I was a teenager in the 80's when Steve was doing a TV show called "The Start of Something Big". And I can remember, even then, thinking: Why isn't this guy a bigger star? He was a laugh riot.

@AWordonWesterns

3 жыл бұрын

Thanks, Justin. Steve had a fabulous career and, yes, he should have been bigger.

What a pleasure to hear an intelligent, resonant voice. How I miss these guys!

If ever there was a genius on television it was Steve Allen. Brilliant talented man.

I grew up in the 1950's. Steve Allen was an incredibly brilliant man of many talents! This was a pleasure to watch!

I loved Steve Allen......He was a remarkable person. Probably too cerebral for the union who got him taken off the air. I remember his contagious laugh and loved the live shows. You never knew what would happen. The ad-libs were priceless.

@AWordonWesterns

4 жыл бұрын

They sure were, Anne. His laugh usually turned into an uncontrollable giggle!

@annekeel2694

4 жыл бұрын

@@AWordonWesterns True and lit was contagious..... Some of the skits he did with Tom Poston were classic comedy.

@mikenaughton4298

3 жыл бұрын

I remember seeing his show with the cast of Don Knotts, Tom Poston, Louis Nye, Pat Harrington, Jr., & Bill Dana. It was a show I loved. Characters and routines that seemed current. I was young. I remember looking forward to it. His laugh allowed laughter, a zany, free laugh.

@ffggddss

3 жыл бұрын

@@mikenaughton4298 "My name - José Jimenez!" And don't forget Steve's high-pitched falsetto, "SHMOCK! SHMOCK!" - delivered at random moments. Fred

Steve Allen was a true class act of a renaissance man. Is there anything that this man can not do? All that talent seems to so casually flow off of him without one drop of pretension. What a legend.

I remember being introduced to Steve Allen many years ago by my Mother. Returning home to an otherwise dark house with the exception of our b&w tv lighting our living room and my Mother killing herself laughing out loud to the hysterical antics of Steve Allen! I sat and watched a musician, songwriter (this could be the start of something big) , talk show host, comedian, stuntman (diving into a bowl of jello), author of 50 books! In short a genius! All these memories on Wednesday August 12th Ma’s Birthday..... she would have been 98. So, thank you Rob Wood for a wonderful Wednesday!!♥️

I could listen to Steve Allen talk all day. One of the most erudite personalities to ever inhabit the airwaves and one of the funniest. Thanks for such a fascinating look back Rob.

@luehenson5953

3 жыл бұрын

Qyxl

@bllanderson2798

2 жыл бұрын

I agree. Mr. Allen was one of the most well-spoken entertainers. One can actually learn how to speak better listening to him.

What an intelligent man he was! I could listen to Steve Allen talk all day.

i love how steve, a very self-aware guy, avoids falling into celeb chat and insists on making his points. a philosopher as much as a showman.

I was in high school when Meeting of the Minds came out. It is probably why I developed a love of history. Steve Allen was a genius.

@42king56

3 жыл бұрын

i loved that series

@ffggddss

3 жыл бұрын

@ALL LIVES MATTER. As he reiterates here, it wasn't NBC; it was one dumb schlub at NBC, who had been put in charge of their "archives." I think Steve says that when NBC found out what that guy had done, they fired him. Fred

I make this comment at every Steve Allen video I see here at YT. He deserves this high praise. I grew up in the L.A. area in the 60's and 70's and attended many talk shows, and recorded show as a studio audience member, Be aware many New York based shows would do a LA based production from time to time. I saw them all. By far, Steve Allen treated his studio audience the best, even when the camera was off. He chatted with us before the taping, durning breaks and even after the show was completed. I know many other host appear to care for the audience while doing the show, but most, Johnny Carson the top of the list could care less about the people attending the show when no camera is recording. Steve Allen, R.I.P. you will forever have my respect.

Raised quietly in England, I'd never heard of this chap. But he's so down-to-earth and funny!

I was just a pre-teen when his "Tonight" show was on but when I stayed all night at my older cousin's house she let me watch it and it was great.

This was very interesting WayBack. Steve Allen was a marvelously articulate and thoughtful guest. You were a little more of a standard Q & A interviewer than you are now. Steve would listen to your question and respond in a clear and through manner. Rob your modern bow tie looks like a grandson of the one you were wearing in 77. However, you were, and are styling and profiling. Great episode.

One hell of an entertainer and if my memory serves correctly he has more copy written music than any on the planet but at 77 what would I know. Happy trails

I grew up in the 50’s and 60’s and remember him very well! I still watch him on the old What’s My Line shows on KZread.&

This is a wonderful treat. Your Sunday programs are awesome but to see this interview with Steve Allen is almost unbelievable. It's just hard to imagine someone with such a diverse background in the entertainment business. Please keep shuffling through your "catalog" and bring us more. Thanks for sharing.

