What's My Line? - Bennett Cerf hosts

[@IceSkater8491]

Bennett Cerf did a good job on his first time out. He kept things under control and moving along. Not an easy thing to do!

[@fintan3563]

I love this program! ❤️

[@englishcountryside4581]

Not only are these episodes fun; I learn of people I never heard of before.

[@zapkvr]

What a delight to see Caesar in this format. And Mr Cerf was a sheer delight. Nice

[@telebob5983]

Seeing both Cesar Romero and Ernie Kovacs here reminds me that both appeared about two years after this episode in ABC's Take A Good Look, only with Ernie as the regular host/moderator.

[@1122DLAN]

Bless you for downloading this because I have been looking this for a long time!

[@calvinsweet3400]

This whole panel, including John Daley, are so genuine, well mannered, fun to watch. John is a magnificent moderator, but it was fun watching Bennett fill in.

[@LANCSKID]

Daly.

[@georgimihailov4906]

This whole panel, including John Daly, IS so genuine, well mannered, not are.

[@googoo-gjoob]

it was at THIS moment Bennett _truly_ appreciated John Charles Daly

[@randysills4418]

Arlene was such a sweetheart in complimenting Bennett. I would have enjoyed meeting her so much!

[@londonjeremiah8434]

Instablaster

[@nancymilawski1048]

I would have loved to meet them all. Including Martin Gabel 1😀😀

[@jetpilot3714]

Same here

[@faithmapstone9982]

Me too, I would have loved to have met her!⭐️⭐️⭐️

[@TSquare7741]

Her smiling eyes are so heartwarming.

[@gingerhiser7312]

Bennett learns that hosting is more difficult than it looks.

[@georgimihailov4906]

Mostly because of Kovacs.

[@SweetChicagoGator]

Ernie Kovacs is quite the sarcastic twat !! 😅

[@bookwoman53]

This is a fun program. My husband doesn’t understand what I see in this black & white, old school, formal show. My grandfather loved quiz shows and so do I.

[@keithnaylor1981]

Arlene looked stunning!!!

[@LANCSKID]

Yes, you got that right, stunning.

[@antoinettewitt2098]

Looking at these old shows gives u insight into how our culture has changed. People r not as mannerly & respectful now.

[@trainliker100]

Henry J. Kaiser made a huge contribution to the WWII effort by completely changing how ships could be built. Using ideas for assembly and production line techniques he learned by talking with Henry Ford, he had pre-made sections brought together for a final assembly. In one publicity effort, they were able to make a ship in just four days. These were cargo ships famously called the "liberty ships" and Kaiser built 2,710 of them. On average, 3 ships every two days (in 18 shipyards). Remarkable. Many people at the time this show aired would have been very familiar with that. Today, not so much. People today are more likely to know of "Kaiser Permanente" which he started with his foundation.

[@chope6786]

I had never heard of him, but I did wonder if he had anything to do with Kaiser Permanente!

[@johnsiebelink8790]

Mr. Cameron was nice enough to give each of the panelists toothpicks! How generous of him

[@RonGerstein-tf5tp]

One toothpick for each panelist, so 4 toothpicks, costing $0.001 .

[@mitchweiner]

Bennett did a fine job. He wasn't as exuberant as John but he kept the show moving.

[@KayBarsotti]

John, being so easy to understand is hard act to follow

[@mikesaunders4775]

To the manner born , Bennett Cerf was impeccable .

[@hare7777]

This was cute. Bennett is obviously no John Daly, but he gave it a good try. Especially with Ernie and even Dorothy giving him a bit of a hard time. Pretty amazing to see someone like Henry Kaiser show up. And Bennett was right, Kaiser Permanente and the Kaiser Family Foundation are still well known today.

[@TheEmp48]

Bennett did a FANTASTIC JOB 💯👏

[@norelcopc2431]

Cesar Romero was a real "joker".

[@jackrobinson5974]

Ernie Kovac.

[@ivangranger8494]

Jack Robinson The Abraham Lincoln, comment was great, by Ernie. We lost him too soon. I will always remember his part in the movie, 'Bell, Book, and Candle' With Kim Novak and James Stewart. Hermaine Gingold was in it, also. Caesar, was the best 'Batman,' Joker.

