The Ed Sullivan Show, which appeared on CBS from 1948 to 1971, was one of the most watched TV shows of all time.

By John ‘Butch’ Dale
Guest Columnist

If you were around in the 1950s and 60s, you may have heard a family member shout that on a Sunday evening. “The Ed Sullivan Show,” which appeared on CBS from 1948 to 1971, was one of the most watched TV shows of all time. Most TV shows were sitcoms, westerns or dramas, but this was a variety show with all forms of entertainment.

Ed Sullivan hosted comedians, acrobats, ballet dancers, circus performers, ventriloquists, drama actors and actresses, musicians and more. The musical entertainment included pop music, classical, rock-and-roll, opera and even movie scores. I think that is what made the show interesting, because I never knew who would be on each week.

John ‘Butch’ Dale

Ed Sullivan didn’t fit the stereotype of a TV host, appearing somewhat ill at ease on stage. But he was a master of scheduling guests who could entertain a live audience and the millions of TV viewers. Many performers realized they had “made it big time” by appearing on Ed’s show.

When I was 8 years old in 1956, I watched Elvis Presley sing “Hound Dog,” and I soon learned to curl up one corner of my upper lip just like him! “Thank you … thank you very much!” I also remember watching Buddy Holly perform before his death in a plane crash in 1959. He certainly didn’t look like a rock-and-roll singer, but I liked his songs.

But the show I remember the most was in 1964 when the Beatles appeared on stage. If I recall correctly, I believe this was their first appearance in the United States.

Millions of us teenagers had tuned in to watch them, as they were unlike any other musical group, not only with regards to their style of music, but also they way they looked. The camera cut away to the crowd a few times, showing teenage girls in a state of frenzy … yelling, screaming, crying … in love with Paul, John, George, and Ringo. I knew that night that I wanted to get a haircut like the Beatles, and I just had to buy a pair of “Beatle boots.” The only 45 RPM record that I had ever purchased had been an Everly Brothers song, but I soon spent my hard cash on “I Saw Her Standing There” and “I Want to Hold Your Hand.” The Beatles also appeared on Ed’s show the next two Sunday evenings, and I was glued to the TV set!

There were several other new musical groups who appeared on the show through the years … the Supremes, the Beach Boys, the Rolling Stones, etc., but Ed also had favorites such as Dinah Shore, Johnny Mathis, Louis Armstrong, Dionne Warwick, and Barbra Streisand. There were also quite a few comedians who appeared … Joan Rivers, Phyllis Diller, Moms Mabley, Richard Pryor, Nipsy Russell, etc. My favorites were George Carlin, who was absolutely crazy, and Rodney Dangerfield … “I’m telling ya, I get no respect, no respect at all!”

I also enjoyed the ventriloquists, especially Paul Winchell. My folks even bought me a Jerry Mahoney puppet! There was also a Spanish ventriloquist named Senor Wences who was excellent. The most famous, and most loved puppet was an Italian mouse named Topo Gigio, but I don’t recall who did that puppet’s voice. Sometimes the show would close with Topo saying, “Eddie, kiss me goodnight” … and Ed Sullivan would usually crack a big smile!

Times changed, and other shows appeared on Sunday evenings that began to pull away Ed’s TV audience. I was attending Purdue in 1971 when the show was finally cancelled, but I will always have fond memories of Sunday nights with Ed Sullivan and his “really big shewww!”