Jerry Lester

Jerry Lester, born Lester J. Goldberg on February 16, 1910, in Chicago, Illinois, was an American comedian, singer, and performer whose work spanned vaudeville, Broadway, radio, film, and television. He died on March 23, 1995, in Miami, Florida. His father was a music critic. As a young person, Lester competed in dance contests and performed in various venues before graduating from Northwestern University, after which he performed in music halls and nightclubs across the country.

Lester's stage career brought him to Broadway between 1940 and 1963, with credits including the musical Beat the Band, the musical Jackpot, the revue Earl Carroll's Vanities, and A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum. In the Forum production, he first played the lead role of the slave Pseudolus in a road company before replacing Zero Mostel in the Broadway production. A CBS radio program starring Lester debuted on July 25, 1943, and he also appeared in Hollywood films during the 1940s.

Lester's most historically significant contribution came in television. After viewers responded positively to a guest appearance on an early television talk show, NBC president Pat Weaver invited him to co-host Broadway Open House, a late-night program whose originally scheduled host, Don Hornsby, died of poliomyelitis two weeks before the premiere. To take the position, Lester left his role as host of Cavalcade of Stars on the DuMont Television Network, where he had replaced Jack Carter in 1950; Jackie Gleason was subsequently hired as his replacement, and the program was eventually renamed The Jackie Gleason Show.

Broadway Open House premiered in May 1950, with Lester hosting three nights per week and Morey Amsterdam hosting two. Lester eventually became the show's sole emcee. The program is recognized as the first network late-night television show, and its success demonstrated the viability of late-night programming, contributing to the creation of the Tonight Show. The show also helped launch the careers of Steve Allen, Jack Paar, and Johnny Carson, each of whom later hosted the Tonight Show. Cast member Dagmar became such a prominent figure on the program that she overshadowed Lester, and he left the show in May 1951.

In 1952, Lester appeared frequently as a panelist on the ABC-TV game show The Name's the Same. The following year he hosted The Jerry Lester Show, an afternoon program on ABC-TV. Later in the 1950s, he appeared as a regular on Pantomime Quiz and on variety programs including Saturday Night Dance Party. In 1959, he relocated to Los Angeles and hosted a local late-night comedy and musical variety show on KTTV. He also played the role of Mike Firpo in the comedy Odds and Evens. Lester's brother was actor and comedian Buddy Lester, and he had three children. Afflicted with Alzheimer's disease beginning in 1975, he retired from show business after the condition made it difficult to memorize his nightclub material.