What's My Line? - Fred Allen's final show - Emmett Kelly (Mar 11, 1956) [incomplete]

[@karlakor]

Dorothy and Arlene look at Emmett Kelly with such genuine affection and delight after unmasking and as he was leaving. It was heartwarming to see the effect Emmett Kelly had on people.

[@MrJoeybabe25]

It is eerie that the saddest man (Kelly) is on the week before Fred Allen's death.

[@janfromnycsavesmoney8723]

Every one had such class and dignity. I truly love watching these shows! TFS!

It's amazing. Fred looks so well in this episode. It just goes to show that one can never tell when one's life is gonna end.

[@wildboar7473]

same thing as Dorothy Kilgallen, or princess Diana....

[@vicschauberger2737]

Maybe the reason he looks so good is that this is not his last episode .

[@KebabMusicLtd]

This was broadcast on 11 March 1956 and he died on 17 March, almost one week later. During this episode, Bennett said to John, "John, John, Will you dress up like that next week" in reference to Emmett Kelly. Obviously not realising how insensitive he was being to poor Fred.

[@ToddSF]

It gives me pause to think that Fred Allen appeared on WML in this episode on March 11, 1956, and fully expected to be back the following week -- and, of course, his fellow panelists and Mr. Daly expected it, too. Then, on March 17, 1956, he had that fatal heart attack that no one anticipated. So often in life, our expectations and what really happens don't coincide, and as to life, well, there are just no guarantees. The barrier between life and death is simply more tenuous than we realize.

[@dovbarleib3256]

sad, very sad....

[@loissimmons6558]

+ToddSF 94109 No one is promised tomorrow. Or as the old Yiddish saying goes, "Man plans and God laughs."

[@alfredcelentano4153]

ToddSF 94109

[@kristabrewer9363]

@@loissimmons6558 I never heard that saying, but I like it

[@salvation4all313]

There is a guarantee to all who believe: Jesus Christ said, "I am telling you the truth, whoever believes in me has eternal life." (John 6:47) Bible

[@algoritmosalfredohipicasig7116]

I'm surprised they didn't mention Emmett Kelly spent many years as the unofficial mascot of the Brooklyn Dodgers (Bums). The King of Clowns retired in 1956 and a year later, his Dodgers moved to the left coast. Four years later, his little clown son took over the vocation, much to his father's dismay. I interviewed Jr. in 1988, when he was dedicated to working for non-profit organizations and found him very affable. (WML is my favorite KZbin channel. Thanks for the memories)

[@caitlinfitzpatrick836]

After Emmett Kelly's identity is revealed to the audience, Bennett asks John if he would come to next week's show looking like Mr. Kelly. John said he didn't think he could pull it off as well as he; however, with hindsight being 20/20, that was rather an eerie statement, for the entire panel would arrive at next week's show looking just as sad as Mr. Kelly after hearing of Fred's sudden passing.

[@gailjackson8941]

I hadn't thought of it like that, but you are so right. :(

[@5thcorps]

Brilliant observation

[@adrianathans8910]

As astute an observation as Fred himself.

[@teriannebeauchamp254]

Only to be repeated years later when Dorothy died

[@robertlworley]

I've been dreading this. Rest in peace Fred.

[@jacquelinebell6201]

Knowing in advance is horrible in some ways.

[@TimLeeSongs]

I admit I welled up when they said Goodnight Fred, not knowing it would be the last time :(

[@michaelr.1305]

The ladies always have such beautiful dresses an gowns . I can't remember them wearing them twice.

[@Gilbarwaters]

I enjoy watching the shows where Fred Allen appears more than any others. He makes me laugh all the time.

[@sdgakatbk]

I agree. I also like the ones with Steve Allen, but some of the other panel besides Dorothy, Arlene, and Bennett, I don't particularly care for.

[@ChristopherTate]

"Now just a minute, John!" Those are the BEST moments.

[@SuperWinterborn]

What a charming figure Emmett Kelly makes, and from his handwriting; no doubt about a very sharp and clear mind he has too!

[@Beson-SE]

I agree. I don't like clowns but I am willing to make an exception for Emmet Kelly, and his handwriting was a masterpiece.

[@loissimmons6558]

I also have never found silly clowns to be enjoyable or entertaining, but I do enjoy the sad hobo clowns.

[@robertsprouse9282]

I like clowns that demonstrate both melancholia, and euphoria, at the same time..

