon finishing that first season, Gleason made a decision.
He told CBS officials that he didn’t want to do another season. That’s even though he reportedly had been signed to do two seasons of the show. Over the years, Gleason was asked by different interviewers why he ended after one season. In a poignant appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson in 1985, Gleason told Carson that he didn’t want to do any more episodes. He said that he didn’t want the show to go stale and start repeating jokes or situations.
That was that. The Honeymooners only lasted one season, 39 episodes, for CBS. Before getting to a kicker, it should be noted that the sitcom was one of the first to enter into syndication. That meant TV stations could air the show in reruns. A few got on board with The Honeymooners reruns in the late 1950s.
As noted, here’s the kicker: “The Great One” didn’t quit doing The Honeymooners sketches. Oh no, far from it! He reverted back to his variety show format, bringing back those beloved characters viewers got familiar with all the time. But many of those shows had sketches in them with the familiar four characters in The Honeymooners.
Gleason left CBS and his television career for a few years. He did return, though, and had different actresses play Alice and Trixie. Probably longtime Gleason fans will remember Sheila MacRae as Alice and Jane Kean as Trixie in the 1960s “Color Honeymooners” phase.
But many, many people still love to see what are called “The Classic 39” episodes of The Honeymooners. Their lines and situations have been memorized by millions. And Jackie Gleason, who died in 1987 at 71 years old, has a place forever etched in the history of television.
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Joe Rutland is an author, writer, and editor whose work has appeared in numerous large-scale digital platforms. Among them are Entrepreneur, The Good Men Project, The Huffington Post, Thrive Global, and Elite Daily. Rutland is on X/Twitter @JosephRutland5.
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