[@obamna666]

Henry J. Kaiser isn’t well known today, but his name has gone down in history in the form of his foundation!

[@shuroom57]

Keeping a low profile these days.

[@sandrageorge3488]

Bennett did such a wonderful job!

[@randysills4418]

I think that Bennett did a pretty good job. This was a first time effort, and I believe he did well.

[@cresentltd]

You can tell Bennett was very nervous hosting this show.

[@AllenMQuinn]

Well who can blame him? How could anyone fill John Dalys shoes. I think John Daly is the best Television Host of all time. That's just my personal opinion. Always so quick on the draw.

[@SweetChicagoGator]

Pleasant surprise to see Bennett Cerf be temporary moderator !!

[@sportsmedia25]

Bennett loved the pretty ladies. I like how he thinked

[@MrMatteNWk]

And Cesar Romero on the other hand? Let's just say orange wedges were involved.

[@grandexandi]

It would be great to see arlene and dorothy hosting too, it would also be really interesting to have john on the panel! Has this ever happened?

[@suible]

No

[@dianepowers9643]

That would have been cool to see

[@davidevans3175]

Fun to see this, and no offense to Bennett who did his best, but you really see how good John Daly is at this job when someone else is doing it.

[@soulierinvestments]

John Daly made moderating WML look so effortless. This broadcast illustrates it takes work and talent to time a live unrehearsed program while adding witty comments off the point of your head. Plus those explanations that give neither too much info or too little while baffling the panel and delighting the audience. Bennett Cerf is . . . well, OK. He is a publisher, though; panel moderating is not exactly in his job description.

[@Celisar1]

soulierinvestments I think it doesn’t take much to be a really good moderator of this show in particular. The panel is just so great reg. Wit, intelligence and funny banter that Daly mostly just had to laugh along.

[@gingerhiser7312]

I knew Julie London only from Emergency! She was gorgeous.

[@bramlintrent1145]

I'm sure it wasn't at all easy for Mr. Cerf to host the show. There's an episode in which Miss Kilgallen is the Mystery Guest, and she tells the panelists afterwards that she was extremely nervous being on the show in a position other than her normal function. Mr. Cerf was probably experiencing the same phenomenon as host.

[@Celisar1]

Bramlin Trent Mrs. Kilgallen.

[@suible]

@@Celisar1 actually, Miss Kilgallen. Her husband's last name was Kollmar. Socially, she was Mrs. Kollmar. Professionally, Miss Kilgallen.

[@Cris43130]

I'm a little surprised that Bennett dismissed Mr. Daly's trademark formality and addressed the panelists by their first names.

[@Celisar1]

Cris43130 It would have been a bit ridiculous to suddenly call them by their family name.

[@kenlieberman4215]

At the time Kaiser was best known for aluminum, but nowadays its best known for the healthcare company originally created for his own employees.

[@RonGerstein-tf5tp]

Kaiser built cars from 1946 on so the public knew about Kaiser cars

[@tommoore3586]

Bring back what’s my line 😅

[@LANCSKID]

These days it would be called ‘Let’s All Snort A Line’.

[@fever_spike]

OMG BENNETT I’M SO PROUD OF YOU 😭👏🏻♥️

[@soulierinvestments]

Fall 1957: Goodson-Todman hired Ernie Kovac as guest panelist for 10 out of 13 weeks auditioning him as the 4th panelist after Fred Allen died. Kovacs was on the verge of becoming hot hot stuff on early TV comedy; he did not want to be tied to a game show that was 3/4ths of the time played straight. His questioning of industrialist Henry J Kaiser illustrates why the producers seriously considered him as a panelist. Would the president of Toyota ever appear on a game show today??

[@tommoore3586]

This was an amazing program and everyone was courteous and polite 🙏☘️Even our Eamon Andrews was a Host on what’s my line

[@larchmontmark1]

While of course we miss John, I had my biggest laugh ever on any What's My Line with Ernie's question at 15:44. (Best to start listening for it at 15:29 to get the context....)