[@peternagy-im4be]

@@robertsprouse9282 the biggest clown now resides in the white house.

[@robertsprouse9282]

@@peternagy-im4be yep..its plural= CLOWNs..

[@anneroy4560]

Arlene looks especially lovely ... pleasant, beautiful, woman ... Kelly was a proper clown not one of the garish, alarming creatures one now sees ...

[@SorendeSelbyBowen]

Yes, he's a black-and-white clown. Even the clowns are nostalgia-tinged for the people who moan for the olde tymes.

[@robertjean5782]

Arlene was gorgeous 😊

[@KebabMusicLtd]

@@SorendeSelbyBowen Agreed. Some people take this longing for the halcyon days too far. The irony of Fred's passing is that people are still passing away today, only not quite as elegantly.

[@mianoxid1548]

I just read all the comments and someone asked how you know you are having a heart attack. It's pressure in your arm, stomach, the back, jaw, shortness of breath, feeling lightheaded. So not necessarily a sudden event, that's a cardiac arrest (heart suddenly stops). And remember many people ignore the symptoms for hours. So, there, if Fred can help save a life, then that's one more good thing he did. RIP

[@Finians_Mancave]

Allen died while out on his usual evening stroll, so he clearly didn't feel under the weather. Also, I think I read that his doctor gave him a clean bill of health just that day or the day before, and it turned out he had a blockage in one of the main heart arteries. Amazing how that couldn't be seen in those days, when now, it's not only fairly easily detected, but can often be treated in an outpatient procedure or minor surgery.

[@MrYfrank14]

where I work, hotel/resort, we have paramedics on staff. on more than one occasion, a guest will feel sick, doesn't know what it is but thinks it is minor, paramedic puts the EKG on them and tells them they just had a heart attack. many times the symptoms feel like something else.

[@joe-vz6hx]

sorry, but having had a heart attack, I can tell you first hand that it isn't necessarily any of those things, although you are right that it isn't necessarily a sudden, massive pain (that's the idiotic movies talking). mine was a rather moderate pain in my chest which I never dreamed was a heart attack almost until it was too late. I have also had a kidney stone and it was far (FAR) more painful. don't think "how painful it is equals how serious it is." wrong. if you have chest pains, esp if they repeat, GO TO ER IMMEDIATEY; DON'T BE A "TOUGH GUY" (which is another term for MORON). your "tough" attitude could kill you.

[@zapkvr]

I have family history so I'm especially careful. I'm quite fastidious about the risk factors.

[@dianawardrip5171]

@@Finians_Mancave Yes, a stent would have saved his life, unfortunately they weren’t available until the 1990’s. It was a hidden problem in those days, now easily found by a physician.

[@paulmcmurray3491]

I so miss Fred Allen.

[@shadowgirl8038]

Emmett Kelly was one who built his success truly on his raw and self made talent and efforts. A wonderful and Eunique man.

[@joelfogelsanger5773]

Emmett Kelly was one of the most beloved performers ever.

[@wyldebyll3089]

I learned about him as a child in the '50s from a book my mother gave me, she also told me about him. He's the definitive clown IMO.

[@johnrobinsoniii4028]

Mr. Emmett Kelly Jr.--THE MOST FAMOUS & GREATEST CLOWN IN THE WORLD!!!!!!!

[@tinisunblue]

But this was Emmett Kelly sr.

[@bigoldinosaur]

Emmett Kelley is considered one of the greatest clowns in history and is widely respected for his contributions to the art of clowning. On April 23, 1989, the very first group of clowns were inducted, they being Red Skelton, Lou Jacobs, Emmett Kelly, Mark Anthony, Felix Adler and Otto Griebling in a gala celebration that brought clown historians, fans and dignitaries to Delevan, Wisconsin.

[@Dallas-Nyberg]

Emmett Kelly..King of the clowns....his spotlight sweeping routine was great...

[@oakus8503]

Emmett Kelly-King of the clowns; his spotlight sweeping routine was great.

[@angelareitz5122]

@@oakus8503 Oakus 7 months ago Emmett Kelly-King of the clowns; his spotlight sweeping routine was great. 2

[@wchumphries]

What a shame that the rest of Fred's last show is gone.

[@dylanedrington4587]

wchumphries iam sure its possible we could find the rest of Episode.

