Elliot Lewis

[speedy]

I'm reading Milt Josefsberg's excellent biography of Jack, and in it he mentions someone named Elliot Lewis as being ..."a valuable member of the Jack Benny cast. Elliot was able to play dozens of different comic characters on Jack's show." He played Frank Remley on the Phil Harris/Alice Faye show. I thought I knew quite a bit about the Jack Benny show and those associated with it (even peripheral characters). I've listened to all the shows, some many times, read several books on the show, and am a regular viewer of this forum. I was surprised by the mention of Mr. Lewis in the Josefsberg book because I have never heard of this person. Can anyone fill me in on him? What characters did he play?

[Mandolynn]

Elliot Lewis was quite talented both in front of the microphone and behind the scenes and was highly-regarded radio actor and producer. I recently finished listening to all the Benny episodes in chronological order and I recognized Elliot's voice many times over the course of the years, but I don't know that he ever played a particular character. He was one of those all-purpose characters, sort of along the lines of the character played by Jack's secretary in the early episodes... usually kind of a "hit-and-run" bit where he would pop in and out quickly. He might be on several weeks running, but he didn't necessarily play the same guy from one week to the next.

Elliot was married to Cathy Lewis (who just happened to already have the same last name, I believe... she was Irma's original long-suffering roommate in "My Friend Irma") and they often performed together on the radio; I believe I have heard them on "Suspense" where they did drama and they had a program where they starred in a variety of plays, some comedy and some drama. Elliot was one of the best at switching back and forth between comedy and drama. I've heard him play a murderer so well it was almost eerie; and yet, as Phil's buddy he could also be hilarious on the Phil Harris show.

Elliot produced a couple of my favorite shows: "Broadway is My Beat" (I heart Danny Clover!) and the one about the guy who owned the club in Cairo and was always getting enmeshed in intrigue... it starred Jack Moyles... isn't it funny the name escapes me... maybe it was just called "The Cafe Tambourine" after the club... but that doesn't seem right. Hmmm.

Later Elliot and Cathy Lewis divorced and he married Mary Jane Croft. When I first discovered that she was Lucille Ball's sidekick Mary Jane on TV in the sixties, I could hardly believe it because on radio she had this real sultry voice and of course on the Lucy show she had this high-pitched ditzy voice.

Anyway, I always enjoyed Elliot's contributions to the shows whenever he was on.

[Maxwell]

IIRC he's listed in numerous cast listings in "39 Forever, Volume 2) as a "Moolie Guy" in addition to numerous other characters. I'll try to look up more this weekend when I have more time.

Elliot Lewis was was also the producer-director during the "silver age" of "Suspense" in the early '50s. He was also a collector of real crime stories and produced and directed a show featuring many of them whose title I can't remember right now but which gets occasional play on the Sirius-XM OTR channel. Lewis also produced-directed "Broadway is My Beat."

He was multi-talented. When the Encore Westerns Channel was rerunning the old Bat Masterson TV show, I saw his name as director of several episodes.

Just yesterday I heard an episode of "The Clock" starring him and his then-wife Cathy Lewis. Cathy Lewis was the co-star with Marie Wilson of "My Friend Irma."

[scottp]

Elliot and Cathy Lewis did an album of 45s, a story called "Happy Anniversary" with music by Ray Noble.
I have one I'd be willing to part with (if I'm allowed to say that here.)

[epeterd]

I heard that episode of The Clock last night too. I had been thinking since hearing him on Phil & Alice the day before just how great he was.
Crime Classics is the show he did where they acted out famous murders from history.
I love him as Remley. And I think he was the one who did the guy who worked selling perfume or lingerie on some of Jack's Christmas shows, among other characters. My 39 Forever books are in storage somewhere I think. Gotta figure out where they are. I wondered why they mentioned Remley on Jack's show, but he never appeared, sorta like Duffy.

[speedy]

Reading further in the Josefsberg bio of Jack, Milt mentions two characters that Elliot Lewis did: the perfume counterperson that sounded like an ex prizefighter, so the previous poster had that one. Lewis also did the guy at the train station that would ask Jack if he could cut ahead as he was in an awful hurry. He would then ask for a ticket to Glocca Morra, or Tennessee for example, and go through the lyrics to the corresponding song (How are Things in Glocca Morra?, Tennessee Waltz, etc.) with Frank Nelson (ticket seller). It's a testament to his versatility because the perfume seller sure didn't sound anything like the Glocca Morra guy.

[Moose Hatrack]

Well, so much for guessing. I always figured the poifume guy was Allen Reed because he kind of sounds like Fred Flinstone after a couple tumblers of bourbon on the rocks.
Yeah, DA LOOPS

[Yhtapmys]

I wondered why they mentioned Remley on Jack's show, but he never appeared, sorta like Duffy.

Actually he did. There's one episode with Elliot as Remley where he and Phil have sat in a bar for hours (Mel Blanc is the bartender). They're waiting for a train or plane. It's funny because neither sound drunk.

But Remley doesn't need to be there. His character is so well defined, all you have to do is mention him .. ironically, just like Jack on countless other radio shows.

Yhtapmys

[Maxwell]

A few weeks ago on the Sirius/XM OTR channel, Greg Bell was talking about Frankie Remley after a Harris-Faye show. Apparently they auditioned him to play himself and he wasn't a good enough actor, so Lewis got the part.

