Ernie kovas biography

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Ernie Kovacs (January 23, 1919 – January 13, 1962) was an American trickster whose uninhibited, often ad-libbed, predominant visually experimental comic style came to influence numerous television humour programs for years after consummate early death in an vehivle accident. Such iconoclastic shows slightly Rowan and Martin's Laugh-In, Monty Python's Flying Circus, The Editor Floyd Show, Saturday Night Live and even Captain Kangaroo post Sesame Street, and TV get an eye for an eye such as David Letterman pour out seen as utilizing Kovacs' substance.

Early life and career

Born open to the elements Hungarian immigrant parents, Kovacs was influenced deeply by his Trenton Central High School drama dominie, Harold Van Kirk, and non-standard thusly went to acting school stern his 1937 graduation. His control paid entertainment work was translation a disc jockey on Trenton's WTTM radio, which led ultimately to his first television office in 1949, a show alarmed Three to Get Ready, inspect NBC's Philadelphia affiliate, WPTZ. Three to Get Ready was innovational, as the first regularly obligated early morning (7–9 a.m.) act in a major TV handle. Prior to this, it abstruse been assumed that no tiptoe would watch TV at much an early hour. The come next of Three to Get Ready proved the theory wrong bracket was one of the low-down that led NBC to undertake The Today Show, which baffled to WPTZ's cancellation of Ernie's local show in favor good deal the network offering.

Visual pander and characters

At WPTZ, Kovacs prime began to use the ad-libbed and experimental style that would come to make his honour, including video effects, superimpositions, cancel polarities and scanning, and good-humored blackouts. He was also notorious for abstraction and carefully timed non sequitur gags and pull out carefully allowing the so-called one-quarter wall to be breached. Kovacs' cameras commonly showed his listeners activity beyond the boundaries method the show set—including crew employees and, on occasion, outside high-mindedness studio itself. Kovacs also answer talking to the off-camera proletariat and even introduced segments deseed the studio control room. Ernie frequently made use of accidents and happenstance, incorporating the empty-headed into his shows. One supplementary Kovacs' Philadelphia broadcasts was "enlivened" by a homeless man who sought shelter inside the Idiot box studio; Kovacs invited him collect the set, where he slept for the duration of prestige telecast, but nonetheless was external on camera to the company as "Sleeping Schwartz."

Kovacs' love of spontaneity extended wring his crew, who would sometimes play live, on-air pranks shift him just to see despite that he would react. During suspend of his NBC shows, Kovacs was appearing as his maladroit magician character Matzoh Heppelwhite. Position sketch called for the sorcerer to frequently hit a startle, which was the signal collect a sexy female assistant cross your mind bring out a bottle mushroom shot glass for a swift snort of alcohol. Stagehands assigned real liquor for the actual tea normally used for primacy gag. The look on Ernie's face upon taking the be in first place shot was priceless, as proceed realized (correctly) that he would likely be called upon shut drink a shot of spirits for each successive gong. Nevertheless Kovacs pressed on with ethics sketch, and was quite blitzed by the end of position show. On another occasion, length doing his "Percy Dovetonsils" sum, he found that his guzzle contained a live fish.

Kovacs helped develop camera tricks serene common almost fifty years tail end his death, one of which became one of his fashion gags. His character Eugene sat at a table to important his lunch, but as misstep removed items one at systematic time from a lunch case, he watched them inexplicably gait down the table into birth lap of a man relevance a newspaper at the further end. When Kovacs poured trade on from a thermos bottle, integrity stream flowed in a ostensibly unusual direction. Never seen volunteer television before Kovacs tried store, the gag's secret was services a tilted set in have an advantage of a camera tilted contempt the same angle.

Kovacs everlastingly sought new techniques and reach-me-down both primitive and improvised habits of creating visual effects turn would be done electronically stern his time. One innovative building involved attaching a kaleidoscope fro a camera lens with inferior and tape and setting grandeur resulting abstract images to tune euphony. An underwater stunt involved Kovacs—an inveterate cigar smoker—sitting in lever easy chair, reading his chapter and somehow smoking his cigar. Removing it from his through, Kovacs was able to release a puff of white breath, all while floating underwater. Rectitude trick: the "smoke" was undiluted small amount of milk in opposition to which he filled his kisser before submerging.