I could easily listen to another hour of this. Fascinating interview.

My father used to watch Steve Allen and so did I. I remember the "Man on the Street" routines with Don Knotts, Louie Nye, and Tom Poston. I liked when Louie Nye would greet him with "Hi ho, Steverino." It's a shame that the old programs are lost.

I loved his show with "the man on the street" interviews...Don Knotts, Louie Nye, Tom Poston...

@AWordonWesterns

4 жыл бұрын

They were always the highlight for me.

@ffggddss

3 жыл бұрын

...and Dayton Allen, whom no one seems to remember... And the "Huttly, Brickly, Nuttly, Stinkly Report." Fred

Wow that was fantastic, I hate to admit it but I had forgot about Steve Allen, what a sharp guy, well spoken. Thanks for a great memory.

I loved Steve's late night TV show and watched it almost every week night. A genius.

I would hear my Mother hysterically laughing in the late evening and got up one night to see what was so outrageously funny and that was my initial introduction to the genius of Steve Allen! I believe he did a high drive into a large pool of jello..... genius! This could be the start of something big🎶 Loved Steveareno.❤️

@AWordonWesterns

Жыл бұрын

He was a true genius, Vernon. I always loved his shows, especially when he would crack up and start giggling!

Bravo Rob...! Steve Allen was indeed a comic genius... and you had the very good fortune to interview him. Thanks so much for posting.

Remember him as a kid. Pure genius,laughed more than he talked.

I went to a live taping of Steve's show. He was sitting behind his desk, when the audience groaned at one of his jokes. In a FLASH, Steve was on his feet, grabbing a real bull-whip from under his desk, running at the audience, whipping the stage in front of him, yelling, "BACK, BACK."

@AWordonWesterns

4 жыл бұрын

That's so funny, Paul. You lucky dog! I can visualise Steverino doing that.

@stephenwilliams9923

3 жыл бұрын

by chance was it his show "the Allen show" at the Vine Street theater Late 60's?

@ben2715

3 жыл бұрын

As Jayne Meadows once told me, Steve prayed for things to go wrong, rather than uneventfully by the script, because mishaps gave him a springboard for his creativity, just like they did in the example you cite.

@PaulKyriazi

3 жыл бұрын

@@stephenwilliams9923 Vine Street sounds about right. It was downtown LA 1969. While we were in line, Steve came out with a trumpet and got into a tall cherry piker. He blew a note on his trumpet and everyone yelled "Higher", so he blew a higher note and the cherry picker went up a little. This continued till he was way up in the air. That was taped for his opening.

@PaulKyriazi

3 жыл бұрын

@@ben2715 A good story Ben. Great you could meet Ms Meadows. The two of them are briefly in Casino sitting at a table and have a quick word with Joe Pesci.

Just stumbled across this with Steve Allen who I watched as a kid and loved his show. He fits in perfectly with your great western programs because he was a true pioneer in television.

@AWordonWesterns

2 ай бұрын

Love it! Thanks.

Thank you for this interview with this intelligent, innovative, funny man! We owe a lot to him and his brand of comedy.

@AWordonWesterns

4 жыл бұрын

Glad you enjoyed it!

Too bad we don't have someone now of Allen's intellect and vision.

That was worth watching just to see Steve Allen wearing a '70s Rayon Disco Shirt.

@AWordonWesterns

4 жыл бұрын

We did out best to color correct this old video. I was blinded!

@tbrackett9344

3 жыл бұрын

It's like Uncle Buck's hat. It angers some people

What a great interview you did with Steve! I, too, was fortunate to interview him 20 years later at his office in Van Nuys, and that led to wonderful support from him and later, his family, for my 2005 book, "Inventing Late Night: Steve Allen and the Original Tonight Show." They generously connected me to over 30 of Steve's colleagues, including Carl Reiner, Sid Caesar, Don Knotts, Steve & Eydie, Eartha Kitt, Tim Conway, bandleader Skitch Henderson, and others. In 1997, Steve was still heartbroken by the needless destruction of most of his "Tonight"-era kinescopes. For someone so accomplished, he didn't get the full credit that he deserved for inventing late night, an original American art form. Love the wonderful, rare photos inserted into your video. Thanks for sharing this video treasure!

@AWordonWesterns

3 жыл бұрын

ben2715 Thank you, Dan. Boy, it sure sounds like you hit the Mother Lode with your interviews. I’ve just ordered your book and can’t wait to dig in. The genius of Steverino can never be overlooked.

