So what is “What’s My Line?” doing in the ranks of classic TV comedy, you may ask? Okay, it was a quiz show, but it certainly had many funny moments.

While panelists Arlene Francis, Dorothy Killgallen, and Bennett Cerf were not comedians, they were inadvertently responsible for many laughs coming out of the questioning of contestants. (I’ll give one example in a later article).

Thanks mostly to panelists such as Steve Allen, Fred Allen, Dick Cavett, Ernie Kovacs, and Victor Borge, though, there were many intentional funny moments. In fact that’s primarily why they were often brought back as guest panelists.

Consider some examples:

During the time on the show when the panelists were each allowed to take a wild guess about the occupation of a contestant when he was introduced.

Dorothy Killgallen said, “I think he raises goldfish.”

Steve Allen, whose turn came next, said, “I think he lowers goldfish.”

(Okay, maybe it’s not”classic”, but it is comedy, and the audience roared.)

Dick Cavett began appearing as a guest panelist when he was still relatively unknown as a performer. On an early appearance he remarked when it was his turn to question the mystery guest, “The mystery guest is probably sitting there wondering who I am.”

Victor Borge once put on a false beard when it was his turn to question the mystery guest, saying, “If I’m not going to know who he is, he’s not going to know who I am.”

Ernie Kovacs was questioning a mystery guest. Somehow, in earlier questioning it had been established that the guest’s last name was the same as a brand of automobile. The guest was Henry J. Kaiser (for those youngsters out there, Kaiser was once an automobile model).

Kovacs mentioned that fact again and said, “…now this is just a wild guess,but could you by any chance be Abraham Lincoln?”

The audience howled for thirty seconds or more and then, just as it is quiet, Kovacs pauses a beat and says, “I’m sorry, Sir, I didn’t hear your answer.” The laugh was even longer than before.

Comedy different than today. Not a series of gags but comedy of timing and opportunity.
Just one other thing I loved about “What’s My Line?” .

First the facts: After a halting start, the show began its run on Wednesday, February 2, 1950. It went on to run live–no repeats–52 weeks a year–for seventeen years on CBS.

I don’t remember the first show in 1950. I was around then, but probably wouldn’t have been aware of it.  I was also around in 1967 when its run ended but, being busy with college  I missed those latter years.

No, my memory of What’s My Line? mainly exists during a short period in the 50′s.  The picture in my mind takes place in our living room with the family gathered to watch the show–as well as others–on a huge RCA Victor console TV with a small black and white screen.  The show came on at 9:30pm on Sunday nights.

After spending the early evening at church being good Baptists I remember on more than one occasion having a late Sunday supper in front of the TV watching John Charles Daly, Arlene Francis, Bennett Cerf and the guest panelist of the week trying to determine the occupation of each contestant.

I came to understand in later years that Fred Allen had been a regular panelist who, upon his death, was never replaced permanently.  I must have seen him on some of these shows since he was alive at that time. However, my most persistent memories are of guest panelists such as Steve Allen, Martin Gabel, and the like.

The memory of munching hamburgers my parents bought 5 for $1.00 while seated on the floor in front of the TV remains vivid in my mind.  I sat on the floor not only because I was a kid but because the huge TV with the small screen would fit in our living room only in such a spot that it couldn’t be viewed well from our sofa or other chairs.  Adults would usually pull a chair around to have some place to sit.

At a young age I was captured by television and this elegant show. Gentlemen and Ladies, dressed in tuxedos and gowns, playing a game so pleasantly, and the opportunity to see celebrities I had seen in the movies and on other TV shows.  I was in love!