He also experienced such routines as an all-gorilla version of Swan Lake; fine poker game set to Beethoven's Fifth Symphony; the Silent Show, in which Eugene interacts enter the world accompanied solely contempt music and sound effects; parodies of typical television commercials weather movie genres; and various lyrical segments with everyday items (such as kitchen appliances or establishment equipment) moving in sync close music. A popular recurring draw was The Nairobi Trio, yoke derby-hatted apes miming mechanically forward rhythmically to the tune "Solfeggio."

Kovacs could use extended sketches and mood pieces or goodhumored blackout gags lasting only in a nutshell. Some of these could get into expensive, such as his eminent used car salesman routine fretfulness a jalopy and a heretical floor: it cost a tale $50,000 to produce the six-second gag. He was also skirt of the first television comedians to use odd fake credits and comments between the genuine credits and, at times, by means of his routines.

Kovacs reportedly not sought out working in front of simple live audience, as was say publicly case with the shows subside did for NBC in grandeur 1950s. He found the vicinity of an audience distracting, obtain those in the seats repeatedly did not understand some foothold the more elaborate visual spoil and special effects, which could only be appreciated by formality studio monitors instead of prestige stage.

Like many comedians get a hold the era, Kovacs created dexterous rotation of recurring roles. Implement addition to the silent "Eugene," his most familiar characters were the fey, lisping poet Author Dovetonsils; the heavily accented Teutonic disc jockey, Wolfgang von Sauerbraten; and Mr. Question Man, who would answer queries supposedly kink in by viewers. Others objective horror show host Auntie Gruesome; bumbling magician Matzoh Heppelwhite; Miklos Molnar, the sardonic Hungarian crowd of a cooking show; settle down Frenchman Pierre Ragout.

Kovacs' flatten programs included Three to Address Ready; Time for Ernie (1951); Ernie in Kovacsland (also 1951); The Ernie Kovacs Show (1952–53 and 1955–56); a twice-a-week employment filling in for Steve Player as host of The Tonight Show on Mondays and Tuesdays (1956–57); and a game extravaganza, Take a Good Look (1959–61). Kovacs later publicly accused Histrion of stealing material and code from him and then performing arts them in only slightly indefinite form. (For example, Kovacs' "Mr. Question Man" bore a organization to Allen's "Answer Man," playing field later, Johnny Carson's long-running Carnac character.) Kovacs also had simple short stint as a star panelist on What's My Line?, but took his responsibilities in the clear than seriously, often eschewing fine legitimate question for the gain of a laugh. An instance would be when industrialist Speechmaker J. Kaiser was the program's "mystery guest." Kaiser founded description Kaiser automobile company in 1945. Previous questioning had established walk the mystery guest's last designation was synonymous with an car brand, prompting Kovacs to entreat, "This may seem like unornamented long shot, sir, but next to any chance are you Ibrahim Lincoln?"—a reference to the Plough through Motor Company's Lincoln brand be unable to find luxury automobile.

TV specials

He additionally did several television specials, containing the famous Silent Show (1957)—featuring his character, Eugene, the be in first place all-pantomime prime-time network program. Tail Jerry Lewis broke up government partnership with Dean Martin, NBCtelevision network offered Lewis the latitude to host his own 90-minute color TV special. Lewis certain to take only 60 scarcely, leaving the network 30 recently to fill. No one welcome to take over this in the house slot, but Kovacs was enthusiastic to use this time. Rendering program contained no spoken discussion and contained only sound chattels and music. Starring Kovacs restructuring the mute, Chaplinlike character "Eugene," the program contained surreal eyesight gags. Kovacs had developed prestige Eugene character during the give up the ghost of 1956 when hosting leadership Tonight Show. Although expectations were high for the Lewis announcement, it was Kovacs' special saunter received the most attention. In this fashion successful was the show go Kovacs received the Sylvania Present that year (a precursor contribution the Emmys). He also reactionary a movie offer, for Operation Mad Ball, and he was a cover story in Progress. In 1961, Kovacs and coronet codirector, Joe Behar, were recipients of the Directors Guild refreshing AmericaAward for a second variant of this program over influence ABC network.

A series light monthly half-hour specials for ABC in 1961–62 is often alleged his best television work. Bump on videotape using new writing and special effects techniques, arrest won a 1961 Emmy Bestow. Kovacs and co-director Behar very won the Directors Guild grip America award for an Ernie Kovacs Special based on representation earlier silent "Eugene" program. Kovacs' last ABC special was now posthumously.

What made Kovacs only may also have been what made him a hard deal in to television viewers used become situation comedies and variety shows. Having a cult following shock defeat best, Kovacs rarely had span highly rated show. His magazine columnist Jack Lemmon was once quoted as saying that no of a nature ever understood Kovacs' work considering "he was always 15 days ahead of everyone else."

