What's My Line? - Julius LaRosa; Victor Borge [panel] (Feb 14, 1954)

[@lllowkee6533]

I knew the name STEVE ALLEN but never seen him until WML. I love him! RIP sir, love your work and this show.

[@landlubber541]

Love Victor Borge on What's My Line so much.

[@poolside16190]

He is & will always be a classic!🫡

[@peternagy-im4be]

​@@poolside16190he is and always was about as funny as a cancer diagnosis

[@jess4metoo]

I've never heard of Julius La Rosa till watching this episode. This is why I love watching these old WML episodes.

[@Lava1964]

He was the central figure in one of broadcasting's most infamous moments--when he was fired live on CBS radio by Arthur Godfrey.

[@spongevee1]

I understand he was a heartthrob! Once referenced in Laverne and Shirley!

[@sstavsky]

@@Lava1964 It's too bad that he's remembered perhaps mostly for how he got fired. He was actually a very good singer, a little Sinatra-ish.

[@lllowkee6533]

I thought Julius LaRosa was a baseball player??? 🤷‍♀️

[@lindabishop7656]

I don't know that I heard of him either.....I was thinking of he was some sort of baseball fella.

[@stanochocki8984]

On WML...even when I saw this on original airing-----always over-stayed his Spot. As to Julius LaRosa....a talented and handsome Man who got Shafted by mild mannered Arthur Godfrey due to the simple Fact that he was THE Bigger Draw and had the most Popularity.....sad, sad statement on Godfreu..

[@robertmelson2130]

11:44 When Victor Borge takes his wild guess for the second guest, Mrs. Salomon, that "she hunts wild gorillas," the audience responds with a burst of laughter. They must have all been watching two weeks previously when Shorty Greer (as well as Mr. Borge) were on.

[@Lighthammer18]

And for people 8 years later mystified by this comment... Shorty Greer was a contestant who hunted gorillas and completely stumped the panel. The episode is ofc on the channel, just search for Jan 31, 1954 and well worth a watch.

[@melianna999]

exactly

[@hansendesigns]

Nils Brekke: Model Agency Owner Nils Gothard Brekke, 89, who owned three Washington area franchises of the John Robert Powers modeling school before retiring in 1981, died Aug. 22 (2006) at South Bay Hospital in Sun City Center, Fla. He had congestive heart failure. Mr. Brekke held overlapping jobs early in his career. He had been manager at Arthur Murray Dance Studio in Washington from 1939 to 1951, and among his students was former first lady Eleanor Roosevelt. In the mid-1940s, he rented sailboats near the 14th Street Bridge and then operated the Washington Sailing Marina on Daingerfield Island from 1947 to 1963. He worked with a partner and mostly on weekends. During much of the time, he was manager of a Patricia Stevens Modeling School in Washington. He became involved with the Powers agency by the 1960s. Mr. Brekke was born in Oslo and settled with his family in Chattanooga in 1934, followed by Washington. He received U.S. citizenship soon after. During World War II, he served briefly in the Royal Norwegian Air Force in Canada and as a Norwegian Embassy assistant media attaché in Washington. He was a 1945 graduate of Georgetown University's foreign service school. His memberships included the Arlington Host Lions Club and the Sons of Norway. He once appeared on the television quiz show "What's My Line?" and sailed on the Chesapeake Bay until he was 88. He moved from Arlington last year to Sun City Center. Survivors include his wife of 64 years, Gervais Wallace Brekke of Sun City Center; three children, Tron W. Brekke of Fairfax Station, Gervais Brekke of Arlington and Linda Brekke of Falls Church; a sister; four grandchildren; and two great-grandchildren.

[@dmann1115]

Interesting if not unusual that he went from a fairly prestigious military and diplomatic career to being a business owner.

[@princeharming8963]

Fascinating history and life. Thank you so much for filling in the blanks!

[@robertcollins7025]

Victor was great in his act but not so much on this show or in interviews.

[@WhatsMyLine]

I'm a sucker for Borge, I admit it. I'll defend Groucho's 1959 appearance on the panel to the death, but I can understand a lot more if folks are irritated by Borge on the WML panel!