[@juanettebutts9782]

If ANYBODY could do it, GARY could do it!! He's AMAZING!! Thanks bunches for posting these, Gary!!

[@ChadQuick270W]

As far as I know the missing segment with Dinah Shore is missing as it was used in the “What’s My Line at 25” special from 1975. Apparently several kinescopes or segments thereof were lost while making that special. 😢

[@jayterry9750]

I never liked Clowns or Puppets, saw Kelly at MSG and he gave me a paper flower so I LOVED HIM. Years later, really too old for "Trick-or-Treating", three of us dressed as him using burnt cork on our faces. We told people we were Emmett Kellyy's kids and got great response !!

[@kevinmarkey9441]

i had a job as a clown years ago in a shopping mall but i had to give it up as i thought everyone was laughing at me 😂😂

[@WildWildWest30000]

OMG I JUST REALIZED THE CLOWN TOY IN TOY STORY 3 WAS BASED ON EMMETT!

[@susanpaz7378]

Remembering America for what it once was.

[@TheCliffandPhilShow]

Fred was so brilliant.:)

[@carolv8450]

He seemed like a kind man.

[@MikeMc442]

@@carolv8450 WML proved to be the ideal TV platform for Fred's comic talent. Sadly, he was only with the show for two years.

[@magnificentfailure2390]

Emmett Kelly was one-of-a-kind. I'm not much of a clown fan, but I would love to have a painting of him as Weary Willie.

[@R.M.MacFru]

We had an Emmett Kelly doll when I was a kid. I think my older brother has custody of it.

[@ginnywithag5046]

Amazon has size 8"x10" for $10.00 and up to 24"x36" for $30.00 Brand is Walldeer Art.

[@DanSolo871]

Fred Allen was my first cousin twice removed. I’ve been doing some family research of late and though I was well aware of where he placed in my family I only now started exploring his celebrity. I just finished Much Ado About Me and will soon start Treadmill to Oblivion. It’s a shame he and Portland never had children. He was the original shock jock but was a true gentlemen and kind soul in person.

[@saran3214]

So Fred's parent was a sibling of your great grand parent? That is interesting.

[@DanSolo871]

@@saran3214 yes. When John Sullivan was a teenager (around 1910) he got a job at my great-grandfather’s piano shop (his Uncle Joe) only to quit when “Fred St James,” the Juggler was in demand for the Vaudeville circuit.

[@saran3214]

@@DanSolo871 Must be nice to have such a witty man in your family tree.

[@rmelin13231]

@@DanSolo871 That's strange - my grandfather made and tuned pianos in Cambridge at the same time (1905 and on), and I sometimes wondered if Fred Allen may have possibly worked with him. But the manufacturer my grandfather worked for was named Olson, so apparently not. (Also very much into family research).

[@annmcnitt8749]

Emmett Kelly was wonderful. ♥️

[@MrJking065]

This is when America had class. The Stars are so nice and the people who come on the show are always dressed so nice.

[@nonenone3427]

Mr. Kelly's dress would almost be considered "visionary" and "forward looking" in that most stars now dress more like he did.

[@mcbrion1951]

People LIKED each other back then. And on shows such as this, you saw it, especially on What's My Line, where the panel was unfailingly charming to ALL the guests, no matter their profession or line of work.

[@sansacro007]

Dinah Shore was on this episode, but the segment is lost :( Emmett Kelly, like Allen, would also die of a heart attack, but 23 years later, at age 80. In those days, heart attacks claimed the lives many, mostly men. When I was a child, it seemed all too common.

[@mianoxid1548]

Not to be morbid but Emmett Kelly, John Daly and Fred Allen all died of heart attacks. It's very sad, they just don't have celebrities of this caliber anymore. Miss them all. RIP.

[@gabesmith1933]

So did Bennett Cerf. His official cause of death reads natural causes but his son said in Bennett's memoir At Random that he died of a heart attack.

[@AllenFreemanMediaGuru]

How many of them smoked? I know John did.

[@thomasmartinscott]

I doubt Fred had any idea that he was leaving this world five days later. We all need to be ready. We can meet our Maker at ANY time. I hope he knew Jesus Christ.

[@kristabrewer9363]

@@AllenFreemanMediaGuru Exactly!! I didn't like Fred (but I obviously didn't wanna see him die)! but even still, it's not easy to feel sympathy for people who die, knowing that smoking is usually the cause of the death in some form or other. There are SO MANY people who could have lived another 30//40 years if they just gave up smoking!