[@shuroom57]

I too think it's the funniest remark ever on What's My Line! Ernie Kovacs was the spearhead of the new comedy movement of the 1960's, apolitical division. If David Letterman never saw an Ernie Kovacs appearance, I'll eat my shoe.

[@ZanHecht]

The Chrysler guess for Henry J Kaiser wasn't too far off, as Kaiser Motors bought Willys (the original manufacturer of the Jeep) and was later renamed Kaiser Jeep. When Kaiser got out of the auto business, Jeep was sold to AMC who later sold it to Chrysler.

[@Karen-nn6kg]

Bakelite toothpicks? Cool! I can carry them in my Bakelite purses while wearing my Bakelite bracelets.

[@BecentiComposer]

7:05 she was checking her FB feed

[@snowden67]

I have noticed Arlene usually speaks of Bennett Cerf in more glowing tones than she does of her own husband, Martin Gabel

[@RonGerstein-tf5tp]

When playing the JOKER on Batman on ABC, Cesar Romero never shaved off his moustache but applird all the make up on top of his moustache.

[@williamelgin6873]

When I was young our neighbors had a Henry J.

[@SweetChicagoGator]

Bennett did a good job ! 💟🤠

[@fanboy2015]

They still had time for Julie London! Look at all the time after that. Mr. Daly would at times just say "folks we don't have much time left, good night from What's My Line." He would skip all the good-byes. Producers should have told Bennet to keep going.

[@chope6786]

Bennett was surely nervous, though he covered it well! But it sure shows by contrast how much flavor and joy John Daly brought in that seat over the years! Also I admit I have never heard of Henry Kaiser, though he may have gone down in history in the industry arena. The Hawaiian Village is still on Waikiki Beach although I think it’s obviously been updated and is now owned by Hilton?

[@observerguy5031]

In an oral history interview many years later, Bennett admitted his performance as the guest moderator was pretty bad. He never did it again. In the 3 other times WML needed a guest moderator they used Clifton Fadiman and British WML host Eamonn Andrews (twice).

[@AllenMQuinn]

Well, when you go from being a panelist who asks questions and has brief dialogue to running the entire show, it can't be easy. Think he's being too hard on himself. He did his best for someone who has never hosted.

[@theblake5356]

Uh.... NO. He guest hosted the very next week and then again in 1961.

[@Celisar1]

Observer Guy why on earth did they solely consider men when there were two absolutely brilliant women directly in front of their nose?

[@Celisar1]

Observer Guy PS And Arlene had already worked as a host before.

[@wholeNwon]

Front and back, not bow and stern but Kaiser made a huge contribution to allied victory.

[@PREGO1966]

True, but Wally Bruner and Larry Blyden kept it alive for my generation after this version ended

[@caroler01]

Romero. “Ocean’s Eleven”.

[@lorihansen8674]

"Improves one's appearance--" only in terms of removing food from teeth. If it's hanging out of one's mouth, not so much.

[@1122DLAN]

i believe Arlene has in this series with John, but John has never ever sat on the panel.

[@LANCSKID]

The ladies’ bare-shoulders look always does it for me. Julie London … 👨‍🎓❤

[@susanrutherford866]

You did well bennett not an easy job

[@John-ih2bx]

Amazing to have two folks on the show that must compete about who is the the most corrupt. Bennett Cerf or Kaiser. What Kaiser did was fantastic in WWII for building ships so quickly. Cerf was part of The Famous Writers School, Kaiser's intentions for Kaiser Permanente, discussing its objective with Nixon (on the infamous tapes), were amazing. Puts an unfortunate light on them. I cannot imagine folks complementing Cerf as a host or a panelist. He must have been very hard to work with if the wonderful John Daly had to put him in his place at times, and done so politely (Daly was phenomenal). Cerf constanting tried to prove he was right, that he was given the wrong answers to his questions, and with his horrible Westchester accent, specifically done to be an elite. His comments (in the press) about his involvement in The Famous Writers School scam were infamous. Thank you for the upload. Watching such classics is a double-edged Xacto knife. Like watching the episode about the Tonkin Gulf Incident, and now knowing that the information on the show was "erroneous" (no fault of the show). Such history. The ethics of John Daly and most of the panelists were exemplary.

