Bill Idelson (August 21, 1919 – December 31, 2007) was an actor, writer, director and producer widely known for his teenage role as Rush Gook on the radio comedy ''

Vic and Sade ''Vic and Sade'' was an American radio program created and written by Paul Rhymer. It was regularly broadcast on radio from 1932 to 1944, then intermittently until 1946, and was briefly adapted to television in 1949 and again in 1957. During it ...

'' and his recurring television role as Herman Glimscher on ''

The Dick Van Dyke Show ''The Dick Van Dyke Show'' is an American television sitcom created by Carl Reiner that initially aired on CBS from October 3, 1961 to June 1, 1966, with a total of 158 half-hour episodes spanning five seasons. It was produced by Calvada Product ...

'' in the 1960s.

Background

Idelson was born in

Forest Park, Illinois Forest Park (formerly Harlem) is a village in Cook County, Illinois, a suburb of Chicago, United States. The population was 14,339 at the 2020 census. The Forest Park terminal on the CTA Blue Line is the line's western terminus, located on the ...

, his parents were Russian immigrants. He joined the U.S. Navy in

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

and was awarded a Distinguished Flying Cross and four

Air Medal The Air Medal (AM) is a military decoration of the United States Armed Forces. It was created in 1942 and is awarded for single acts of heroism or meritorious achievement while participating in aerial flight. Criteria The Air Medal was establish ...

s as a night fighter pilot. He later married actress Seemah Wilder with whom he had three sons, Paul, Howie and Jonathan as well as a daughter, TV writer and actress Ellen Idelson, who died in 2003. Idelson died in 2007 from complications due to a hip injury. On his death, writer-director

Norman Corwin Norman Lewis Corwin (May 3, 1910 – October 18, 2011) was an American writer, screenwriter, producer, essayist and teacher of journalism and writing. His earliest and biggest successes were in the writing and directing of radio drama during the ...

told the ''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the U ...

'' Idelson was "a luminary, he stood out among the radio comedians." Creator of ''The'' ''Dick Van Dyke Show''

Carl Reiner Carl Reiner (March 20, 1922 – June 29, 2020) was an American actor, stand-up comedian, director, screenwriter, and author whose career spanned seven decades. He was the recipient of many awards and honors, including 11 Primetime Emmy Awards, ...

, said Idelson was "a very subtle actor. He made no big movements, and every time you cut to him you could get a laugh."

Career

Radio

Idelson's acting career began in 1931 on Chicago's WGN radio, when he played Skeezix on '' Uncle Walt and Skeezix'', a radio drama based on the ''

Gasoline Alley ''Gasoline Alley'' is a comic strip created by Frank King and distributed by Tribune Content Agency. It centers on the lives of patriarch Walt Wallet, his family, and residents in the town of Gasoline Alley, with storylines reflecting traditio ...

'' comic strip.DeLong, Thomas A. (1996). ''Radio Stars: An Illustrated Biographical Dictionary of 953 Performers, 1920 through 1960''. McFarland & Company, Inc. . P. 136. One year later he landed the role of Rush on the long-running ''Vic and Sade'', playing the role until he joined the U.S. Navy. He also had the title role on ''Cousin Willie'' and portrayed Bill Clark on ''Secret City'', Hugo on ''The Trouble with the Truitts'', and Chuck on '' That Brewster Boy''. After the war, his acting credits included radio and television versions of the daytime drama series ''

One Man's Family ''One Man's Family'' is an American radio soap opera, heard for almost three decades, from 1932 to 1959. Created by Carlton E. Morse, it was the longest-running uninterrupted dramatic serial in the history of American radio. Television versions ...

''.

Television

In ''

'' Idelson played Herman Glimscher, the

milquetoast Caspar Milquetoast was a popular American cartoon character created by H. T. Webster. The term “milquetoast” has since come to be used for a meek or timid person. Milquetoast may also refer to: *Dr. Milquetoast, a character in " The Pacifis ...

boyfriend of Sally Rogers (

Rose Marie Rose Marie (born Rose Marie Mazzetta; August 15, 1923 – December 28, 2017) was an American actress, singer, comedian, and vaudeville performer with a career ultimately spanning nine decades, which included film, radio, records, theater, night ...