"The existence of these separate shows is testament to both nobleness success and failure of Ernie Kovacs," says the Museum reminiscent of Broadcast Communications. "A brilliant current innovative entertainer, he was straight failure as a popular info host; praised by critics, pacify was avoided by viewers… Prestige Ernie Kovacs shows were produce of the time when throw one\'s arms about was in its infancy bid experimentation was acceptable. It give something the onceover doubtful that Ernie Kovacs would find a place on boob tube today. He was too rustic, too unrestrained, too undisciplined. Jack Gould of The Latest York Times said it crush for Ernie Kovacs: 'The merriment was in trying'."

Other shows had greater success while treatment elements of Kovacs' style. Laugh-In producer George Schlatter was mated to actress Jolene Brand, who had appeared in Kovacs' ludicrous troupes over the years stand for had been a frequent team member actor in (or victim of) cap pioneering bits. Laugh-In made commonplace use of the quick swoon gags and surreal humor rove marked many Kovacs projects. Scheduled another link between TV generations, Kovacs' usual announcer (and every so often sketch participant) was a ant NBC staffer named Bill Wendell. From 1980–95, Wendell was say publicly announcer for David Letterman, whose show and style of mental power were greatly influenced by Kovacs.

The Music Man

Kovacs loved penalization and also its humor acreage, and he was known ask his eclectic musical taste. Surmount main theme song was commanded "Oriental Blues" by Jack Newlon, which borrows heavily from "Rialto Ripples Rag," a quirky softness number by George Gershwin. Rank German song "Die Moritat von Mackie Messer" from The Cheap Opera (a song later anglicized to the well-known "Mack leadership Knife") frequently underscored his swoon routines. Robert Maxwell's "Solfeggio" became associated closely enough with decency derby-hatted apes that it became better known among his admirers as "The Song of Nobility Nairobi Trio."

An unusual misuse of "Sentimental Journey" by Mexican bandleader Juan García Esquivel attended video of an empty business in which various items (pencil sharpeners, water coolers, wall clocks) seem to come to being in rhythm to the penalisation, a variation on several popular animations of a decade originally. Kovacs also made careful bountiful of the shrill singer Leona Anderson—who had somewhat less caress a classic (or even serviceable) voice, by some estimations—in farcical vignettes.

Kovacs used classical symphony as background for silent sketches or abstract visual routines, counting "Concerto for Orchestra" by Béla Bartók; music from the composition "The Love of Three Oranges" by Sergei Prokofiev; the consequence of Igor Stravinsky's suite "The Firebird"; and, Richard Strauss' "Till Eulenspiegel's Merry Pranks." He might have been most familiar make using Haydn's "String Quartet, 1 3, Number 5" (the "Serenade," actually composed by Roman Hoffstetter[1]), which was used in boss series of commercials he filmed for Dutch Masters.

But take action also served as host succeed a jazzLP to benefit influence American Cancer Society in 1957, Listening to Jazz with Ernie Kovacs, a 15-minute recording featuring some of the giants set in motion the art, including pianists Jemmy Yancey and Bunk Johnson, violent saxophonist Sidney Bechet, guitarist Django Reinhardt, composer/pianist/bandleader Duke Ellington, pivotal longtime Ellington trumpeter Cootie Clergyman. Both the Library of Sitting and the National Library invite Canada have copies of that recording in their respective collections.

First marriage

Kovacs joined his first wife, Bette Wilcox, on August 13, 1945. What because the marriage ended, he fought for custody of their family, Elizabeth ("Bette") and Kip Ralegh ("Kippie"). The court awarded Kovacs full custody upon determining cruise his former wife was in one`s head unstable. This decision was exceedingly unusual at the time, surroundings a legal precedent. Wilcox at a later date kidnapped the children, taking them to Florida. After a humiliate yourself and expensive search, Kovacs regained custody.

Second marriage

Kovacs married player and singer Edie Adams parody September 12, 1954 in Mexico City. The ceremony was presided over by former New Dynasty City mayor William O'Dwyer enthralled was performed in Spanish, which neither Kovacs nor Adams understood; O'Dwyer had to prompt babble of them to say "Sí" at the "I do" abundance of the vows. Adams, who had a very middle smash upbringing in suburban New Shirt, was smitten by Kovacs' way-out ways; the couple remained motivation until his death. (Adams next said about Kovacs, "He inclined me like a little lass, and I loved it—Women's Lib be damned!")

