Burns and Allen: Say “Goodnight”, Gracie

That’s the way every episode of the Burns and Allen show would end–or rather, it was the next-to-the last thing said. That line, spoken by George, was always followed by Gracie saying “Goodnight.”

Quite a while back I caught a trivia quiz on some show (I forget which). One question was about how the Burns and Allen show ended. The “correct” answer, which several participants and the host agreed upon as Gracie’s response was “Goodnight, Gracie.”

I was appalled (not really, but you know what I mean!). These people–none of whom as old as I (although close), as I remember. Got it wrong!

I suspected they were not actually all that familiar with the show but, instead, remembered the closing to “Laugh In”. As you may remember, Dan Rowan would always tell Dick Martin, “Say Goodnight, Dick” to which Dick would reply, “Goodnight, Dick.”

I never contacted the show about the error. Not that it was that important. And now I forget where the error occurred.

Gracie portrayed this demure but zany woman who lived in her own world with her own logic (much more on that in later articles). But she was not Dick Martin–or at least the character he portrayed. Gracie would have never responded like Dick.

When George indicated it was time to go, she was simply following his lead. It was completely in character with the woman she portrayed in the series. And I loved it.