[@glenbinnie2086]

Free toothpicks for the panel!

[@tporchia7751]

Funny looking dress Dorothy has on

[@shuroom57]

Just to keep up with Ernie Kovacs!

[@kateym7836]

I liked Bennett better as he didn’t give away as much info to help panel guess. He let the guest give the answers. I felt Mr Daly in some shows made it more about him.

[@curtcollett2893]

I would like to have seen Garry Moore try hosting also.

[@soulierinvestments]

You can't see it, but Arlene Francis was recovering from a broken foot/ankle. She was notoriously accident prone in the period 1952 - 1963: eye injuries, on crutches for weeks here, arm in a sling for weeks after an auto accident, her housekeeper accidentally killed a tourist when she knocked a barbell out the window of the Gabel townhouse. This broadcast also illustrates that Kovacs could be a creative pain in the you know what. Cerf sometimes looks as if he wants to slap him.

[@augerontgen8240]

At least Bennet made it.

[@bigred997]

time management would have been much better if kovacs hadn't been so disruptive. cerf did the best he could to deflect that nonsense without blowing up.

[@jaysmith1408]

bigred997 General Motors? 🤣

[@shuroom57]

Gotta have SOME levity, Sarge!

[@caroler01]

Cerf was a pain in the butt. After the way the show treated Hal Block, I have lost some appreciation for the show.

[@Smuley_ROA]

where is the volume??? no volume!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[@travis7310]

It must just be you. Plenty of volume here!

[@mitchweiner]

I had to switch earphones.

[@AventuraLuver]

.They should have used Dorothy instead/

[@trickydick6152]

Why not Arlene?

[@Sspiral1]

Sure! Or Arlene

[@grandexandi]

Thanks, but it could have been a lot shorter, lol

[@jimamato456]

I heard Cesar Romero was paid in orange wedges for his appearance.

[@mattmammone2338]

there ws a lot of drinking going on and pill taking before bed. so Im not surprised if she was a lil clumsy because of that, if she did drink. . Jackie Gleason and Art Carney were always swiggin something behind the set of the honeymooners. 50's tv....fun fun fun.

[@andrewgilmore7669]

He did these shows because he needed the money- he would have been the first to admit that he was out of his element. His comic genius was on his own shows which consisted primarily of *visual* humor.

[@libertyann439]

Andrew Gilmore Who are you referring to ?

[@okjoe5561]

@@libertyann439 Ernie Kovacs.

[@rickcharles5064]

Plastic toothpicks? That went over like a lead balloon. Was Dorothy a little drunk this night?

[@carlfalt174]

Remember the 'chairman' of the board wasn't there that night to be the MC.

[@shuroom57]

Without a breathalyzer test, we may never know.

[@LANCSKID]

A little? Never … a little.

[@georgecherucheril9947]

Julie London was stunning!

[@LANCSKID]

Cerf sounds like a chipmunk …

[@richardrice8076]

Kaiser automobile maker of the Manhatten and the Kaiser Darren. Another in the long line of orphan cars.

[@jmccracken1963]

In short: No, no, and no.

[@JohnParks-zc1pn]

7:05. The booze and pills were causing her to be sleepy?

[@TunguskaTerma]

Bakelite toothpicks eh

[@jakelocker2394]

Are you Abraham Lincoln? I didn't hear the answer! Is he or isn't he?! Was he serious?

[@stonent]

+Jake Locker It's Ernie Kovaks. He's a bit over the top.

[@shuroom57]

Are you?

[@timothyball7502]

6-9-2023. What a super show. I want to see it done for 2023-24. Host Jim Carrey or Demi Lovato, born Albuquerque, 8-20-1992. Yes please some rich corporation do this!!!!!!!!!!!

[@toddvaughan3709]

Dixie McCall

[@kenyongray2615]

Julie London could not be appreciated in black and white. She was gorgeous. Arlene Francis was always classy. Nothing personal against Ernie Kovacs but he was not a good panelist.

[@shirleymccartney5304]

John Way ne

[@tonycevallos7513]

I never liked Ernie Kovacs

[@allenlewites2541]

am i the only one that thinks john charles was not very good, never asked the good questions, always seemed flustered with mystery guest