[@jaymc5011]

At least he wasn’t murdered like Dorthy.

[@epaddon]

I think what happened is that Dinah's segment may have been irreparably damaged when the kinescopes were being studied for finding clips for the "What's My Line at 25" special that aired in 1975. This is how the 1954 episode with Martin and Lewis was lost leaving behind only the brief clip that was used in the special. There are other examples where clips used in the special are now missing from the original kinescope (a Woody Allen panel question in a 1963 show for instance). In 1975 they were still running these things on film projectors and making splices from the original element and while Dinah wasn't included in the final special, her appearance may have been under consideration in the round of clips not used in the special.

[@WhatsMyLine]

That's a good possibility too-- especially since, they would *undoubtedly* have been thinking of including segments from the last show with Fred Allen in that special.

[@loissimmons6558]

It is likely we we'll never know what happened to it after all this time, but this hypothesis makes as much sense as any. Many of the recent episodes didn't have a challenger after the mystery guest and if that had been the case this time, it would have been plausible that the MG part of the kinescope to the end of the episode had been damaged. But with the fourth segment intact, Dinah Shore's segment had to be lifted out of the rest of the kinescope. A related observation: a "kinescope" is so dated now that You Tube flags it as a spelling error.

[@robertjean5782]

Watching the Groucho show their was a commercial with Dinah Shore singing see the USA in a Chevrolet 😊

[@joncheskin]

Poor Fred had no idea what was about to happen to him. He seemed fit and cheerful on the show.

[@rodrigoarayap1995]

Fred spent almost his entire radio career battling the censors, who admitted to not understand his satirical humor. He also had a deep dislike of television during the early 1950s, but became more comfortable with the medium by this time.

[@dianawardrip5171]

Actually, a lot of fluid under his eyes, kidney’s, cardiac involvement.

[@suescherdel6278]

In my opinion, even if he knew his days were numbered, he would be his usual funny self. There was always something so very lovable, warm and genuine about him. Performing and comedy were what he did best. ☘️

[@poetcomic1]

Poor Emmett Kelly's son stole his act, performed it badly and gave him immense grief.

[@soulierinvestments]

1956 was the first year that Ringling Brothers Barnum and Bailey started performing in auditoriums instead of the tent. For one thing it was a lot cheaper and quicker to set up and take down. Safer too -- and RBBB had to be obsessive about safety given the money it and its underwriters had to pay out as a result of its 1944 circus tent fire in Hartford.

[@zapkvr]

Have you seen the museum at Sarasota? I would love to go there one day. It looks beautiful from the video. A wonderful piece of history.

[@sharonharrington3860]

Yes it is, and we are so glad the title surge of Helene did not damage the museum. Although the surge id wash a boat up on The Verandah of CA d Zan which faces the bay and damaged some of John ringling's Italian tiles

[@hmesser91]

John's 'my name is U.S. Treasury' joke deserved more!

[@KafkasUniversity]

Yeah, Emmett Kelly's demeanor was presciently perfect for Fred Allen's last episode.

[@enriquesanchez2001]

THE EPITOME of a CLOWN in my youth ♥♥♥♥ EMMETT KELLY

[@jasonbeard4713]

I cannot confirm this, BUT I have been informed by one who knows that as Dinah saved everything, her archives MAY have the complete episode.

[@gomphrena-beautifulflower-8043]

This show aired the day before my birthday! The day before my BIRTH day. Wondering if my mother was trying to maintain comfort while watching this show. :)

[@kentlewis987]

5 years and 1 day before I was born.

[@buckjohnson1119]

Quite possibly. If you were her first, she may have not realized what if any; her discomfort was building into.

[@Turandot29]

I loved Fred Allen’s droll and sly wit. I am sorry we lost him at such a young age.

[@robertjean5782]

Actually someone in their 60s was considered old, born in the late 1800s😢

[@davidarcudi230]

John was a master disassembler

[@dawngordon6750]

Rip Mr Allen

[@brycehongola2425]

Fred Allen is my favorite W. M. L. Panel member although they are all 😊

[@nickbigd]

Everyone’s handwriting seems more fluid and elegant back then

[@robertjean5782]

It cursive was required in school😊

[@gugurupurasudaikirai7620]

A rarely mentioned fact about Fred Allen. The Looney Tunes character Foghorn Leghorn was based on a character, Senator Claghorn, from Fred Allen's radio show from the 30s and 40s. RIP to a legend

[@mr.balloffur]

Poor Fred Allen died young

[@darrylbradshaw3527]

Fred Allen was only 61 when he had his fatal heart attack!

