The Stan Freberg Show was a weekly radio comedy show that ran on the CBS Radio Network for fifteen episodes in 1957 from July 14 through October 20. The show, starring comedian Stan Freberg and featuring the vocal talents of Daws Butler, June Foray and Peter Leeds, Peggy Taylor as the resident singer, and the musical directionofBilly May. The show aired in the 7:30 p.m. (ET) time slot following repeats of The Jack Benny Program ("The Best Of Benny") on Sundays. The show was produced by Pete Barnum.
Despite its short run, the show contained some running gags and stock jokes, from Freberg's ambivalence toward Madison Avenue (faux advertisements for "Puffed Grass" and "Food," as well as the sketch "Gray Flannel Hatful of Teenage Werewolves") to the interviews with a sneaker-wearing Abominable Snowman. Freberg also developed an elaborate parody of Lawrence Welk's then-current Dodge Dancing Party, which he later released (in a somewhat shorter form) as a single, "Wun'erful, Wun'erful! (Sides uh-one & uh-two)." (He would reprise the Welk impersonation for his final show, in which the fictional Welk tersely mocks Freberg's cancellation.)
By the thirteenth episode, it was clear that The Stan Freberg Show was suffering from a lack of advertiser interest (perhaps helped by Freberg's werewolf comparisons). According to Freberg's autobiography, It Only Hurts When I Laugh, two different cigarette companies offered to sponsor the program, but Stan turned them down; because no other advertisers were willing to provide primary or alternate sponsorship on Freberg's terms, CBS canceled the series after fifteen episodes. According to author Joe Bevilacqua, it was the last American network radio show to devote itself purely to comedy.
1958's The Best of the Stan Freberg Shows, a recording of collected material from the show, won the first 1959 Grammy Award for Best Spoken Word Album.[1]
| Episode | Original broadcast date | Scriptwriters | Featured sketches | Songs | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | July 14, 1957 | Stan Freberg, Pete Barnum, Jack Rhodes |
Marcel Toulez and his Tuned Sheep; Incident at Los Voraces | Also features Marvin Miller | |
| 2 | July 21, 1957 | Stan Freberg, Pete Barnum, Jack Rhodes |
Interview with the Abominable Snowman; Great Moments in History - Barbara Fritchie; Leroy Straddle Interviews Mrs. Hagmeyer Prill; Max's Delicatessen | "The Birth of the Blues" (Peggy Taylor) | Also features Marvin Miller |
| "Rock Around Stephen Foster" (Stan Freberg with Jud Conlon's Rhythmaires) | |||||
| 3 | July 28, 1957 | Stan Freberg, Pete Barnum |
A Couple at Home; Miss Jupiter; The Skin Divers' Mandolin Club; Leroy Straddle Interviews Mrs. Hagmeyer Prill; The Zazaloph Family; Stan Interviews Researcher Robert E. Tainter/Great Moments in History - Custer's Last Stand | "Cheek to Cheek" (Peggy Taylor) | Also features Virginia Gregg and Herb Vigran |
| 4 | August 4, 1957 | Stan Freberg, Pete Barnum, Jack Rhodes, Daws Butler |
Great Moments in History - Paul Revere; Hi-Fi Demonstration with Dr. Herman Horne; Lox Audio Theatre - Rock Around My Nose | "I Like the Likes of You" (Peggy Taylor) | Also features Hans Conried |
| "The Yellow Rose of Texas" (Stan Freberg) | |||||
| 5 | August 11, 1957 | Stan Freberg, Pete Barnum |
Flying Saucer Sighting/Orville the Moon Man; Hi-Fi Demonstration with Dr. Herman Horne; Wun'erful, Wun'erful | ||
| 6 | August 18, 1957 | Stan Freberg, Pete Barnum, Daws Butler |
Elderly Man River; Researcher Robert E. Tainter/Great Moments in History - Battle of the Nile; Face the Funnies | "Rock-a-Bye Your Baby with a Dixie Melody" (Peggy Taylor) | |
| "Rock Island Line" (Stan Freberg and Peter Leeds) | |||||
| 7 | August 25, 1957 | Stan Freberg, Pete Barnum, Daws Butler, Jack Rhodes |
The Lone Psychiatrist; Francois Toulez and His Hawaiian Nose Flute; There You Are - The Completion of the Transcontinental Railroad | "Dancing on the Ceiling" (Peggy Taylor) | |
| "Day-O (The Banana Boat Song)" (Stan Freberg and Peter Leeds) | |||||
| 8 | September 1, 1957 | Stan Freberg, Pete Barnum, Daws Butler |
The Zazaloph Family; Uninterrupted Melody; Face the Funnies; St. George and the Dragonet | "Around the World" (Peggy Taylor) | |
| 9 | September 8, 1957 | Stan Freberg, Pete Barnum, Daws Butler |
Interview with the Aboimnable Snowman; Researcher Robert E. Tainter/Crossington Washes the Delaware; The Honey-Earthers | "I Can't Sleep" (Peggy Taylor and Stan Freberg) | |
| 10 | September 15, 1957 | Stan Freberg, Pete Barnum, Daws Butler |
People Hate Freeways; The Build-It-Yourself Knock-Down Piano; Interview with Albert T. Wong, Fortune Cookie Writer; Hi-Fi Demonstration with Dr. Herman Horne | "Send for Me" (Peggy Taylor) | |
| "Just One of Those Things" (Jud Conlon's Rhythmaires) | |||||
| "Heartbreak Hotel" (Stan Freberg) | |||||
| 11 | September 22, 1957 | Stan Freberg, Pete Barnum, Jack Rhodes |
College Football Report; Interview with Foster Pelt, Agent to the Stars; Bang Gunleigh, U.S. Marshall Fields/Puffed Grass Commercials | "The Monkey Song" (Stan Freberg) | |
| "Famous Last Words" (Peggy Taylor) | |||||
| 12 | September 29, 1957 | Stan Freberg, Pete Barnum, Jack Rhodes |
Leroy Straddle Interview - Rocket Sled; How to Fix Leaky Faucet; Bob Tainter's New Racket | "Has Anybody Seen My Gal?" (Billy May and his Orchestra) | |
| "Rainbow" (Peggy Taylor) | |||||
| "Sh-Boom" (Stan Freberg, June Foray, and Jud Conlon's Rhythmaires) | |||||
| 13 | October 6, 1957 | Stan Freberg, Pete Barnum |
Panel Discussion - How to Improve Circus Attendance; Gray Flannel Hatful of Teenage Werewolves | "Cocktails for Two" (Billy May and his Orchestra with Jud Conlon's Rhythmaires) | |
| "And the Angels Sing" (Peggy Taylor) | |||||
| 14 | October 13, 1957 | Stan Freberg, Pete Barnum |
Sponsored by Freberg/Freberg Commercials; The Return of Miss Jupiter; Freberg at World Advertising; Sam Spillade/More Freberg Commercials | "Love is Mine" (Peggy Taylor) | |
| 15 | October 20, 1957 | Stan Freberg, Pete Barnum |
Road Blocked by Sheep; Elderly Man River; Bang Gunleigh, U.S. Marshall Fields/Puffed Grass Commercials; Lawrence Welk Visits/A Short Medley Based on the Names of Girls (an excerpt from Wun'erful, Wun'erful); The Abominable Snowman Visits | "The Birth of the Blues" (Peggy Taylor) | A Best-Of show. |
| "Day-O (The Banana Boat Song)" (Stan Freberg and Peter Leeds) |
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