o i figured out that gloria blondell. "honeybee" was gillis's wife. but we dont see her much and i think is called belle (at least in "bab's wedding") i dont recall any one ever calling her honeybee
can someone help me out with a few things? first, why isnt digby odell in any of the william bendix tv show episodes? in the radio series when digby does his part he says something and riley always asks whos that? shouldnt he already know who it is when he speaks? and in alot of episodes i watch at archive.org i dont see babs credited in the opening credits. instead it says gloria blondell as honeybee. who is honeybee? why no mention of babs? i think jackies gleasons riely was awful.
@malscott Marjorie Reynolds once said that the sponsors of the 1953-58 series decided that the character of O'Dell wasn't suitable for the new medium of television. Since the sponsors paid the bills, they got their way.
@TomBarrister thanks for your reply. i did see one very early episode where jackie gleason was riley. in that one digby odell has a part. the banter was exactly the same as on the radio..
I used to watch this show every week. This show was great. They don't make good shows like this anymore William Bendix was one of the best actors around. He is way above the actors today. Actors like Sean Penn as such can't compare to the older actors of the 1950s. That also goes double for Madonna. . She actually stinks as an actresses.
Is that George Fenneman doing the narration at the beginning? Filmed, with canned laughter. LOL. Oh well, he was very good in this part. Loved him in some of his movies like Lifeboat.
Talk about an actor being born to play a role! Hard to imagine anyone else as Chester A. Riley. Good thing he finally got out of those movie contracts that prohibited him from appearing in a TV show. The radio version is one of my favorite programs from the Golden Age of Radio. Never was able to see much of the TV version until now. THANKS for sharing this delightful "blast from the past" with us! You've made my day! :)
NBC desperately wanted William Bendix for a TV version of "THE LIFE OF RILEY" (he was forbidden by RKO to appear on TV in 1949; Jackie Gleason played "Riley" instead in the first version); when his movie contract ended in late 1952, they finally got him; Irving Brecher, the creator/producer of the radio and first TV series, leased the series' rights to the network for a 15 year period- they produced the Bendix TV series, which replaced "GULF PLAYHOUSE" in January 1953 on Fridays at 8:30pm(et).
Yeah! One of my favorite shows as a kid in the 50's
MrVants 4 months ago
o i figured out that gloria blondell. "honeybee" was gillis's wife. but we dont see her much and i think is called belle (at least in "bab's wedding") i dont recall any one ever calling her honeybee
malscott 1 year ago
can someone help me out with a few things? first, why isnt digby odell in any of the william bendix tv show episodes? in the radio series when digby does his part he says something and riley always asks whos that? shouldnt he already know who it is when he speaks? and in alot of episodes i watch at archive.org i dont see babs credited in the opening credits. instead it says gloria blondell as honeybee. who is honeybee? why no mention of babs? i think jackies gleasons riely was awful.
malscott 1 year ago
@malscott Marjorie Reynolds once said that the sponsors of the 1953-58 series decided that the character of O'Dell wasn't suitable for the new medium of television. Since the sponsors paid the bills, they got their way.
TomBarrister 3 months ago
@TomBarrister thanks for your reply. i did see one very early episode where jackie gleason was riley. in that one digby odell has a part. the banter was exactly the same as on the radio..
malscott 3 months ago
I used to watch this show every week. This show was great. They don't make good shows like this anymore William Bendix was one of the best actors around. He is way above the actors today. Actors like Sean Penn as such can't compare to the older actors of the 1950s. That also goes double for Madonna. . She actually stinks as an actresses.
trayguy 1 year ago
Is that George Fenneman doing the narration at the beginning? Filmed, with canned laughter. LOL. Oh well, he was very good in this part. Loved him in some of his movies like Lifeboat.
keca1430 1 year ago
Yes, that's Fenneman, who had announcing duties for several NBC shows.
TomBarrister 3 months ago
LOL he reminds me of Al Bundy.
Scorpiofootlvr 1 year ago
look at that smile bill bendix and his wife said he was just like riley he wasnt acting
mavivirgie 1 year ago
Talk about an actor being born to play a role! Hard to imagine anyone else as Chester A. Riley. Good thing he finally got out of those movie contracts that prohibited him from appearing in a TV show. The radio version is one of my favorite programs from the Golden Age of Radio. Never was able to see much of the TV version until now. THANKS for sharing this delightful "blast from the past" with us! You've made my day! :)
JubalCalif 2 years ago
William Bendix was one radio star who translated great to TV with that crazy mug.
MCWEDS 2 years ago
CLASSIC!
LOLFanme 2 years ago
NBC desperately wanted William Bendix for a TV version of "THE LIFE OF RILEY" (he was forbidden by RKO to appear on TV in 1949; Jackie Gleason played "Riley" instead in the first version); when his movie contract ended in late 1952, they finally got him; Irving Brecher, the creator/producer of the radio and first TV series, leased the series' rights to the network for a 15 year period- they produced the Bendix TV series, which replaced "GULF PLAYHOUSE" in January 1953 on Fridays at 8:30pm(et).
fromthesidelines 2 years ago