[@robertcollins7025]

I love the comedy of Grouch and Victor. i just don't like the distractions from the game

[@mtnman6557]

Personally, I enjoyed some of his little "bits," like when he felt left out of the 10 second conference. Other guest panelists were better at the game, but Victor had his moments.

[@melianna999]

@@WhatsMyLine I love Viktor Borg humor.

[@pianoman551000]

Victor Borge, like a lot of comics, never knew when to put the comedy on hold, wasting the panel's time in guessing the occupation of the guest. Steve Allen who was a master wit/comic knew when to insert humor WITHOUT making it all about himself. Poor Julius La Rosa! When Godfrey fired him off the show, his career went south never attaining the stardom that he could have had like the McGuire Sisters.

[@InjuredRobot.]

The stars of the show were the contestants. Steve Allen knew this, the other regulars did as well. Victor Borge and Hal Block did not, both being weak comedians. Of course there is always an audience for nonsense slapstick and fart jokes, to each their own.

[@shadowgirl8038]

​@InjuredRobot. Were you even alive back then, to hold such judgemental opinions of these folks?

[@mikehudson8884]

Nice to see Julius La Rosa here on 'What's My Line' , excellent singer back in the day. I think he got treated quite badly by TV bosses in his TV career.

[@AutisticPersona]

Arthur Godfrey let his ego get the better of him.

[@IM-tl7qv]

Wow, so much heat for Victor! People have to just accept that Groucho and Victor don't make everyone hysterical but to me, Groucho and Victor make me laugh so hard. Do you really begrudge a fairly large proportion of people a really hysterical laugh once in a while at the expense of the show's regular running? All the shows are uniquely special and Groucho and Victor's episodes are the best for me.

[@dinahbrown902]

Don’t forget me, they were a riot

[@dominicpiscopo7915]

Juilios LaRosa was a singer on the Arthur Geoffrey show back in the 50ies

[@ta2686]

RIP Julius LaRosa.

[@juliansinger]

I do love Victor Borge's solo comedy, but he's a little more obstructive to the purpose of the game than I'd like as a panelist. (Though in fact quite funny.) But I enjoy him too much to object all *that* much.

[@franklesser5655]

Agreed. I don't think they should invite him back on the panel.

[@roostero]

@@franklesser5655 He is an embarrassment to all Victors.

[@michaelburke750]

Victor Borge was being “Victor Borge”, he gave them what was expected and there’s absolutely nothing wrong with that. Edit: “ “

[@crabbyoldman8209]

@@michaelburke750 Yes there is, because he constantly upstaged everyone else. He ended up being a distraction.

[@michaelburke750]

choirboysadist ropenflogger He upstaged everyone else? So what? The audience was laughing. The show didn’t exist for the comfort of the panel, it was there to entertain the audience.

[@loissimmons6558]

Victor Borge might have been a misfit with the WML format, but he fit right in with the second challenger. He was unquestionably a Danish ham (and Jewish)!

[@lauracollins4195]

If Victor Borge is back on the panel, as Arlene says, “by popular demand,” I guess I must be unpopular and undemanding. :D

[@WhatsMyLine]

Today's KZbin Rerun for 1/13/16-- watch along and join the discussion! ----------------------------- Join our Facebook group for WML-- great discussions, photos, etc, and great people! facebook.com/groups/728471287199862/ Please click here to subscribe to the WML channel if you haven't already-- you'll find the complete CBS series already posted, and you'll be able to follow along the discussions on the weekday "rerun" videos: kzbin.info/door/hPE75Fvvl1HmdAsO7Nzb8w

[@KristopherBel]

In the beginning someone says "sitting in the catbird seat" this basically means sitting pretty or being in an enviable position. A catbird seat was a very high seat at the ballpark which offered a great view, my grandmother told me that they used it to mean a specific seat at the ny stadium, the highest seat, where the scoreboard sign hanger sat, but it was later expanded to mean any high seat. it was also the name some people used for the high up back seat in those old cars. And its named after the catbird, a dark grey bird common to the NY area that likes to sit in the highest branch around and mew like a cat. I learned about the phrase from my Grandmother who was born in NYC in 1927 and was a pretty into baseball, and used to talk about the different ways her and her brother would get into the ball park for free.