[@MikeMc442]

@@darrylbradshaw3527 Fred was halfway in age between Jack Benny (born 1894) and George Burns (1896). Had Fred lived as long as Jack, we'd have enjoyed his work into the mid 1970s. More of the baby boomers would have grown up with him as a familiar face and voice, as we did with Benny, Burns, Hope and their circle.

[@dkeat301]

I found it interesting how it was Fred Allen, who corrected Bennett Cerf on the home town of Jack Benny. This was right after the famed 'feud' the two entertainers supposedly had.

[@Sylvander1911]

But they were great friends in real life.

[@kentlewis987]

Ironically, this is the first episode I've watched with Fred.

[@lopa2828]

It's his last appearance on "What's my line" too 😢

[@Ctkare4k9]

I see Emmett Kelly and my mind goes immediately to the photo of him at the Hartford circus fire in 1944.💔💔

[@kennithumperovitch1312]

My lady has a ventriloquist Emmett Kelly doll. He was so funny. I met him when I was 8. He entertained us MD children.

[@rambleonfromhere8780]

Have you all noticed , everyone who signs in has beautiful handwriting?!!

[@nonenone3427]

Especially Mr. Kelly !

[@sandrageorge3488]

Most of the time.

[@christopherleodaniels7203]

I’m guessing people in the 50’s had much more daily practice.

[@javajuice3701]

I'm sure they were graded on Handwriting & or Penmanship. ( Big Chief- writing tablets starting in Kindergarten & gradually graduate upto College Rule binders/spiral or loose leaf paper.) Where today a keyboard to text, on mobile,laptop, P.C. & printers are used. My how things have changed. 😳

[@lestertm7944]

Not everyone, but Emit Kelly sure had.

[@27chambo]

This episode was filmed 16 days before my birth!

[@jacquelinebell6201]

That clown make-up was so good. He made me feel sad for him lol. 😢🤣Very talented.

[@davidphillips3058]

great tv show!

[@kennithumperovitch1312]

They are actors and had fathers at home. GOD is in their lives.

[@AllenFreemanMediaGuru]

“That covers a lot of ground” Depends on who--oh my!

[@gehlen52]

12 years earlier, the horribly sad photo of Emmett with a water bucket fighting the Hartford Big Top circus fire, in later years he said it is like a movie forever playing in his mind that he cannot turn off.

[@tumarbongrox6074]

This was a time when *NO ONE* gave any concern about their blood pressure or cholesterol! They all smoked cigarettes and cigars daily and consumed hard liquor socially and in private. Also hardly *ANYONE* exercised!

[@joe-vz6hx]

wow never thought I'd see Emmett Kelly talk (kind of)

[@bonnizajac8916]

A hero and a talented artist

[@palomavano4705]

Arlene Francis and especially John Daly are eloquent and articulate in the English language. İt is such a pleasure to listen to them speak.

[@preppysocks209]

The reference that John makes early in the show with respect to the fate of coins placed in mailboxes references Deputy Postmaster Stans. That would be Maurice Stans. Stans was later Nixon's Secretary of Commerce and then the finance chairman of Nixon's reelection campaign. Stans was convicted of violating federal campaign laws, but he denied having any knowledge or role in the Watergate scandal, and prosecutors were not able to prove that Stans had any role in the scandal, notwithstanding many suspicions of illegality on his part.

[@ruthwayneperry3097]

The ladies got more beautiful the older they got. ❤️❤️🌹🌹🌹

[@robertholmberg6485]

Even though he was before my time, I always loved Emnitt Kelly! HEY! WAUKESHA WISCONSIN!!!

[@robertholmberg6485]

Emmett Kelly! I hit the wrong keys! Why do smart phone keyboards have to be so tiny!

[@fallspring1033]

Sometimes I think John Daly talked just to hear himself talk. Love the show though.

[@josephryan680]

Fall Spring e

[@rowbygoren1830]

I kinda agree. Daly enjoyed being on camera and would often pad his comments just a little bit. I see it all the time. No complaints. Daly was a key part of the show’s success.

