'Mr. Television' for 54 years, Milton Berle dies at home at age of 93
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Mr. Berle was diagnosed with colon cancer last year and had been under hospice care the past few weeks. He died in his sleep surrounded by his wife, Lorna, and other relatives.
The indefatigable comic had continued to work as he neared his 90th birthday, though he stayed offstage under doctors' orders after suffering a mild stroke in December 1998.
"What a remarkable man, what a remarkable career," Bob Hope and his wife, Dolores, said. "Eighty-eight years in show business, a brilliant comedian, an accomplished actor, a lifelong friend." Hope, 98, and his wife, 93, joked: "We are among the select few who could call him 'kid.' "
Comedian Don Rickles said, "From the first days of my career, he was one of my comedic heroes. He was always a great mentor. His style of comedy will never be replaced."
"Uncle Miltie" was the king of Tuesday nights beginning in 1948, and store owners would put up signs: "Closed tonight to watch Milton Berle."
At 8 p.m., four Texaco service-station attendants sang the "Texaco Star Theater" theme, and then came Mr. Berle, dressed for laughs: a caveman introduced as "the man with jokes from the Stone Age," a man in a barrel "who had just paid his taxes."
If the audience thought he looked funny in a dress, he was happy to oblige, and skits in drag became a trademark. The NBC program's popularity spurred sales of television sets and helped make TV a medium for the masses.
There were fewer than 500,000 sets in the United States when Mr. Berle took to the air. A year later, there were 1 million. By the time the show finished its run in 1954, more than 26 million homes had television.
He had a hand in virtually every aspect of the fun, from supervising writing and directing to choosing guest stars and performing. His mother attended performances to cue laughs, and his sister, Rosalind, designed many of his costumes.
He won a special place in the hearts of his viewers. When he referred to himself as "Uncle Miltie" one night while advising kids to go to bed on time, he merely was acknowledging a well-established but unspoken fact: He was an honorary member of families everywhere.
For "putting television on the map," NBC gave him a contract in 1951 that paid him $200,000 a year for 30 years whether he worked or not. The annual fee was reduced to $120,000 in 1965, but a clause restricting his appearances to NBC was dropped.
He cut back his appearances on "The Texaco Star Theater" in the 1951-52 season, hosting the show three weeks of four. Arthur Godfrey's "Talent Scouts" overtook it in the ratings, a development Mr. Berle attributed to his new schedule. At the end of the 1952-1953 season, the program finished fifth, and Texaco dropped it.
Buick picked up the 8 p.m. time slot on Tuesday, and "The Buick-Berle Show" ran for two years with the same basic format.
Mr. Berle moved to the West Coast in 1955, and he hosted "The Milton Berle Show" for one more season. His final guest was Elvis Presley.
Mr. Berle starred in three more television programs — "The Kraft Music Hall" (1958)," Jackpot Bowling Starring Milton Berle" (1960) and "The Milton Berle Show" on ABC (1966).
He also appeared in movies and as a guest on television-variety shows, and a number of dramatic shows. The latter included "Mod Squad," "Mannix" and "Batman," in which he played Louie the Lilac. He had extensive nightclub engagements in the 1960s and '70s, principally in Las Vegas, Miami Beach and Chicago.
But he was remembered best for television when it was still a novelty and by no means was certain of competing with films and theaters, much less become a dominant aspect of modern life. In an interview in 1996, he recalled the skepticism with which many colleagues regarded his move in 1948:
"From Burns to Benny to Gleason, they asked me at first, 'What are you doing this for?' I said, 'Well, we gotta go with the progress.' I'm proud of having the guts ... to be the first one to jump into TV and take a shot."
The rest is history.
Among Mr. Berle's numerous honors were the "Man of the Year" award from the National Academy of Arts and Sciences in 1959, a special Emmy from the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences in 1979, induction as the first member of the Television Hall of Fame in 1984 and induction as the first member of the Comedy Hall of Fame in 1992.
Born Mendel Berlinger in New York City's Harlem on July 12, 1908, he was the fourth of five children of Moses and Sarah Glantz Berlinger.
His mother was a thwarted entertainer; his father, he recalled, was a "charming, rather helpless man who suffered from rheumatism and could never keep a job. ... He always dreamed of the big chance around the corner, but it never came."
The boy began his career at the age of 5 in neighborhood Charlie Chaplin look-alike contests, several of which he won.
While the future "Mr. Television" was still young, E.W. Wolf, a Philadelphia vaudeville producer, offered him a contract, and he soon was appearing professionally.
He also appeared in more than 50 silent films. He made his stage debut in "Floradora" in Atlantic City on March 29, 1920, and made his Broadway debut in the same play the next month.
He appeared on the Keith-Able vaudeville circuit with Elizabeth Kennedy in the early 1920s. When she left the act, he formed a group. He began a two-year stint in 1931 as master of ceremonies at the Palace Theater in New York by setting an attendance record. When not doing long engagements, he appeared in nightclubs across the country. He also appeared in The Ziegfield Follies and several other stage productions.
He made his radio debut in 1934 and his Hollywood film debut in 1937 in "New Faces of 1937." During World War II, he was credited with giving thousands of performances for U.S. soldiers, sailors and airmen.
He also was the author of five books, and wrote the lyrics to "Sam, You Made the Pants Too Long," "I'm So Happy I Could Cry" and "Leave the Dishes In the Sink, Ma."
In later years, he said he found much solace in Christian Science, and called himself a Jew and a Christian Scientist. He became national chairman of the American Longevity Association in 1982, and was president of The Friars Club.
Honored at the Friars on his 91st birthday, Mr. Berle, the club's abbot emeritus with roots going back to the original Friars Club in New York, stood at the end of a long evening of tributes and told the gathering: "I'll be brief. And if you believe that, you believe there'll be a Richard Simmons Jr."
In the 1940s, Berle married, divorced and remarried show girl Joyce Matthews, and they adopted a daughter, Victoria. His 1953 marriage to former publicist Ruth Cosgrove — they adopted a son, William — ended with her death 1989. He married fashion designer Lorna Adams in 1991.
Compiled from The Washington Post, The Associated Press and the Los Angeles Times.