[@dnhy7951]

Your grandmother sounds like she was a character.My mother had a cousin who was a nun- she would ask questions like 'did you see the snooker last night?'She had!

[@davidcarroll1883]

Amazing what one can learn by reading the comments.

[@johnmacn]

I have to laugh at my reaction to WML now. When I was a kid there were times I couldn't believe the got the answer by those questions and at other times they should have gotten the answer. I was also so surprised and put off when guests could not think of any decent quesitons, after all , this is based on ask 20 questions. 20 quesitons is easy when you get the knack. When you dont have the experience there are still so many good questions to ask.... Now, as an adult, I'm trying to remember what I would ask in 20 questions. It's not so easy. Then add to that they are sort of put on the spot by being a guest on a show format that is unique for the time, it is understandable how they might not have questions come to mind. I love how Victor pulls is inexperience in this game off like a pro and can make jokes along the way. The best was when everyone was in the conference and he was left out, so he had his own conference. Brilliant.

[@patriciamooney928]

Most of my favorite game shows through the years I have realized we're based on childhood games like tic tac toe, scrabble, hangman, hot potato, 20 questions, etc

[@mehboobkm2018]

Do you know that new panelists are given a list of question to asking to?

[@galileocan]

Not actually said by Victor Borge, but can be inferred by his actions...."I don't care what you call this show or what its about, but the I'm taking the next thirty minutes and doing whatever I can to make it completely about ME"

[@williamlynnroden]

@Deborah Thomas . Laugh and enjoy life more, he did and lived a long life and brought laughter to millions. There are KZbin clips of him even in advanced age doing what people paid their money to see.

[@stephaniezimbalist3757]

@Deborah Thomas & Galileocan I think you guys are being too harsh and judgemental about ol' Vic. To be fair to Victor his comedy was about interruption. He specifically did bits where he was suppose to play a specific piece on the piano but then would never get to it because he would be interrupting himself. He became popular from interruptions He was invited on the show because of it. Lots of people enjoy a controlled chaos. I LOVE it, and so does Daly, as evidenced by him laughing his head off. Groucho, was definitely a more disruptive energy but i still enjoyed Groucho's recalcitrant disposition. Daly had to disqualify him because he wouldn't properly use his mask. He could clearly see the celebrity mystery guest.

[@kateluxor2986]

As I'm watching this, Arlene just said: "They like models in Washington (D.C.)." Whoa, I wonder if the bigwigs at CBS were sweating when she said that! What a zinger!

[@robertmelson2130]

Dorothy asks at 15:40, "is it larger than a breadbox?" I've noticed that Dorothy seems to use Steve Allen's expression quite a bit more often than its creator. With our channel owner currently posting on FB a number of WML references from other shows which seem to mostly involve this one expression, I'm wondering if it's fair that Steve Allen get all the credit after all; arguably perhaps Dorothy is the one who really popularized it even though Steve formulated it.

[@bluecamus5162]

I'm surprised Steve Allen didn't quip, "Hey, that's my line!". I have heard other panelists ask the question thus, "Is it bigger than Steve Allen's breadbox?".

[@patriciamooney928]

It was a general coloquialism from the 1940s. Neither of them originated it.

[@rickcharles5064]

Very true. Wrote this after seeing two of his funny moments but got tired of his ramblings by the end. Should have waited to the end before hitting "post" Sorry everyone!

[@Charlotte-wp9rf]

rick charles They actually hired comedic people to appear on the panel. It began years ago to boost ratings.

[@ChrisHansonCanada]

Victor Borge could be attention seeking, but I find him funnier than any modern day comedian.

[@franksantore2810]

It's amazing that La Rosa was the mystery guest because Dsly and Godfrey were friends

[@sanseifromkofu728]

I'm here after watching Arthur Godfrey's 1952 spot, and reading up on his controversies.

[@2014moorea]

Victor is a funny guy, no doubt about that. But he takes so much time! At least everyone was laughing along and not getting annoyed.