@ben2715

3 жыл бұрын

@@AWordonWesterns I can't thank the Allen family enough for their support. Hope you'll enjoy my book. It expands on all of the topics you covered in the 1977 interview and examines his television career through the eyes of friends and colleagues who worked with him. Such a gifted, funny, and talented man, and a great humanitarian as well.

Great interview Rob, It was very interesting and a pleasure to watch Steve Allen when he was still pretty much in his prime.

wow, look at young Rob...great interview with Steve Allen, who I always enjoyed! 👍👍👍👍

@AWordonWesterns

Жыл бұрын

Glad you enjoyed it

Great interview. Steve Allen is the LEGEND.

Steve is brilliant. Great , entertaining interview.

@AWordonWesterns

2 жыл бұрын

Thanks, Stu. I always liked Steverino and certainly enjoyed talking to him. Funny, smart guy.

I remember watching him as a boy when I snuck downstairs to watch hoping my parents would not notice my presence.

Oh geez, I loved to see Steve Allen get tickled. He had the most infectious laugh......would love to see reruns of his talk shows......

Thank you so much for uploading this. Steve Allen was a class act and a man of many interests and talents. I'm happy you had the privilege of meeting him. And on a side note, I appreciate all your videos - they make this difficult time and little more bearable :)

@AWordonWesterns

4 жыл бұрын

Glad you enjoyed it, DL.

Brilliant interview with a true television legend. You really showed your knowledge when you asked about the Kinescope from those old shows, and you seemed to connect quite well with Steve. WOW...thanks a million, Rob!

Wow is right, Rob. I am jealous of you getting to talk to all these brilliant people. What a dream job. Steve Allen was a genius. Never missed his shows as a kid. The man on the street interviews with Knotts, Nye and Poston were hilarious. Never missed Steve late night either. As a matter of fact, got a marriage proposal from my husband while watching Steve. Schmock ! Schmock! in the background...very romantic!

@AWordonWesterns

4 жыл бұрын

Thanks, KK. I love romantic stories with happy endings.

His shirt might has well said "1977" right on it. You can almost pin '70s fashion right down to the month! You must hear this constantly, but you age quite well! Thanks for this. Hope you have more oldies!

@AWordonWesterns

3 жыл бұрын

Thanks, Ub. One day this age thing is gonna catch up to me all at once! Glad you're enjoying our programs.

Great interview with Steve! Always enjoy your interviews!

@AWordonWesterns

Жыл бұрын

Thanks, Chris. I was lucky to have saved this interview. Steve was a brilliant man and kept (young) me on my toes.

I grew up in the 1950's and remember watching Steve Allen. He was mesmerizing to audiences. He was always able to change depending on audience reaction and his humor was totally amazing. Probably the funniest and best late night TV host until Craig Ferguson arrived in America.

@photomanwilliams4147

Жыл бұрын

Truest statement here

I grew up watching Steve Allen in the late 50's early 60's in addition to the movies and specials he starred in. He helped warp my sense of humor and I've been grateful ever since. It was a sad day when he died.

@essessessesq

3 жыл бұрын

agree with you 100%, his offbeat and wacky gags and comments were also often very smart....he was an iconoclast....we greatly LACK iconoclasts now.

Bill Dana was also one of Steve's "man in the street" interviewees. But his Jose Jimenez character was one of the first victims of political correctness.

@guyrichardson7358

3 жыл бұрын

I will never forget "my name is Jose Jimenez".

Comedic genius!

I always watched him on Channel 5 in L.A. Louis Nye, Gypsy Boots, Hollywood Ranch Market, and that great band.

the day feels a little fuller when watching your programs, thank you Word

@AWordonWesterns

4 жыл бұрын

Happy to hear that!

I really enjoyed this show . I lived in the boondocks of Oklahoma and we didn't get TV until 1953. I remember watching Steve Allen and many more. These shows bring a pleasant feeling of a great childhood back that I enjoy very much. Thank You Mr Word.

Steve Allen: The father of "The Tonight Show"! Hail, Hail to Mr. Allen.

His comments about the American view of talent vs. success are spot on and still relevant today unfortunately

Rob, best interview with Steve I’ve ever had the opportunity to see! What a great talent and talent master! He always managed to bring incredible people together! Great editing also!💫

@AWordonWesterns

4 жыл бұрын

Thanks, Larry. He sure makes it look easy and was kind to let (young) me "bother" him that day.

WOW! Thanks Rob! Great choice of topic and theirs none better than Steve Allen.

