Whatever happened to the variety show? Where today can you see acts like Senior Wences ('sawrrright? 'SAWRRRIGHT!); the guy who spun plates on fiber-glass poles to the tune of Khachaturian's "Neighbor's Dance"; the harmonica group who dressed in liederhosen and the midget went around biting everyone in the knee when he got kneed out by the other performers; the guy who tried to get his dog to jump through the hoop and the dog, instead, would slowly droop to the floor anemically; Carl Ballantine, the magician who had everything go wrong in his magic act; all those comedians and impressionists; the juggling acts; the acrobat acts; and a plethora of other folks who did acts in nightclubs and show rooms all over America? This was the place. We didn't get Ed Sullivan in our town during my early years, but we DID get the Hollywood Palace - on Saturday nights at 9 p.m. - just before "The Outer Limits" aired at 10 p.m.
The theme song was "Put On a Happy Face," played brightly by an off-stage orchestra (originally led by Les Brown). It was a pre-recorded show with a live audience, much like Ed Sullivan, except it had several guest hosts, largely consisting of Bing Crosby and Don Adams.
I remember it as the introduction of Raquel Welch to America. Raquel would come out each week and place a placard on an easel introducing the next act. If I'm not mistaken, she began on the show coming out in something akin to a Bunny suit (as in Playboy Bunny outfit minus the ears) with dark stockings? Anyway, I miss these types of shows. Steve Harvey is the closest thing to this type of show and it's a shame. It's just not "all that" in comparison to "The Hollywood Palace."
