Wikipedia

Dennis Day

For other people with the same name, seeDennis Day (artist)andDennis Day (Mouseketeer).

Dennis Day(bornOwen Patrick Eugene McNulty;May 21, 1916 – June 22, 1988)[1][2][3]was an American actor, comedian and singer. He was of Irish descent.

Dennis Day
Day in 1960
Born
Owen Patrick Eugene McNulty

(1916-05-21)May 21, 1916
Bronx, New York City,U.S.
DiedJune 22, 1988(1988-06-22)(aged 72)
Los Angeles, California,U.S.
Resting placeHoly Cross Cemetery
Occupations
  • Actor
  • comedian
  • singer
Years active1939–1988
Spouse
Peggy Almquist
​
(m.1948)​
Children10
RelativesAnn Blyth(sister-in-law)
Alma materManhattan College
Presenting career
ShowThe Jack Benny Program
Station(s)NBC,CBS

Early life

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Day was born and raised in theThroggs NeckClason Point section ofBronx,New York, the second of five children born to Irish immigrants Patrick McNulty and Mary (née Grady) McNulty. His father was afactory electric power engineer.[4][5]Day graduated from theCathedral Preparatory School and Seminaryand attendedManhattan Collegein the Bronx,[6]where he sang in theglee club.

In 1939, Gene McNulty, as Day was then known, sang on network radio with bandleaderLarry Clinton.The Clinton broadcasts were aimed at the collegiate audience, and were often broadcast from a college campus. The 23-year-old McNulty won an audience poll as a favorite vocalist.[citation needed]

Radio

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Day appeared for the first time onJack Benny's radio show on October 8, 1939, taking the place of another tenor,Kenny Baker.[6]He remained associated with Benny's radio and television programs until Benny's death in 1974.[6]He was introduced (with actressVerna Feltonplaying his overbearing mother) as a young (19-year-old), naive boy singer – a character he kept through his whole career.

Mary Livingstone,Benny's wife, brought the singer to Benny's attention after hearing Day on the radio during a visit to New York. She took a recording of Day's singing to Benny, who then went to New York to audition Day. The audition resulted in Day's role on the Benny program.[7]

Day's first recorded song was "Goodnight My Beautiful".[citation needed]

Besides singing, Day was amimic.On the Benny program, Day performed impressions of various celebrities of the era, includingRonald Colman,Jimmy Durante,andJames Stewart.

Sam Berman's caricature of Dennis Day for a 1947 NBC promotional book

From 1944 through 1946, he served in theU.S. Navyas alieutenant.While in service, he was temporarily replaced on the Benny radio program by fellow tenor Larry Stevens. On his return to civilian life, he continued to work with Benny while also starring on his ownNBCshow,A Day in the Life of Dennis Day(1946–1951). On Benny's show, Day's having two programs in comparison to Benny's one was the subject of numerous jokes and gags, usually revolving around Day rubbing Benny's, and sometimes other cast members' and guest stars' noses, in that fact (e.g., "Dennis, why do you have two horns on your bicycle?" "Why shouldn't I? I've got two shows!" ). His last radio series was a comedy and variety show that aired on NBC's Sunday afternoon schedule during the 1954–55 season.[citation needed]

A Day in the Life of Dennis Day

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When Day got his own radio sitcom, he continued to play essentially the same character that he originated on Benny's program. For this series, though, Day lived in the fictional town of Weaverville.[8]He stayed at a boarding house run by Clara Anderson, usually played byBea Benaderet.Her henpecked husband, Herbert Anderson, was portrayed byDink Trout.Day was engaged to their daughter Mildred, played by Barbara Eiler. His character worked at Willoughby's Drug Store, where his Boss was Mr. Willoughby. The show was sponsored byColgate-Palmolive.Verne Smith was the announcer, while music was provided byBud Dantand his orchestra. The format of the show began with a song by Day, followed by the first half of the plot, a second song by Day, the rest of the plot, and then a third song by Day to finish the episode. Episodes can be heard regularly on the Sirius XMRadio ClassicsChannel.

Television

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An attempt was made to adaptA Day in the Life of Dennis Dayas anNBCfilmed series (Sam Berman's caricature of Dennis was used in the opening and closing titles), produced byJerry Fairbanksfor Dennis' sponsor, Colgate-Palmolive, featuring the original radio cast, but got no farther than an unaired 1949 pilot episode. In late 1950, a samplekinescopewas produced by Colgate and their ad agency showcasing Dennis as host of a projected "live" comedy/variety series (The Dennis Day Show) forCBS,but that, too, went unsold. He continued to appear as a regular cast member whenThe Jack Benny Programbecame a TV series, staying with the show until it ended in 1965.

Eventually, his own TV series,The Dennis Day Show(orThe RCA Victor Show), was first telecast on NBC on February 8, 1952, and then in the 1953–1954 season. On this show, Day played a less-fictionalized version of himself, using his natural voice and behaving as an adult who was considerably more mature than his Benny character.

Between 1952 and 1978, Day made numerous TV appearances as a singer and actor (such as NBC'sThe Gisele MacKenzie Show,ABC'sThe Bing Crosby ShowandAlfred Hitchcock Presents) and voice for animation. Day appeared as the "Mystery Guest" on the January 23, 1955 episode ofWhat's My Line?.Day was correctly identified by panelistDorothy Kilgallen.[9]

In 1957, Day played himself in episode seven, season two of the briefly aired (1957–1958) situation comedy calledDate with the Angelsin which, on the way to a recording studio, Day's car breaks down in front of Vicki Angel's (Betty White) home. While waiting for the automobile service to arrive, he does a few imitations (includingElvis), sings a song, and does a duet with Vicki. The episode, which began inSardi'srestaurant, included brief appearances ofLiberaceandHugh O'Brian.While numerous stars appeared in the series without credit, all three (Day, Liberace, O'Brian) guest stars appear in the credits on that episode.[10]

He also appeared inDate with the Angels– season one, episode 13, as himself; it aired on Friday at 9:30 pm, October 25, 1957, on ABC. Some records show it was episode 19, titled "Star Struck".

