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1952 1953 Bowman Radio & TV Stars of NBC #23 Jan Murray Game show see scan
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1952 1953 Bowman Radio & TV Stars of NBC #23 Jan Murray Game show see scan70 year old card with issues...
Jan Murray
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For the Brookside character Jan Murray, see
List of Brookside characters
.
For other people named Jan Murray, see
Jan Murray (disambiguation)
.
Jan Murray
Murray in 1961
Born
Murray Janofsky
October 4, 1916
New York City
, U.S.
Died
July 2, 2006 (aged 89)
Beverly Hills, California
, U.S.
Resting place
Hillside Memorial Park Cemetery
,
Culver City, California
Occupation
Actor, stand-up comedian, game show host
Years active
1951–1989
Spouse(s)
Pearl Cohen
(
m.
1939, divorced)
Kathleen (Toni) Mann
(
m.
1949)
Children
4
With
Micki Marlo
on
The Jan Murray Show
(1961)
Jan Murray
(born
Murray Janofsky
; October 4, 1916 – July 2, 2006) was an American
stand-up comedian
, actor, and game show host who originally made his name on the
Borscht Belt
and later was known for his frequent television appearances over several decades.
Early life
[
edit
]
Murray was born in the
Bronx
borough of New York City to Jewish parents. His interest in comedy began during his childhood, when he would often act out comedy routines he had seen at the local theatre for his bedridden mother.
[1]
Career
[
edit
]
Murray began performing on the
vaudeville
stage at the age of 18. During the 1930s, he entertained at the "
Borscht Belt
"
Catskills
resorts popular with Jewish vacationers. In the 1940s and early 1950s, he became a
Las Vegas
marquee
performer, including headlining at the
Flamingo Hotel
during its first year of operation.
[2]
Starting in the late 1940s, Murray moved into television, appearing several times on
Texaco Star Theater
hosted by
Milton Berle
, and later as a guest on comedy/ variety programs hosted by
Jerry Lewis
,
Steve Allen
,
Garry Moore
,
Dean Martin
, and
Jackie Gleason
, among others. During the 1950s and 1960s, he made numerous appearances on
The Ed Sullivan Show
,
The Tonight Show
(including several as guest host), and
The Joey Bishop Show
(including several as guest host). He co-hosted the annual West Coast
Chabad Lubavitch
telethon for eighteen years.
[1]
In the 1950s and early 1960s, Murray hosted a number of TV
game shows
such as
Blind Date
(DuMont, 1953),
Dollar a Second
(1953–1957), his creation
Treasure Hunt
(1956–1959),
Charge Account
(also known as
The Jan Murray Show
, 1960–1962), and
Chain Letter
(1966).
[3]
Between 1966 and 1980, he was a regular panelist on
The Hollywood Squares
, appearing in nearly 250 episodes. He appeared as a participant on many game shows that featured celebrities, including
Funny You Should Ask
,
Match Game
,
Celebrity Bowling
,
Celebrity Sweepstakes
, and
Break the Bank
(1976).
From the 1960s through the 1980s, Murray had acting roles in episodes of many TV comedy and drama series, including
Dr. Kildare
,
The Lucy Show
,
The Man From U.N.C.L.E.
,
The Name of the Game
,
Love, American Style
,
Mannix
,
Kolchak: The Night Stalker
,
Fantasy Island
,
The Fall Guy
, and
Hardcastle and McCormick
. He appeared playing himself on a 1962 episode of the police comedy
Car 54, Where Are You?
and also played himself on a 1964 episode of the courtroom drama
The Defenders
.
In 1977, he appeared in the final episode of the
NBC
situation comedy
The Practice
. His last TV acting role was as "Uncle Raymond" on a 1989 episode of
My Two Dads
.
Murray also occasionally acted in films, including
Of Love and Desire
(1963),
Who Killed Teddy Bear?
(1965),
The Busy Body
(1967),
Tarzan and the Great River
(1967),
Thunder Alley
(1967),
A Man Called Dagger
(1968),
Which Way to the Front?
(1970),
The Day of the Wolves
(1971),
Roll, Freddy, Roll!
(1974
TV movie
),
The Dream Merchants
(1980
TV miniseries
), and
Mel Brooks
'
History of the World, Part I
(1981).
For his career achievements, Murray received a star on the
Hollywood Walk of Fame
in 1960.
[4]
In 1997, a Golden Palm Star on the
Palm Springs, California
,
Walk of Stars
was also dedicated to him.
[5]
Personal life
[
edit
]
Murray married Pearl Cohen in 1939, and had a child with her, but later divorced. In October 1949, he married Kathleen (Toni) Mann, had three children with her, and remained married to her until his death. Murray's production company, Jantone, took its name from their first names.
Murray was an avid golfer and had many fellow comedians as partners. Among them were
Jack Carter
,
Jerry Lewis
,
Joey Bishop
and others, from whom he created comedy routines often related at various golf charity events. He chaired the Comedians' Golf Classic for several years, held both in New York and California.
Murray retired from show business at the age of 83, as he felt his
asthma
was affecting his timing. He died at the age of 89 in
Beverly Hills, California
, on July 2, 2006. He was buried at the
Hillside Memorial Park Cemetery
in
Culver City, California
.
[6]
Partial filmography
[
edit
]
Of Love and Desire
(1963) – Pete Madsen
Who Killed Teddy Bear?
(1965) – Lt. Dave Madden
The Busy Body
(1967) – Murray Foster
Tarzan and the Great River
(1967) – Captain Sam Bishop
Thunder Alley
(1967) – Pete Madsen
A Man Called Dagger
(1968, filmed in 1966) – Rudolph Koffman / Hans Leitel
The Angry Breed
(1968) – Mori Thompson
Which Way to the Front?
(1970) – Sid Hackle
The Day of the Wolves
(1971) – No. 1
Kolchak: The Night Stalker
(1974) – Ichabod Grace
History of the World, Part I
(1981) – Nothing Vendor – The French Revolution