[@Jolar70]

It's funny, in a way, I think he was ahead of his time in that so much of his humor came from riffing on something, in the way that Ellen Degeneres does, rather than telling a standard joke. He was an absolute master of timing but in this context, as we all have our eyes on the game clock, it's also driving us CRAZY!

[@maremacd]

I think Borge is funny and charming, but I also think it was pretty clear that the other panelists were annoyed at times. I inferred from Steve Allen's plea to Deborah Kerr to hurry (during the goodbyes) that he had had enough. The audience sounded like they were enjoying it though.

[@dizzyology7514]

+Abigal M. I think that +maremacd hits it on the nose. Victor Borge may have been irritating to other panelists, and to those concerned with moving the game along. But the audience was entertained -- and the purpose of all television shows is to entertain audiences. If the studio audience (and presumably many of the TV viewers) were laughing, the producers were justified in considering Borge's appearances successful, and inviting him back. Which they did.

[@elisabethvalade9866]

@@dizzyology7514 AGREE!

[@melianna999]

I couldn't stop laughing. My laptop had plenty of time.

[@perrybarton]

I’ve been enjoying watching WML on here over the past couple of years, but in random order. It’s always just a bit jarring to catch an early episode, where the challenger is paraded before the panel like livestock. But then, how else would Dorothy be able to grab the arm muscles of the male challengers? 😏

[@dinahbrown902]

🤣

[@michaelburke750]

Sad the more episodes I watch the more the audio sticks, so much so I miss nuances... 🤦‍♂️

[@davidarcudi230]

I love Arlene. Classic cougar humor

[@peternagy-im4be]

What?

[@InjuredRobot.]

Welcome to "Victor Borge's What's My Line" starring Victor Borge, featuring Victor Borge.

[@lllowkee6533]

He wasted time. I don’t like the comedians on here..

[@melianna999]

I am here for him only.

[@PeBoVision]

Was Victor Borges ever that young ?? (That makes me feel SO old - but then again, so does my mirror.)

[@ellenbarrett4264]

The breadbox question I don’t believe can be credited to the panel necessarily. That question has been around a log time.

[@patriciamooney928]

I have never heard of the 7 lively arts that Dorothy continually refers to in her questions.

[@rickcharles5064]

Arlene looked particularly hot that night. (not in temperature) Mr. Borge was always good for a few laughs.

[@ChrisHansonCanada]

OWNS AND OPERATES MODEL AGENCY HOG BREEDER

[@steveburrus5526]

now juolius larosa was a big time singer was he back in the 1950's?

[@loissimmons6558]

+Steve Burrus Julius La Rosa was a very popular young singer for a few years in the 1950's. After 1955, he no longer had top 10 hits, but he was still a popular performer in clubs for many years and he regularly was a big part of Jerry Lewis' annual telethon, often hosting the segment of the show originating from NYC. He also did some acting. In the 1980's, he had a recurring role on the soap opera "Another World" and was nominated for a Daytime Emmy. And for many years he was a popular disk jockey in the NYC metro area, mostly for WNEW-AM (1130).

[@steveburrus5526]

Ya I a;lready knew about Julius Larosa somewhat. And I don't quite remember him hosting the NYC end of the M.D. telethon.

[@williamlynnroden]

@@loissimmons6558 . Thank you for filling in some of the blanks! I was hoping he managed to do allright for himself after "that incident."

[@scotnick59]

Julius had a lot of little boy in him

[@tedlawrence4189]

Too quiet!

[@kennethtobin6906]

I think Victor borga is a delight on the panel

[@InjuredRobot.]

He wasted time = picking the pockets of the contestants. He was not funny.

[@peternagy-im4be]

He was an unfunny clown 🤡

[@jonathancheskin6482]

Victor Borge was hilarious, but that masked the fact (not too well) that he was clearly inept at the game.

[@mdesapio]

Unfortunately Borge wasted valuable time with his clowning on this episode.