Steve was also a terrific panelist on What's My Line for a year whilst doing the Tonight Show and returning ever so often throughout the rest of the 17 year run. You can find those on the What's My Line Channel here on YT.

What a great zany show Steve had way back then. I wouldn't miss it , and surely enjoyed the show. Many many new entertainers had their start on the Steve Allen Show, as well as the other Tonight Shows did. The guy that destroyed the films, lost a great time in history. R.I.P. Steve .

I was 5 yrs. old when the Tonight Show with Mr. Allen ended, yet I can remember Don Knotts' Nervous Guy skits and Louis Nye ect. Funny thing is, because of this short documentary, I finally found out why Tom Poston came into my lost memory bank every time I saw him on other shows i.e. Newhart ect. Steve Allen, pretty cool guy.

Your voice is deeper now. I always thought Steve was an amazingly intelligent man.

Thank you Rob. That was enjoyable. And I'm glad you talked about the Benny Goodman Story. One of my favorites besides Allens performance is the fact that the actual band was in it. 👍

@AWordonWesterns

4 жыл бұрын

Steve was right, the music played by Benny and other legends, was toe-tappin' great! He said the movie only ran about "an hour and 10 minutes," but it was just under 2 hours.

Steve Allen was funny to the end. We saw him do a show in Milwaukee which was some music & off the cuff humor & he was terrific! He was in his 70s. Still sharp as ever!

I loved him, too. I was watching one of those Hollywood cemetery tours recently. He is buried in an unmarked grave - I would bet there is a story there.

In that first early pic of Steve Allen without his glasses he looks like Sheldon from "Big Bang Theory"

One of the best videos on YT !!! This is fantastic stuff!

@AWordonWesterns

3 жыл бұрын

Wow, thanks!

I LOVE your bow tie! The concept of putting a bow at the top of your body that u present to the world makes me smile. Steve Allen was always really funny & a ray of sunshine. He was an excellent musician & an intelligent, innovative, kind man. His format was copied by late nite talk shows & is still the model today. Rest in peace Stevo, ya did good.

@AWordonWesterns

3 жыл бұрын

Thanks, Francis. I've still got a drawer full of bow ties!

In 1962, 63 & 64 - Steve had a 90 minute 5 nights a week show often called the "Westinghouse" show - it was on the same time as Johnny Carson Tonight Show and had the greatest musical guests & comedians. He'd start every show with a crazy "stunt" (human tea bag, playing volleyball in the street with local "beauty queens", playing piano 400 feet in the air, etc). Many of those shows are archived at UCLA film archives, but they won't syndicate them & we'll probably never seem although a few are "out there."

@AWordonWesterns

3 жыл бұрын

Would love to see some of those again. Thanks, dept2

The early recordings were done on acetate stock. It is very flammable; that's why they got rid of not just this great man's work. Carson was upset 6 years later when he discovered that NBC had decided to "reuse" the video tape of Carson's (and everybody else's) show. That's why the only really old skit we saw on the anniversary shows was the hatchet throw.

Thank you so much for posting this. I really enjoyed it. Steve Allen was more from my parents' generation but I've loved what I've seen of him over the years. Take care!

@AWordonWesterns

3 жыл бұрын

Glad you enjoyed it

Love the Tonto Candy Bar sketch with Steve Allen, Andy Griffith, Imogene Coca and Elvis Presley.

@AWordonWesterns

4 жыл бұрын

What a show that was!

Miss Steve Allen. Thank you.

Excellent Rob you have been around for awhile

At the age of 12 & 13 I would wait until I knew my Mom was sleeping and sneak out into the living room to watch Steve on the original Tonight Show...so much talent, so many laughs!!!

Thank you Rob Word 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻

Really cool, Rob.

@AWordonWesterns

Жыл бұрын

Home movies for me!

Mr Allen is a name familiar to me, but it wasn’t until your interview that I learnt who he was. I congratulate you for your interview, but have to ask, how could you see him over that bow tie? Mr Allen’s orange shirt and white flairs were better suited to BW TV lol. Here in Australia we had an icon of both radio and TV and his name was Graham Kennedy. Graham was a supreme ad libber and he had an off sider who was just as good by the name of Bert Newton ( Bert is still alive today and is an icon in his own right ). Thanks for another terrific interview Rob, from Down Under.

@AWordonWesterns

4 жыл бұрын

Thanks, Robert. I guess both Steve and I were in our sartorial splendor that day.

Great video reviewing entertainment history. Steve Allen was an interesting professional down to earth personality who was smart and knew how to relate to others, great choice for this video!🤩

@AWordonWesterns

4 жыл бұрын

Glad you enjoyed it

Great trip back in time. I was a regular viewer and particularly recall watching The Man on the Street.

