About Red Skelton The Red Skelton Shpw was the only weekly series television show in broadcast hostory to run on all three (then) existing networks,CBS, NBC, ABC. Gossipers from the show's staff complained Skelton was arrogant, hard to get along with or please and was demanding. The June Taylor Dancers were disgruntled over Red's insisting they show "a lot of leg," especially when the show's ratings slipped. After the series ended in the early 70's, Skelton, who owned the show, refused syndicated reruns and in the late 70's, when home video was burgeoning, refused to allow any video distributor to release the shows or excerpts on VHS/BETA videocassette (the medium at the time). (Some video companies released pirated 50's footages they believed in the public domain. Shortly before his death in the mid 90's, Red (most likely his estate) allowed a boxed collection on DVD.
Hollywood has seen the coming and going of many comic geniuses, but only a select few have been as universally beloved as gentle, low-key Red Skelton and his cavalcade of characters that included the clown Freddie the Freeloader, the goofy Clem Kadiddlehopper, and his seagulls Gertrude and Heathcliffe. That many of his best characters were clowns comes as no surprise for Skelton's father was a circus clown who died two months before Skelton was born Bernard Richard Skelton in Vincennes, Indiana. Bernie Skelton's mother had menial jobs and barely earned enough for them to get by. They were so poor that the comedian began singing for pennies on the street when he was only seven. At age ten, Skelton quit school and joined a traveling medicine show. He gained further experience on the burlesque and vaudeville circuits and on showboats. He became a standup comic in the early '30s, playing one-night gigs in small nightclubs. His big break came after he developed a mimed donut-dunking routine that led to his employment at the Paramount Theater and then to a successful radio career and a long-running show during which he developed most of his characters. Skelton made his screen debut playing Itchy Falkner in Having a Wonderful Time (1938). He billed himself as Richard "Red" Skelton. Contracted to MGM during the '40s and '50s, Skelton played character roles and the occasional lead in numerous films, many of which were musicals and comedies. In 1951, Skelton launched a variety show that would alternately air on CBS and NBC until 1971. It was there that Skelton developed his characters and gained his most devoted following. Each show would begin with Skelton holding an unlit cigar and offering a warm greeting and doing a brief monologue; it would also contain a "silent spot" in which Skelton demonstrated his mastery of pantomime. All of the characters he created on radio made regular appearances, as did a brand new one, Freddy the Freeloader, a silent clown who could be as pathetic as he was funny. Musical accompaniment was provided by David Rose and his orchestra. Rose had been with Skelton since his radio days. From the series' beginning to its end, Skelton would finish his show with a heartfelt "Good night and God Bless." Throughout the program's long, extraordinarily successful (it was never out of the Top Ten in the Nielsen ratings-run), Skelton occasionally appeared in feature films. In 1953, he played a rare dramatic role in The Clown, which was a remake of The Champ. Skelton had his final starring role in Public Pigeon No. One (1957). After that he made cameos and guest star appearances in films such Those Magnificent Men in Their Flying Machines (1965). In addition to performing, Skelton excelled at several other interests. That he was a renowned oil painter of clowns is well known, but he also designed dishes and was an expert at creating bonsai trees. Skelton also composed about 8,000 songs, including the theme for the film Made in Paris (1966). For his lifetime of contributions in entertainment he was awarded an honorary Doctorate of Literature from Emerson College of Boston, a Doctor of Human Letters from Vincennes University, and a doctorate of Theater Arts at Indiana State University. Skelton was a 33rd Degree Mason, the order's highest possible level. Contrary to gossip, he frequently contributed to children's charities. Though no longer a regular in films and television, Red Skelton continued performing live until his death from pneumonia at the age of 84

Red Skelton Filmography Having Wonderful Time (1938)
Seeing Red (1939)
Flight Command (1940)
The People vs. Dr. Kildare (1941)
Whistling in the Dark (1941)
Dr. Kildare's Wedding Day (1941)
Lady Be Good (1941)
Ship Ahoy! (1942)
Maisie Gets Her Man (1942)
Panama Hattie (1942)
Whistling in Dixie (1942)
Du Barry Was a Lady (1943)
Thousands Cheer (1943)
I Dood It (1943)
Whistling in Brooklyn (1943)
Radio Bugs (1944) (voiceover, short)
Bathing Beauty (1944)
The Luckiest Guy in the World (1946) (voiceover, short)
Ziegfeld Follies (1946)
The Show-Off (1946)
Merton of the Movies (1947)
The Fuller Brush Man (1948)
A Southern Yankee (1948)
Neptune's Daughter (1949)
The Yellow Cab Man (1950)
Three Little Words (1950)
Duchess of Idaho (1950)
The Fuller Brush Girl (1950)
Watch the Birdie! (1950)
Excuse My Dust (1951)
Texas Carnival (1951)
Lovely to Look At (1952)
The Clown (1953)
Half a Hero (1953)
The Great Diamond Robbery (1953)
Hollywood Goes to War (1954)
Susan Slept Here (1954)
Around the World in Eighty Days (1956)
Public Pigeon No. One (1957)
Ocean's Eleven (1960)
Those Magnificent Men in Their Flying Machines (1965)

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THE RED SKELTON SHOW (CBS, 1959
Clem Kaddiddlehoffer Goes To College
with Reed Haley & Marvin Kaplan
Some Red Skelton Show Trivia Below

Red Skelton Show Trivia

The Red Skelton Show was the only weekly variety show to be seen on then all three existing networks. Between 1954 and 1962, Red's show was telecast on NBC, CBS and finally on ABC, where it lasted only two more seasons.

Red was the clown onstage, but notorious for violent temper tantrums backstage. It was alleged he "hit the bottle," especially when the shows ratings began to sink on ABC.

Until his death, Red refused to grant home video or cable TV rights to his show. He reportedly even turned down Viacom's whopping $15,000 per episode offer. After Red died, his estate finally released the grasps on whatever kinescopes could be found in storage.

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