[@wchumphries]

It's a measure of how much time Victor Borge utilized that they ran out of time for the Mystery Celebrity - he was an undeniably funny man, but I have to agree with those who find him irritating as a panellist on WML

[@joycejean-baptiste4355]

Mr. Borga is a comedian to the hilt

[@plcwecub]

Julius was adorable..that jealous sob Arthur Godfrey fired him on air

[@XY_Dude]

Wow - that thumbnail shot looks exactly like Matt Damon!

[@tuxguys]

Wow... I knew that Victor Borge was funny... ...but, faster on his feet than Steve Allen? That I did NOT know.

[@mikejschin]

Steve's good night included "hurry Debra". I wonder if that was a backhanded way of saying "get Victor out of here".

[@vellak6350]

A young Julius LaRosa reminds me of Matt Damon.

[@christophermichael2233]

Ive recently found out julius is my grandfather

[@rosemariedamiano]

He had no children. How can that be?

[@rosemariedamiano]

@@christophermichael2233 I said that because Wikipedia did not mention any children and usually it will, at the very least, the number of children. Doing a wider search, I now see the ones with his wife....Treasure your pictures and your grandfather's legacy! Thank you for responding.

[@donnawoodford6641]

Wait Arlene. He said he wasn't a performer. So, that should be a NO, and no further questioning (from her). Stop the bullying! You've had your chance. Accept it and allow the next panelist to ask. John missed that it seems.

[@peternagy-im4be]

Another deadbeat panellist Victor Borge

[@galileocan]

Victor Borge had one goal - make as much of the half hour show all about him and to dominate whatever portion of the show that he could. To him, this was HIS 30 minute comedy show that other people and contestants simply interrupted.

[@calliopivogiatzis2235]

I think Dorothy feels the muscles of the men she thinks are good-looking!

[@melianna999]

Dorothy was here 8 months pregnant with her son Kerry born 19/03/1954 so she felt... but baby movement.

[@jmccracken1963]

The game just DRAAAAAGS when Victor Borge is inflicting his unfunny (for WHAT'S MY LINE?, anyway) clowning on the show. And yet, quite inexplicably, the WML powers-that-be invited him back as a panelist - a number of times. And I cannot, for the life of me, understand why.....

[@WhatsMyLine]

To each his own, I guess! I love Victor Borge, maybe that's why he doesn't bug me on the WML panel. But he certainly, certainly slows things down!

[@Beson-SE]

I am sure that Steve Allen was not amused by Borge's comedy. One comedian per show is enough. Also I think it's very selfish to steal the scene like Borge does and treat it as The Borge One-Man show.

[@TheBraveIntrovert]

jmccracken1963 I thought he was funny. I like a little physical comedy.

[@futureismine3295]

***** It strikes me as presumptuous to say that Borge was taking advantage of his appearance. I think it more likely that he was a comedian, doing his work. That is, after all, what he was well known and liked for. It all seems pretty straight forward to me. Whether or not people enjoyed the mixture of this game show with Borge's comedic attitude, is separately a fair topic.

[@kateluxor2986]

I agree with you. Being a (musical) comedian was his bread and butter. Does he slow things down? Certainly, but I found him really funny in this episode. It's nice to mix things up a bit. Besides, it kept Dorothy from being too serious and it was nice to see her laugh. As to whether one likes him or not: To each his own!

[@josephlacerra8433]

As a child I never thought Victor Borge funny; he always annoyed me. Now, in my seventies, I find him even more unfunny and even more annoying.

[@randysills4418]

Me too, Joseph!

[@akrenwinkle]

@@randysills4418 I third the motion. To me, Borge was as funny as root canal. But of course there's no right or wrong about humor; it's totally subjective. I don't know if Americans can even tell what's humorous anymore. They watch sitcoms with high decibel electronic yocks every ten seconds, and they think they've seen something funny.

[@melianna999]

First of all he was extremely talented pianist. And hilarious comic . You need to be European to understand his wit.

[@melianna999]

Julius LaRosa 1930 - 2016

[@grantgoeters5945]

John helps the panel too much.

[@lindaroper2654]

That man took to much time with being silly.

[@leesher1845]

Am I the only one who didn’t find Victor Borge funny. I know he was a talented pianist but he wasn’t that funny and he took up a lot of time on the program.

