Thomas, Danny (1912-1991)

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Thomas, Danny (1912-1991)

Although he later starred in the longest running situation comedy in television history and became one of TV's top producers, Danny Thomas once denounced the new medium as a "workplace for idiots." He made this comment after spending two years hosting NBC's All-Star Revue, rotating with comedians Jack Carson, Jimmy Durante, and Ed Wynn. He quit the show in 1952 to return to the nightclub circuit. A year later, he was back on the small screen, well on his way to becoming one of the icons of television's Golden Age.

Born Muzyad Yakhoob in Deerfield, Michigan, the fifth of nine children of Catholic immigrants from Lebanon, Danny's first experience in show business was selling candy at a burlesque theater. At age twenty he began singing on a Detroit radio station, and six years later he started a career in nightclubs, as a standup comic and master of ceremonies. His popularity steadily increased during the 1940s, leading to a brief career in films. In his two best remembered films, he played pop composer Gus Kahn in I'll See You in My Dreams (1951), and the Al Jolson role in the remake of The Jazz Singer (1953).

In 1953, Thomas began developing a situation comedy for ABC. Discussing the project with writer Mel Shavelson, Danny explained that he wanted to stay home with his family in Los Angeles. As he wrote in his autobiography in 1990, "I was away on the road so much that they hardly knew me. They called me 'Uncle Daddy."' Shavelson realized at once that they had a concept for a comedy show, featuring a nightclub entertainer trying to have a normal family life along with a career in show business. Danny's wife Rose Marie suggested the title, Make Room for Daddy. While Danny was on the road, the children took over his space in the home, and when he returned, they had to shift bedrooms and move their belongings to "make room for Daddy."

The show made its debut on ABC in September 1953, running for four seasons with its ratings near the bottom, ranking 107^th of the 118 shows in that period. The low ratings came despite the fact that the show won an Emmy as Best Situation Comedy Series in 1954, the same year Danny won his Emmy for Best Actor Starring in a Regular Series. After the third season, Jean Hagen, Danny's on-screen wife, quit the show and became the first leading character in a sitcom to die in the off-season. When the next season started, little Terry and Rusty were told, "Mommy's gone to Heaven."

In 1957 the renamed Danny Thomas Show was moved to CBS and aired on Monday night in the 9 p.m. time slot. In the first episode Danny had just married his new bride (Marjorie Lord), who arrived with a cute, precocious five-year-old stepdaughter, played by Angela Cartwright. Another popular character on the show was Danny's Lebanese Uncle Tonoose, played by Hans Conried. Ratings immediately soared to the top ten, and the newfound audience remained loyal throughout the run of the series, which ended in 1964.

In 1967, a special, Make More Room for Daddy, aired on NBC. Two years later, another special entitled Make Room for Granddaddy, reuniting Thomas, Marjorie Lord, Angela Cartwright, Rusty Hamer, and Hans Conried, proved so popular that it became a pilot for the 1970-71 series on ABC. Danny's "grandson," played by Michael Hughes, was introduced on that show. Danny's real-life children also became important in show business; son, Tony, produced such hit shows as Golden Girls and Empty Nest, and daughter, Marlo, starred in the hit series That Girl.

In the 1950s, Thomas had branched out into production, forming partnerships first with Sheldon Leonard and later with Aaron Spelling. He became one of the most successful television producers of the 1950s and 1960s, whose blockbuster programs included The Andy Griffith Show, The Dick Van Dyke Show, Gomer Pyle, and The Mod Squad.

In 1991 Danny Thomas made a rare guest appearance on his son Tony's series, Empty Nest. A week later, his fans were stunned to learn that he had died of a heart attack. His later years were marked by his generosity in giving and raising money for his favorite charity, St. Jude's Hospital.

—Benjamin Griffith