[@brunoantony3218]

It's part of his routine, not just to hear himself talk.

[@Tre404]

It is part of this brand of entertainment. Daly knew the audience loved when he would bedevil the panel in this way, so that is what he did. It was very, very funny and effective! It was certainly not about "hearing himself talk." His personality and demeanor prove this.

[@robertjean5782]

​@@Tre404I agree 💯 percent 😊

[@patriciamooney928]

Wonder what the "new" commercials Fred was singing in were about. Bennet Cerf brings it up at the end

[@Yowza78]

The second contestant had some really noticeable frosting in her hair. When did that particular style come into vogue? Was she on the vanguard?

[@GOLDVIOLINbowofdeath]

Fred WAS very clever. Cerf thought he was very clever

[@jonrudd4733]

I got to see him when I was a little boy!!

[@peternagy-im4be]

How absolutely splendid old chap.

[@donnawoodford6641]

I met Emmett Kelly once as a child. Interesting, EK was neither sad nor happy while signing autographs.

[@KebabMusicLtd]

I find it amazing that still today, 68 years after his passing, people are leaving messages here saying how sad it was. Not that I'm disputing the fact that it was sad at that time. But people, famous or not, pass away every day. For example, it is only a few days since the English actor Kenneth Cope passed:- Famous for: Randall and Hopkirk Deceased/My Friend the Ghost 1968/69 which was one of my favourite shows as a child. I guess people who see this episode of WML now and who are old enough to remember some of these old shows are reminded of a quaint old-world that seems to have died with these people. This seemed a much simpler time. But this was also a time when McCarthyism still held strong in the USA, or the Minamata Disease spread through Japan, or the Grand Canyon mid-Air Collision, or the Cali, Colombia Dynamite Disaster, or the Khan Yunis Massacre or Castro landing in Cuba. We tend to look at the past through our Rose-Tinted Glasses, but the problems faced in those days were no less deadly than they are today.

[@furmamafur2]

Little Miss 1565 Was identified in 1991. As the article is written... The little blonde girl became known as Little Miss 1565, the number given her at the morgue. Eleanor's identity remained a mystery until this spring, when Hartford Fire Lt. Rick Davey, whose nine-year investigation into the fire turned from hobby to obsession, revealed that Little Miss 1565 was Eleanor Cook.Jun 22, 1991

[@arthurharrison1345]

Fred looked terrible. Even though this is B&W, you could imagine that his complexion was pasty white.

[@hcombs0104]

I think you're right, I think he looks very tired. The wit is very much there, but he doesn't look good.

[@robertjean5782]

Fred always had a white skin color, he didn't get out much😮

[@franktheo2055]

A smile is a frown turned upside down,,, Emmett The Clown. Forgive the poetry I just had to go there once. 🍎🎭

[@robertjean5782]

😊

[@atis9061]

Aww his frown is so endearing 😢

[@PaulDA2000]

Before he introduced Emmett Kelly John Daly said they would have a famous mystery guest later on in the show. I looked quickly through the show and didn’t see any other mystery guest.

[@nonenone3427]

WOW, I never realized that and I have seen this episode quite a few times.

[@jackkomisar458]

The mystery guest was Dinah Shore. The segment of the show with Ms. Shore in it has been lost. Other commenters have speculated that it was removed from the kinescope to be used in the 25th anniversary show, but it was not included in that show and was later lost.

[@gwenrumer5796]

Q

[@umaryousafzai]

Very nice sharing

[@robertanderson2017]

No offense to fred, but he pretty much looked like that all the time

[@jmccracken1963]

What's here was posted a few years ago in three shorter segments. The poster said that the Dinah Short mystery-guest segment was not available anywhere.

[@WhatsMyLine]

That's what the imdb says too. It's a very strange case, though. There aren't a lot of examples of incomplete WML shows. Missing entirely, yes, but not incomplete. Best theory I've heard on this was suggested by a friend who speculated that they gave the mystery guest segment to Dinah upon request, which is something that Gil Fates has said that they did sometimes (and accounts for some of the missing shows). But still, I would have expected that they'd give her the whole show, and not spend the time and money to edit out her specific segment. I think we pretty much have to accept it's lost.

[@paulmccool378]

What's My Line? I understand that many of the original kinescopes were permanently damaged when they were cut up for the 25th anniversary show in '75.