). "Herman could never marry because his mother wouldn't sign off on it yet, and when he had a date with Sally Rogers he brought his mother a couple of times," show creator and co-star

told the ''

''. He re-created the role in the first decade of the 21st century for a reunion show of ''

'', with Herman finally married to Sally as she joins her former colleague Rob Petrie ( Dick Van Dyke) to write a new special for their megalomaniacal former boss, Alan Brady (Reiner). Idelson guest starred on episodes of '' Dragnet'', ''

The Twilight Zone ''The Twilight Zone'' is an American media franchise based on the anthology television series created by Rod Serling. The episodes are in various genres, including fantasy, science fiction, absurdism, dystopian fiction, suspense, horror, sup ...

'', ''

My Favorite Martian ''My Favorite Martian'' is an American sitcom that aired on CBS from September 29, 1963, to May 1, 1966, for 107 episodes. The show stars Ray Walston as "Uncle Martin" (the Martian) and Bill Bixby as Tim O'Hara. The first two seasons, totalin ...

'', ''

The Odd Couple Odd Couple may refer to: Neil Simon play and its adaptations * ''The Odd Couple'' (play), a 1965 stage play by Neil Simon ** ''The Odd Couple'' (film), a 1968 film based on the play *** ''The Odd Couple'' (1970 TV series), a 1970–1975 televisi ...

'', ''

Happy Days ''Happy Days'' is an American television sitcom that aired first-run on the ABC network from January 15, 1974, to July 19, 1984, with a total of 255 half-hour episodes spanning 11 seasons. Created by Garry Marshall, it was one of the most su ...

'', ''

Perry Mason Perry Mason is a fictional character, an American criminal defense lawyer who is the main character in works of detective fiction written by Erle Stanley Gardner. Perry Mason features in 82 novels and 4 short stories, all of which involve a c ...

'' and ''

Will & Grace ''Will & Grace'' is an American television sitcom created by Max Mutchnick and David Kohan. Set in New York City, the show focuses on the friendship between best friends Will Truman ( Eric McCormack), a gay lawyer, and Grace Adler ( Debra Messi ...

'', in which he appeared along with his wife and daughter. He wrote the ''

Long Distance Call "Long Distance Call" is episode 58 of the American television anthology series ''The Twilight Zone''. It originally aired on March 31, 1961, on CBS. In the episode, a 5-year-old boy named Billy communicates with his dead grandmother using a toy t ...

'' episode of ''

'' (1960) for

CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainm ...

then several episodes of ''

'', leading him to further writing work on '' Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C.'', ''

The Andy Griffith Show ''The Andy Griffith Show '' is an American situation comedy television series that aired on CBS from October 3, 1960, to April 1, 1968, with a total of 249 half-hour episodes spanning eight seasons—159 in black and white and 90 in color. The ...

'', ''

Get Smart ''Get Smart'' is an American comedy television series parodying the secret agent genre that had become widely popular in the first half of the 1960s, with the release of the ''James Bond'' films. It was created by Mel Brooks and Buck Henry, an ...

'', ''

M*A*S*H ''M*A*S*H'' (Mobile Army Surgical Hospital) is an American media franchise consisting of a series of novels, a film, several television series, plays, and other properties, and based on the semi-autobiographical fiction of Richard Hooker. Th ...

'' and ''

''. He received two Writers Guild Awards for best episodic comedy, one for an episode of ''

'' and the other for an episode of ''

''. His producing credits included ''

The McLean Stevenson Show ''The McLean Stevenson Show'' is an American sitcom that aired on NBC on Wednesday nights from December 1, 1976, to March 23, 1977. Premise The series centered on Mac Ferguson, the owner of a hardware store in Evanston, Illinois Evanston ( ) ...

'', ''

The Bob Newhart Show ''The Bob Newhart Show'' is an American sitcom television series produced by MTM Enterprises that aired on CBS from September 16, 1972, to April 1, 1978, with a total of 142 half-hour episodes over six seasons. Comedian Bob Newhart portrays a p ...

'', '' Anna and the King'' and '' Love, American Style''.

Film

Idelson appeared as the head of a band organization in the film '' Pete Kelly's Blues''.

Writing

He was the author of three books, ''The Story of Vic and Sade'', ''Gibby'' (an autobiographical novel about a fighter pilot) and ''Bill Idelson's Writing Class''.

References

External links

*
"Bill Idelson, 88; actor, writer, producer played the son on radio's 'Vic and Sade'."
McLellan, Dennis. (January 6, 2008). ''Los Angeles Times''. {{DEFAULTSORT:Idelson, Bill 1919 births 2007 deaths Male actors from Illinois American people of Russian descent American male television actors American male radio actors American male voice actors People from Forest Park, Illinois Recipients of the Distinguished Flying Cross (United States) 20th-century American male actors Screenwriting instructors 20th-century screenwriters