[Maxwell]

I promised to look up Elliott Lewis's appearances this weekend, so here goes.

12/10/44: Not an "official" appearance. He was heard as the announcer for the AFRS rebroadcast of the show.

12/8/46: Perhaps his most memorable role other than Remley, the perfume clerk in the Christmas shopping show. LL describes him as a "mooley clerk" program summary.

12/29/46: Lewis gives voice to Rodney Dangerfield.

1/26/47: As "Freddy Allen"

2/9/47: As "Clarence Pierpont"

3/16/47: As "Lewis"

3/23/47: As "Mr. Stewart," manager of the Sportsmen

4/6/47: As the guard at the Sam Goldwyn studios who hassles Jack.

5/4/47: "How are things in Glocca Morra?" bit

11/2/47: In "Dark Passage" as the plastic surgeon who offers to make Humphrey Benny look like a Studebaker.

11/16/47: According to "39 Forever" as "John, driving test man." I assume this is two roles because it usually is when listed this way. I've heard the episode, but it's been ages and I don't remember. There is what LL describes as a mooley butler, but I don't remember if his name was "John." I'm assuming it's not Eric Snowden who played the Colmans' butler, who is the only butler listed. However, he might have been Phil's social secretary who is not specifically listed in the cast either. Whoever has heard this episode more recently should be able to figure this out.

12/21/47: A repeat performance as the perfume clerk in that year's Christmas shopping show.

2/1/48: As "Fitzpatrick" the announcer for the Hawaii travelogue at the Colman premiere.

2/8/48: In "Nightmare Alley" as the screamer and the carnival geek

6/6/48: In his most famous role, Frankie Remley

12/19/48: As the "mooley ligerie clerk" in the Christmas show

12/26/48: As Ronald J. Colman, the lingerie clerk who found out nightgowns with loops are dangerous

12/18/49: Back as the perfume clerk.
9/17/50: As the translator in Venice.

12/17/50: As the "mooley" toy clerk who cries over his Mama doll

12/24/50: As Frankie Remley

4/1/51: As the guy in the ticket line who tells the Tennessee Waltz story

4/29/51: As Mr. Walsh at the Flamingo Hotel

12/2/51: Back as the lingerie clerk

12/23/51: As a delivery boy who insists that Jack open his package.

12/30/51: Back as Rodney Dangerfield

1/27/52: As Tex Houston in Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, a cowboy actor who visits Dr. Jekyll who changes him from a person with a great speaking voice to a "mooley guy."

2/10/52: The newlywed husband in the ticket line who goes through the routine, "They tried to tell us we're too young."

That's all LL has listed.

[Gerry O.]

Around 1948 Elliott Lewis was a semi-regular on Burns & Allen's "Maxwell House Coffee Time" radio program.

He played two roles on that series (not on the same episodes)....

1. He would play a nameless guy who would show up at the Burns' front door delivering dry cleaning, flowers, telegrams, etc....something different each time. Each time he would start out very over-the-top cheerful and keep saying to George (who was always the one stuck dealing with this guy) , "I'm so HAPPY at my job!", and each time he would say it louder and more happily. Then he would start talking about his job and slowly start realizing the bad things that COULD happen, and eventually get himself so worked up in anger that he would yell, "I'll show THEM....I'll QUIT this stinkin' job!" and storm off.

2. Lewis also played neighbor Joe Bagley, who was a real RAT! He pretended to be George's friend, but he would always do these things to stab George in the back and make him look bad. For instance, in one 1948 episode George is innocently bringing flowers home to Gracie just to be nice. Joe meets George on the way home and tells George that Gracie will get suspicious and think that George did something wrong if he shows up with flowers for no apparent reason. Bagley convinces George to throw the flowers away and save himself a lot of grief. George does it and guess what? Yup, Bagley takes the flowers and brings them home to his wife Clara...while Gracie is over there visiting! Gracie ends up coming home angry with George and saying, "Why don't YOU ever bring me flowers like that thoughtful Joe Bagley does with HIS wife?"....and of course, George is ready to punch Bagley right in the nose!

[TimL2005]

In the early days of the Harris/Faye show, Elliott Lewis played "Remley", but eventually the real Frank Remley took exception to it so Lewis simply changed the character name to "Elliott"..Just Remley under a different name..

[TheSportsmenQuartet]

^ I'm curious if the real Remley took exception or if the name change came with Phil leaving the Benny show?

[epeterd]

I'm listening to the Phil & Alice show where they're trying to hire a secretary on XM. This is episode is hilarious. Elliott Lewis is great as always.

[Gerry O.]

^ I'm curious if the real Remley took exception or if the name change came with Phil leaving the Benny show?

Consider this.....the name change did happen when Phil left Jack's show, and Remley's name and off-air character stayed with Jack's show. Now Frankie Remley was a member of the group that Bob Crosby led on the Benny show, and the "drunk" jokes that Jack used to make about Phil were now aimed at Remley.

I suspect that the name change had more to do with Phil no longer being associated with Jack's show, and Remley still being part of the Benny organization, rather than the real-life Remley suddenly objecting to his name being used on the Harris-Faye program.