During the final season ofThe Jack Benny Program(1964–65), Day was nearly 49 years old, although Benny was still delivering such lines as "That crazy kid drives me nuts..."

His last televised work with Benny was in 1970, when they appeared in a public-service announcement together to promote savings and loans. This was shortly after the whole cast and crew ofThe Jack Benny Showhad joined forJack Benny's Twentieth Anniversary Special.

He starred as railroad employee Jason Barnes in the 1962Death Valley DaysTV episode "Way Station".[11] In 1972, he co-starred withJune AllysonandJudy Canovain the first national tour of the Broadway musicalNo, No, Nanette.

In 1976, Day was the voice of Parson Brown in the Rankin-Bass productionFrosty's Winter Wonderlandand again worked with them in 1978, when he voiced Fred inThe Stingiest Man in Town,which was their animated version ofCharles Dickens' novelA Christmas Carol.

Film

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Although his career was mainly radio- and TV-based, Day also appeared in a few films. These includedBuck Benny Rides Again(1940) opposite Jack Benny,Sleepy Lagoon(1943),Music in Manhattan(1944),I'll Get By(1950),Golden Girl(1951),The Girl Next Door(1953),[6]andWon Ton Ton, the Dog Who Saved Hollywood(1976) as a singing telegraph man. For the soundtrack ofMy Wild Irish Rose(1947), a biopic aboutChauncey Olcott,Day provided the singing voice to the acting ofDennis Morgan.Day also provided the voices of Johnny Appleseed, Johnny's Angel, and the Old Settler in the "Johnny Appleseed"segment inWalt Disney'sMelody Time(1948).[6]

Politics

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ARepublican,Day was supportive ofDwight Eisenhower's campaign during the1952 presidential election[12]andBarry Goldwaterin the1964 United States presidential election.[13]

Discography (partial)

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  • From Walt Disney's "Melody Time" – Johnny Appleseed – All Voices by Dennis Day(1949, RCA/Camden)
  • Dennis Day Sings Christmas Is for the Family(1957, Design)
  • At Hollywood's Moulin Rouge(1957, Masterseal)
  • That's an Irish Lullaby(1959, RCA)
  • "The Story of Johnny Appleseed" Cricketone Chorus & Orchestra and Playhour Players (1959, Pickwick International K.M. Corporation)
  • Walt Disney's Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs(1960, RCA/Camden)
  • "Camp St. Malo Sings"Dennis Day with the Cathedral Men and Boys Vested Choir (1961, RCA)
  • Shillelaghs and Shamrocks(1963, Reprise)
  • Dennis Day Narrates Johnny Appleseed(1963, Bellflower)
  • Walt Disney Presents Dennis Day in the Story of Johnny Appleseed(1964, Disneyland)
  • White Christmas(1965, Design) [reissue ofChristmas Is for the Family]
  • My Wild Irish Rose(1966, RCA Camden) [reissue of earlierRCA Victorrecordings]
  • Clancy Lowered the Boom(1947 RCA Victor single)
  • Dear Hearts and Gentle People(1949 RCA Victor single)
  • Christmas in Killarney(1950 RCA Victor single)

Selected Filmography

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References

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  1. ^Ancestry.Social Security Death Index[database on-line]. Provo, UT, US: The Generations Network, Inc., 2006.
  2. ^Ancestry.California Death Index, 1940–1997[database on-line]. Provo, UT, US: The Generations Network, Inc., 2000.
  3. ^Passenger list, S.S.Britannic,September 17, 1934. Ancestry.New York Passenger Lists, 1820–1957[database on-line]. Provo, UT: The Generations Network, Inc., 2006.
  4. ^U.S. Census, January 1, 1920, State of New York, County of Bronx, enumeration district 393, p. 13-B, family 257.
  5. ^Patrick Jos. McNulty, Bronx, New York, born July 18, 1881. Ancestry.World War I Draft Registration Cards, 1917–1918[database on-line]. Provo, UT, US: The Generations Network, Inc., 2005.
  6. ^abcdeColin Larkin,ed. (1992).The Guinness Encyclopedia of Popular Music(First ed.).Guinness Publishing.p. 649.ISBN0851129390.
  7. ^Fisher, George (January 1940)."Hollywood Radio Whispers"(PDF).Radio and Television Mirror.Vol. 13, no. 3. p. 41.RetrievedFebruary 16,2015.
  8. ^Dunning, John (1998).On the Air: The Encyclopedia of Old-Time Radio(Revised ed.). New York, NY: Oxford University Press. p. 193-194.ISBN978-0-19-507678-3.RetrievedAugust 27,2019.
  9. ^"What's My Line?".CBS.September 23, 2015.RetrievedAugust 25,2023.
  10. ^Season 2 Episode 7 1957 on Date with the Angels Airing on Roku 5/5/2022
  11. ^"Dennis Day on Death Valley Days, April 1962".The Indianapolis Star.April 7, 1962. p. 15.RetrievedMarch 26,2021.
  12. ^Motion Picture and Television Magazine,November 1952, p. 34, Ideal Publishers
  13. ^Critchlow, Donald T. (2013).When Hollywood Was Right: How Movie Stars, Studio Moguls, and Big Business Remade American Politics.Cambridge University Press. p. 173.ISBN978-0521199186– via Google Books.
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