[@peternagy-im4be]

He's about as funny as a cancer diagnosis

[@vasiliatmanchokov4981]

It is difficult to watch Victor Borge trying so hard to be funny like a child seeking attention, wasting time and messing the game in lieu of making himself center of attention. He was only funny when he was alone on stage doing his own shows. Everyone seem to try to handle him as a child with mental retardation, patiently and carefully.

[@jonnyp]

Victor Borge is so annoying - you can almost tell the panel is getting impatient with his deliberate attempts at being funny "it's a four legged animal that you can eat, how strange can it be?" - at least hal block would ask an inappropriate question and just move on

[@randysills4418]

Victor Borge was totally annoying!

[@melianna999]

You lack sense of humor. He was hilarious. The problem was with timing. They had limited time.

[@dnhy7951]

​@melianna999 Excellent summary.Weird how Victor seems to bear a resemblance to Mr Robert DeNiro-like a madly comedic uncle.Dad's younger brother...

[@peternagy-im4be]

​@@melianna999the original poster was indeed correct. Borge was a pain in the butt. An imbecile who needed removing.

[@jeisenable]

Victor Borge & Gruocho Marx were the worst panelists on What's MY Line

[@peternagy-im4be]

Marx was the best panellist. Nice attempt.

[@jeisenable]

kYou're out of your freakin mind

[@peternagy-im4be]

Marx was the best panellist. Nice attempt.

[@enriquesanchez2001]

You forget - WALLY COX! He had no CLUE at all as to which question to ask. Over and over, he was exhausting.

[@ahope1]

Video quality is terrible. So many random skips and jumps and cuts, so much missing footage. Questions and answers keep getting cut off in mid-flow. Incoherent.

[@mikejschin]

Unfortunately, that sometimes happens with shows this old. The owner of this channel spends a lot of time and effort finding the best copy available and splices in better segments when he can find them. So yes, the miscues are distracting and even frustrating at times, but it's great that Gary has been able to salvage and give us as much as he has from such old footage. As I recall from my first pass through the series, there is a cluster of episodes from this time period with similar problems. It does get better.

[@axiomist1076]

That Borge is really obnoxious. He thinks everything he does is cute. He sure wasted a lot of game time . . .and, by the way, who the hell is Julius La Rosa ? I thought he'd be a baseball player or a boxer. One episode of WML I didnt enjoy, thanks to Borge. Just looked up Julius on Google and found that he did well in his career, had a nice life, married to his lady for 40 years and died at 86 of natural causes. Pretty good life.

[@LarsRyeJeppesen]

I'm a Dane but that's not enough to like Borge's unfunny slapstick.. cringing

[@scottfhannigan]

The attention seekers on the panel always spoil the show for me.

[@dinahbrown902]

The audience ruins it for me alot

[@catteadams]

Victor Borge is a scream on this show!

[@basilmanolakos4926]

Victor Borge was too over-the-top, too aware of his comedic capabilities, very much of a pesky ham while some of his zaniest of routines were just not funny. I'm told that he was primarily a concert pianist much like Liberace in that both strayed from their musical abilities and therefore neither of them could be taken seriously and I public laughed at and not with them. Lifelong fan of classical music and sought out opportunities to listen. Don't the name of the TV variety show in which he appeared but the program specified that he would Mendelssohn's, 'On Wings of Song' but remains that did not bother to play the piece. He would sit at the grand piano, clad in white tie and tails, looking most imposingly theatrical, for eg, being ready to start the music but not touching the keyboard. He proceeded to fall off his piano bench, pretended to almost start that lovely piece, with the printed score placed on the stand - upside down. More slapstick and no music. Many liked him but for some reason I'm odd in many ways as I didn't know what the fans saw in him. Sorry but couldn't get his message.

[@krystonjones]

What’s so embarrassing about it? (certifying his popularity) He’s not full of himself, always trying to be the centre of attention & also always trying, but often not succeeding in being funny.

[@armyvet4081]

Borge is not funny at all

[@roostero]

RIP Julius LaRosa

[@melianna999]

RIP all of them.