No Ad-libbing??

[Jack Benny]

...Jack cuts him off.

That's something we don't talk about much. Jack was really quite adept at cutting people off when they were adlibbing and he didn't like where they were going. In the early days he also often seemed to do this during the commercials. When there was a straight commercial Jack would often mimic the announcers words so you couldn't make out what was being said or to speed up the commercial. It felt like jack was indicating that if they weren't going to do a funny commercial, then I'm just going to wreck the whole thing. It's always come across as strange to me.

[Brad from Georgia]

...Jack cuts him off.

That's something we don't talk about much. Jack was really quite adept at cutting people off when they were adlibbing and he didn't like where they were going. ....

I can remember several times when Jack said "Lookit, just read what's on the page," or words to that effect--he never sounded nasty, just his usual exasperated persona, but I can imagine him glaring at the offender while keeping his voice relatively mild. I just listened to the episode in which the skit was "Road to Bali," with Bob Hope as a guest star, and I cannot remotely imagine that Hope was sticking to the script--though he claimed that they'd had three rehearsals and he had to call his own writers in to get any funny lines. Jack, who began the skit playing Hope's role, is relegated to the role of the octopus, and he seems to give up on reining in Hope. Gary Crosby, oddly enough, was cast as his brother Bing--though his only lines were repeated renditions the first couple of lines of "Where the Blue of the Night Meets the Gold of the Day" with a particularly lame whisling passage as the end. Can't tell if it's a real ad-lib or not, but when Gary first whistles, Jack murmurs, "I KNEW there was something Bing could do that he couldn't!" And later Hope cautions Gary, "Watch the low notes, brother." I think I can hear Gary laughing after both, which leads me to think that both Jack and Hope extemporized the lines.

[Maxwell]

Gary Crosby, oddly enough, was cast as his brother Bing--

Bob. Gary was Bing's son. I only mention this because Bob is the only Crosby I've ever seen in person.

[scottp]

He's right, Gary is a son.
But after Bob Crosby and his Bobcats, there could have been Gary Crosby and his .... Garanimals!

[Brad from Georgia]

You're absolutely right, of course--what did it? In another show, Bob had complained that of all his five children, "Not one of them sings like Gary." Brain-slip.

[Maxwell]

Brad, I knew you knew that. I just wanted to brag that I'd actually seen Bob live. It was shortly after Gary's book, and he wasn't very happy about the way Gary portrayed Bing.

[Brad from Georgia]

I just listened to the last show of the 1944-45 season. Early on, there's an exchange with Phil; Jack has just said that everyone will be back next year, same time, same station (Mary: "Same salary"), and Phil says he'll have an additional musician--he's hiring a trifingelist. Jack objects that there's no such thing as a trifingel, so there can't be any such musician as a trifingelist. Phil says, "I know, I know, but the union says you gotta have one."

Later, hamonica-ist Larry Adler is Jack's guest, and Jack asks him if he's brought his harmonica.

Larry: Yes, and I also brought this musical instrument which I just invented. It's made from a comb, tissue paper, and a burnt-out light bulb.

Jack: What is it?

Larry: I call it a trifingel.

Jack: So that's what one of those is! It's made from a comb, tissue paper, and a light bulb--

Larry: Sixty-watt.

Jack: That isn't even in here. He just made that up. I hate when people ad-lib like that. It louses up the timing and makes us run late. Sixty-watt light bulb. You know, if that was funny, we'd have written it in there. Just read what's on the page.

Jack's tone made it clear that he wasn't really chewing out his guest, and of course the audience was laughing because Jack's rant was far longer than the "sixty watt" ad lib.

[Moose Hatrack]

Jack's peeved defense of the script is consistent with his legendary support of his writers... and his own instinctive knowledge of "what's funny"

[Hank the All-Nite DJ]

Heard a probable ad-lib today that totally killed the larger gag it was a part of

Mary: You've heard me talk about Blanche, you know, the girl at the lingerie counter?
Phil: Oui.
[mild amount of audience laughter]
Mary: Well, I'm her summer replacement.
[no audience reaction]
Jack: Well, that joke was shot if I ever heard...

1952-05-25 | Jack prepares for his trip to London

[Hank the All-Nite DJ]

May 6, 1951 - Jack Reads 'I Was Shanghaied'

Phil has just told a story about him making a suggestion at a PTA meeting to remodel the cocktail bar in the school cafeteria.

Jack: Phil...Phil, you made a suggestion like that?
Phil: Yeah! I'm not worried about this tar, but how do you get these feathers off?
Jack: Oh, so that's what it was. I thought you were going where the wild goose goes.
[laughter]
Phil: Hey, that's very funny, look I gotta run along now.
[uproarious laughter]
Phil: I'm sorry I can't hear more of that.
[Jack cracks up very audibly]

Right after that, Jack mistakes Remley for a pile of laundry. When he asks Phil why there are two straps around him, Phil replies that it's easier to carry him.

Jack: Oh yes. Look, he's still got those labels from the time we were in London.
Phil: Now, there you go again! So long, Jackson!
Jack: Goodbye, Phil!

Jack lets out one of the best laughs I've ever heard after Phil's line and keeps chuckling as he says goodbye.