Everything Steve Allen did had an intelligence to it. He really should be given as much credit for "The Tonight Show" as Jack Paar. I think the problem with both men is that there really isn't much left from their shows. It's sad because we really have no more interview format shows anymore like Cavett or Tom Snyder

Thought you were a Cowboy guy, boy is this interview strange for you/And Steve Allen's Shirt, what a throw back..Great One

@AWordonWesterns

3 жыл бұрын

I'm not always in the saddle, Bob. Sometime I get bucked off and land in other genres.

It's funny when Johnny Carson negotiated his HUGE contract in 1980 he made sure HE owned the show, and he stored the tapes in a Vault in a cave in Kansas or Missouri NOT KIDDING those post 1980 shows are safe folks!

@rickrick5041

3 жыл бұрын

Eric Haynes Are they on KZread or still in the cave? Is there a man who owns the cave, a caveman?

Thank you

To quote Oliver Twist, ‘please, sir, can I have some more’?

Loving these way back Wednesday. I wasn’t born yet when Steve Allen became the first host of the Tonight Show. Reminds me of how great he really was. They don’t make them like him anymore. Thank you for having this channel.

@AWordonWesterns

4 жыл бұрын

Thanks, LKH. Steve was sharp! We're doing our best during this time to entertain.

rob,we grew up in the same era.it is really nice to look back at those good times that were to be had then.what puzzles me is you look so young and i look so old.but please keep up the great work you do,this old man can dream about yester year.

@AWordonWesterns

2 ай бұрын

Thanks, court. Old Rob is still rollin'. Hope you are, too!

Jack Parr was the first host of thr Tonight Show and he was FANTASTIC!!! I never missed him. He and Charles Bronson in Man With A Camera and a comedy show on Late called Jack and Jill with Ann Jeffries. I was in Jr High School, but I stayed up late every week night to watch those.

@AWordonWesterns

3 жыл бұрын

Paar followed Steve as the host. Steve 1954-57; Paar 57-62; Carson 62-92

As someone from the UK, these are fascinating to see.

Awesome!! Thanks Rob!!

So cool to hear this bright legend speak on himself and what he witnessed in the film industry. Hind sight when he said tgat the guy who burned those films is probably running a network now Hah! What about the process of it being America’s history Do they have a independence on what to do with some film that was not or is not seen at one time or another not as important With this threat of cyber space (EMP) ? Who makes the details in preserving all film? I so love your interviews Such an impact ! Great work.... Hearing it from the Horses Mouth Hey?!!!

@AWordonWesterns

2 жыл бұрын

Wow, Alice. Thanks. Preservation usually boils down to financing the restoration and storage, plus...how to get a return on the investment.

Those hilarious but sometimes comfortable clothes of the 70s; and Allen's hair sticking out in back. I'd like to have heard him commenting about men's clothes from the 50s onwards. Oe, his asking the Man On The Street about them. He and his were so funny.

Who can forget "smock-smock"?

@jackgrattan1447

4 жыл бұрын

How's your bird?

That was great, thanks!

I wish I could watch all the old shows of Steve Allen

@AWordonWesterns

3 жыл бұрын

Me, too, Shirley! Thanks.

I remember watching Steve Alan Shows and enjoy them. A real pioneer ! He was really funny.

Rob? You dont age. Woee. Great interview

@AWordonWesterns

2 ай бұрын

My hair got longer....

DUMONT T.V. dumped their Kinescopes in the Lake. - Some Hollywood Movie companies did the same things. I heard that FOX lost its early material to an accident or so I've heard but may have been to save money from Storage cost. Apparently, NBC actually was following a tradition that many used assuming that what had been created (shows and movies) had little value to be gained saving film or shows.

My first thought when Rob came on screen was, "Nice tie." So I like it!

I loved the Meeting of the Minds! Steve Allen, one of, if not the smartest man in entertainment. I sure miss him.

Thanks for another pleasant surprise from the Word archives .

@AWordonWesterns

4 жыл бұрын

Glad you like them, LP.

Steve & Dick Cavett together would just about cover all interview angles!

great stuff keep it up

@AWordonWesterns

4 жыл бұрын

Thanks, will do!

Looking very damper Rob. Enjoying this series.

@Nunofurdambiznez

3 жыл бұрын

damper? like in a fireplace? I'll BET you meant to say dapper... you might want to edit that..

@AWordonWesterns

3 жыл бұрын

Thanks, Patriot. But, are you trying to rain on my parade?

@Nunofurdambiznez

3 жыл бұрын

@@AWordonWesterns cue in Barbra S. singing "Don't rain on my Parade"... LOL!