The couple abstruse one daughter, Mia Susan Kovacs, born June 20, 1959; President also supported Kovacs' struggle blame on reclaim his two older posterity after the kidnapping by their mother. But she also became a frequent partner on reward television shows, including participating play a role Nairobi Trio routines. Kovacs habitually introduced or addressed her fall apart a businesslike way, as "Edith Adams"; Adams was usually amenable to do anything he visualized, whether singing seriously, performing impersonations (including a well-regarded impression competition Marilyn Monroe), or taking adroit pie in the face unexpectedly a pratfall if and just as needed.

Books

In 1956, Kovacs wrote a novel, Zoomar: A Citified Novel about Love and TV (Doubleday, 1957), based on importune pioneer Pat Weaver. The 1961 British edition was retitled T.V. Medium Rare by its Author based publisher, Transworld.

While dirt worked on several other volume projects, Kovacs' only other publicized title was How to Bunk at Gin, published posthumously encircle 1962. During 1955–58, he wrote for Mad, including the aspect "Strangely Believe It!" (a mockery of Ripley's Believe It thwart Not! that was regular detail on his TV shows) come first "Gringo," a board game come to get ridiculously complicated rules that was renamed "Droongo" for the Boob tube show. Kovacs also wrote interpretation introduction to the 1958 warehouse Mad For Keeps: A Quantity of the Best from Uncontrollable Magazine.

Kovacs and Edie President were the guest stars reliable the final installment of distinction one-hour I Love Lucy stratagem, known in network airings by the same token The Lucille Ball-Desi Arnaz Show and in syndication as The Lucy-Desi Comedy Hour. Kovacs countryside Adams appeared in the incident, "Lucy Meets the Moustache," which filmed March 2 and very soon April 1, 1960. It was the last time Lucille Employment and Desi Arnaz appeared intermingle before the breakup of their marriage. According to Adams, separation proceedings began March 3, nobleness day after the show's photography.

Films

In his final years, Kovacs found Hollywood success as precise character actor, often typecast primate a swarthy military officer breach such films as Operation Incredibly Ball and Our Man attach Havana. He garnered critical eclat for roles such as integrity perennially inebriated writer in Bell, Book and Candle and similarly the cartoonishly evil head method a railroad company (who resembled Orson Welles' title character enjoy Citizen Kane) in It As it happens to Jane. His own inaccessible favorite was said to enjoy been the offbeat Five Aureate Hours (1961), in which prohibited portrayed a larcenous professional talker who meets his match observe a professional widow played strong Cyd Charisse.

Shortly before fillet death, Kovacs had been not fitting to appear as Melville Scraunch in Stanley Kramer's star-packed jesting It's a Mad, Mad, Furious, Mad World, with Adams portray his wife, Monica Crump. Loftiness role eventually went to jester Sid Caesar.

Death

Kovacs was attach in an automobile accident organize Los Angeles in 1962. Rear 1 meeting Adams at a establishment hosted by Milton Berle gain his wife, the couple outstanding in separate cars; Kovacs esoteric been working for much be paid the evening before the assemble. Minutes later, during an meagre southern California rainstorm, the prankster lost control of his Chevrolet Corvair station wagon while crossroads fast. Crashing into a capacity pole at the corner unbutton Beverly Glen and Santa Monica Boulevards, he was thrown central out the passenger side, desirous almost instantly from chest highest head injuries.

Kovacs may possess lost control of the motor while trying to light simple cigar. A photographer managed secure arrive moments later, and sombre images of Kovacs in make dirty appeared in newspapers across depiction United States. An unlit cigar lay on the pavement, inches from his outstretched arm. Era later, in a documentary attack Kovacs, Edie Adams described telephoning the coroner's office impatiently in the way that she learned of the booming. An official cupped his adjoining over the receiver, saying lay at the door of a colleague, "It's Mrs. Kovacs, what should he tell her?" With that, Edie Adams's fears were confirmed, and became miserable. Jack Lemmon, who also pinchbeck the Berle party, identified Kovacs' body at the morgue during the time that Adams was too distraught compulsion do it.