[@WhatsMyLine]

Paul McCool Yes, that's true in many cases, but it's not the only reason for missing segments. Apparently another reason was that sometimes guests would request the films of their segments and the producers actually provided them, without making a duplicate copy first.

[@donbaker3735]

Who is Dinah Short ?

[@accomplice55]

@@donbaker3735 : I assume he meant Dinah Shore, as she was references in earlier comments.

[@johnheanue6684]

Emmett Kelly's Mom lived on Center street Bridgeport CT.

[@loissimmons6558]

This was the second contestant within about a month who came to NYC all the way from Waukesha, Wisconsin to appear on WML. The first one was the brewery guide for Pabst who said that she was happy with her work and didn't want to capitalize on her charming appearance and go to Hollywood.

[@hankpoth9681]

Lois Simmons And eleven weeks later was a gentleman from West Allis!

[@DieGroteske]

Do you remember which show that was?

[@loissimmons109]

@@DieGroteske It was the first guest on the Feb. 26, 1956 episode.

[@DieGroteske]

@@loissimmons109 Thanks!

[@numerical.methods]

This show was prophetic to the point of being spooky. Fred uses the word "fatal" referring to himself in this episode. Plus Emmett Kelly was frowning and severely downcast the entire time. Did Fred know what was coming? What say his friends, relatives and biographer?

[@robertfiller8634]

What Fred Allen actually said was: "I won't be as fatal as Arlene, she practically had the show over in 10 minutes". Also, Emmett Kelly"s 'shtick was to always look sad and downcast - his clown was known as "Weary Willie".

[@dianawardrip5171]

He may have been having symptoms. Another commenter said he had just been to the Dr. and had been given a clean bill of health that day or the day before, but autopsy showed a massive blockage. In 1956 those things were hard to find and there was no treatment. Now, a minor procedure and you have another 20 years or more.

[@robertjean5782]

​@@robertfiller8634I agree 💯 percent 😊

[@kentetalman9008]

8:21 - Bennett: "Same barber, too."

[@robertjean5782]

The panelist were looking at the contestants as they walked by and were able to get clues from their cothes, hands.😊

[@weatherboi]

So who was the guest celebrity? Emmett Kelly?

[@savethetpc6406]

As explained in the video description, the main Mystery Guest of this episode was Dinah Shore, but for unknown reasons her segment seems to be missing from all known copies of the episode.

[@cyndifoore7743]

Weatherboi yeah

[@vicschauberger2737]

I don't believe this is Fred Allen's last appearance on WML. Remington Rand , which was a subsequent sponsor to the sponsor here , (Stopette), was the sponsor of WML when Fred made his last appearance. Still a great episode. Thanks for posting .

[@robertjean5782]

No stoppette commercial 😊

[@vicschauberger2737]

@@robertjean5782 The Stopette commercial is at the beginning of the video / show. Once again this is not Fred Allen's last appearance on WML . It is closer to his first , as Stopette was not the sponsor when Fred died . Remington Rand was the sponsor when he died in 1956. Please view the WML episode on KZbin entitled "What's My line - a heartfelt goodbye to Fred Allen " . This is the episode that aired 24 hrs after Allen's death . Note the sponsor above the sign in board is Remington Rand . Allen had appeared on the preceding Sunday night's show , where the sponsor was also Remington Rand .

[@g.e.choate6561]

I saw the EK smile at 4:20...coincidence?

[@robertjean5782]

I don't see a smile😅

[@motnosniv]

I wish someone would have asked Mr. Kelly to smile, just once.

[@MrJoeybabe25]

Who WAS the MG tonight?

[@robertjean5782]

It was to be Dinah Shore but that segment was cut from this episode😢😮

[@albertmaldonado8443]

Even the braking down and explanation of the questions is intellectual 👏

[@GeneHettel]

Yes-give Emmett the $50!

[@WatchMan1962]

Fred was a heavy smoker.

[@lawrencecunningham7321]

Arlene was fantastic in the first round. She was an amazing player

[@deaded5040]

SUCH WONDERFUL HANDWRITING Now adays even teachers can't write that well and they're bigger Clowns then Emmett 🤣

[@jackseward7779]

Only 6 days before Fred Allen's fatal heart attack.

[@royveteto4134]

in sedan kansas is the emmett kelly museum

[@ZACHERYalderton-s3h]

Who is the announcer

[@patcurrie9888]

Johnny Olson, from Price is Right fame