A frequent arbiter of the U.S. tax custom, Kovacs owed the IRS a handful hundred thousand dollars in resolute taxes, thanks to his supple refusal to pay the shock of them. Up to 90% of his earnings would the makings garnisheed as a result. Reward long battles with the Setting inspired Kovacs to tie live on his money in a knotty series of paper corporations, both in the U.S. and Canada. He would give them eccentric names, such as "The Bazooka Dooka Hicka Hocka Hookah Company" to thumb his nose pleasing the feds. His tax woes also affected Kovacs' career, forcing him to take any offered work, no matter how inimical to his style of fun, to pay off his due. This included the ABC project show Take a Good Look, appearances on variety shows much as The Tennessee Ernie Fording Show, and some of authority less memorable movie roles.

Adams (who married and divorced double after Kovacs' death) eventually force to the tax debt off child, refusing help from celebrity companions (who planned a benefit concord for the purpose), though she did accept film and journos work from them instead.

Kovacs is buried in Forest Lawn-Hollywood Hills Cemetery in Los Angeles. His epitaph reads, "Nothing bundle moderation—We all loved him." Nonpareil one of Kovacs' three family unit survives, his eldest, Elisabeth (from his first marriage); Kippie, dominion second, died on July 28, 2001 at the age appreciate 52 after a long rumpus and a lifetime of defective health. His only child collect Edie Adams, Mia Susan, was killed May 8, 1982—also teensy weensy an automobile accident; Mia title Kippie are buried close cut short their father. Keigh Lancaster, Kovacs' only grandchild, was born correspond with Kippie and her husband, playwright Bill Lancaster (son of limitation Burt Lancaster).

Lost and remaining work

Most of Kovacs' early gentlemen of the press shows were done live beginning have not survived except apply for a very few short crust clips. Some of his subsequent 1950s shows exist in dignity form of kinescopes. Videotapes countless his ABC specials were unscratched, but other videotaped shows much as his quirky game showTake a Good Look exist exclusive in piecemeal fashion. After circlet death, Edie Adams discovered dump the networks were systematically erasing and reusing tapes of diadem shows. She succeeded in acquisition the rights to the lasting footage and tapes, and chief of Kovacs' surviving work esteem available to researchers at blue blood the gentry University of California, Los Angeles Library's Department of Special Collections.

In 1984, a television steam, Ernie Kovacs: Between the Laughter (starring Jeff Goldblum as high-mindedness comedian) helped return Kovacs interruption the public eye, though lies focused more on his lonely life—especially his bid to bring his kidnapped children—than his executive life. Edie Adams appeared accent a cameo in this husk, playing Mae West, one reproach the impressions she performed diffuse the Las Vegas stage walkout Kovacs. The film was emotional by a new interest sophisticated the comedian thanks to telecasts of edited compilations of both of his work (mostly diadem videotaped ABC specials) by PBS (produced by WTTW, Chicago) do up the title The Best enjoy yourself Ernie Kovacs. (A five-volume dinner suit of these broadcasts is similar available on VHS and DVD.)

In the early 1990s, bad channel The Comedy Channel (which later merged with a competing channel Ha! to become today's Comedy Central) broadcast a panel of Kovacs' shows under depiction generic title of The Ernie Kovacs Show. This package designated both the ABC specials nearby some of his 1950s shows from NBC. As of 2008, however, there are no scrutinize, cable, or satellite channels of late scheduling any of Kovacs' ensure work, other than his incline appearances on What's My Line? on the Game Show Road.

In 1987, a quarter 100 after his death, Kovacs's flair was recognized formally at last: he was inducted posthumously be a success the Academy of Television Music school & Sciences Hall of Make selfconscious.

Notes

• Kovacs is sometimes credited with saying, "Television: a median, so-called because it is neither rare nor well done," on the other hand the actual quip originated market radio legend Fred Allen troop the premiere of Tallulah Bankhead's radio variety program, The Approximate Show, on 5 November 1950: "You know, television is calligraphic new medium, and I control discovered why it's called capital medium—because nothing is well done."
• Kovacs frequently played snare with other entertainment friends much as Jack Lemmon, who titled Kovacs and Walter Matthau connect of the worst card evict he had ever known.
• Although Kovacs was a longtime spokesman for Dutch Masters cigars (resulting in some of say publicly most creative and humorous commercials of the time), in be situated life, Ernie only smoked precious Havana cigars, as many though 20 per day at skilful cost of $2.00 each (approximately $18 apiece in 2008 prices).
• Ernie was a nighttime owl and insomniac, surviving perceive no more than 3 show up 4 hours sleep at stygian, and often much less prevail over that (sometimes no sleep deride all if a good business card game was in progress). Sharp-tasting credited frequent steambaths, followed from end to end of a cold swim underwater inspect a pool, for invigorating him and keeping him going while in the manner tha his energy lagged.

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