Pincus Leff (May 2, 1907 – April 3, 1993), better known as Pinky Lee, was an American burlesque comic and host of the children's television program ''The Pinky Lee Show'' in the early 1950s.
Biography
Born in
Saint Paul, Minnesota
Saint Paul (abbreviated St. Paul) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital of the U.S. state of Minnesota and the county seat of Ramsey County, Minnesota, Ramsey County. Situated on high bluffs overlooking a bend in the Mississip ...
, Lee got his start in show business in the 1920s as a tap dancer in the chorus of the Brodrick-Felsen & Co. vaudeville act, traveling on the Keith Orpheum circuit. Later, he worked as a comic of the "baggy pants" variety on stage, becoming an expert at the
slapstick
Slapstick is a style of humor involving exaggerated physical activity that exceeds the boundaries of normal physical comedy. Slapstick may involve both intentional violence and violence by mishap, often resulting from inept use of props such a ...
, comic dancing and rapid-fire jokes of the burlesque style. During the 1940s, he was heard on ''
Drene Time
''Drene Time'' (aka ''The Drene Show'') was a 30-minute radio variety show starring Don Ameche and singer-actress Frances Langford as co-hosts, airing on NBC's Sunday night schedule (10-10:30pm Eastern) in 1946–47.
The series was sponsored by P ...
'' and other radio programs.
Easily recognized by his trademark lisp and high-energy antics, his signature costume was a loud
plaid
Plaid () may refer to:
Fabric
* Full plaid, a cloth made with a tartan pattern, wrapped around the waist, cast over the shoulder and fastened at the front
* A synonym for tartan in North America
* A plaid shirt, typically of flannel and worn du ...
suit
A suit, lounge suit, or business suit is a set of clothes comprising a suit jacket and trousers of identical textiles worn with a collared dress shirt, necktie, and dress shoes. A skirt suit is similar, but with a matching skirt instead of tr ...
with baggy
checkered
Check (also checker, Brit: chequer) is a pattern of modified stripes consisting of crossed horizontal and vertical lines which form squares. The pattern typically contains two colours where a single checker (that is a single square within the chec ...
pants and an undersized hat. During his routines, whenever anybody irritated him (which happened frequently) he would unleash his catchphrase: "Oooooh! You make me so ''mad!"''
Television
In 1950, he had his own 30-minute primetime variety television series on NBC, ''The Pinky Lee Show'', featuring vaudevillians and burlesque comics. In 1951–52 he starred with
Vivian Blaine
Vivian Blaine (born Vivian Stapleton; November 21, 1921 – December 9, 1995) was an American actress and singer, best known for originating the role of Miss Adelaide in the musical theater production of ''Guys and Dolls'', as well as appearin ...
in a 15-minute sitcom, ''Those Two''.
He returned on January 4, 1954, with ''The Pinky Lee Show'', a children's show sponsored by
Tootsie Roll
Tootsie Roll is a chocolate-flavored taffy that has been manufactured in the United States since 1907. The candy has qualities similar to both caramels and taffy without being exactly either confection. The manufacturer, Tootsie Roll Indu ...
. An Emmy-nominated afternoon children's program that spawned later imitators such as ''
Pee-Wee's Playhouse
''Pee-wee's Playhouse'' is an American television series starring Paul Reubens as the childlike Pee-wee Herman that ran from 1986 to 1990 on Saturday mornings on CBS, and airing in reruns until July 1991. The show was developed from Reubens's po ...
'', it was followed each day by the popular ''
Howdy Doody Show
''Howdy Doody'' is an American Children's television series, children's television program (with circus and Western (genre), Western frontier themes) that was created and produced by Victor F Campbell
''. Lee opened each show with his trademark theme song, "Yoo Hoo, It's Me!":
:Yoo hoo, it's me,
:My name is Pinky Lee.
:I skip and run bring lots of fun
:To every he and she.
:It's plain to see
:That you can tell it's me
:With my checkered hat
:And my checkered coat,
:The funny giggle in my throat
:And my silly dance
:Like a billy goat.
:Put 'em all together,
:Put 'em all together,
:And it's whooooo?
(Audience): PINKY!!!!!
Others in the cast: Betty Jane Howarth, Jimmy Brown, Molly Bee, Jack McCoy, Mel Koontz, Cindy Sue, Susabelle, Ken Mayer, Isabel Dwan, Sidney Fields, Margie Lizst, Milton Newberger and Jymme Shore. Adding to the show's bounce and style was its musical director and master organist Gaylord Carter, who underscored every moment with appropriate accompaniment.
In September 1955, Lee collapsed on camera during a live show due to illness. His normal antics were so energetic that apparently the cameraman and the show's director assumed the fall an ''ad lib'' part of his performance. The "Peanut Gallery", an audience usually composed almost entirely of pre-adolescent children who were coached by a staff member, continued their enthusiastic cheering and applause from the on-stage bleachers. After as much as ten seconds of writhing by the stricken Lee, the camera abruptly panned to the still-cheering audience. The following afternoons Pinky Lee was not present. This effectively ended his leading role on the show, which continued without him until June 9, 1956.
Rumors that he had died of a
heart attack
A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when blood flow decreases or stops to the coronary artery of the heart, causing damage to the heart muscle. The most common symptom is chest pain or discomfort which may tr ...
, prompted by the incident, persisted for decades. Occasionally, newspaper items mentioned the "late" Lee – even though he was performing at a
dinner theater
Dinner theater (sometimes called dinner and a show) is a form of entertainment that combines a restaurant meal with a staged play or musical. "Dinner and a show" can also refer to a restaurant meal in combination with live concert music, where pat ...
in the same city as one of the reporting newspapers. The incident also spawned rumors that Lee had been institutionalized after going
insane
Insanity, madness, lunacy, and craziness are behaviors performed by certain abnormal mental or behavioral patterns. Insanity can be manifest as violations of societal norms, including a person or persons becoming a danger to themselves or to ...
on
live television
Live television is a television production broadcast in real-time, as events happen, in the present. In a secondary meaning, it may refer to streaming television over the Internet when content or programming is played continuously (not on demand) ...
.
In 1957, Lee hosted '' The Gumby Show'', the original appearance of that claymation character. In 1963, Lee attempted a return to kids' TV, hosting a local children's comedy program on KABC-TV in Los Angeles. This series was nationally syndicated for the 1964–65 TV seasons, but the program fell prey to creative interference from the show's producers and station management. Lee fought the interference, but his efforts were for naught. ''The Pinky Lee Kids TV Show'' went off the air after one season. One episode was released on DVD/VHS by Shokus Video, and a DVD with two episodes was released by
Alpha Video
Alpha Video (also known as Alpha Home Entertainment) is an entertainment company, based near Philadelphia, that specializes in the manufacturing and marketing of public domain movies and TV shows on DVD. Alpha Video releases approximately 30 ne ...
.
Lee returned to television in 1983, appearing on NBC's ''Yummy Awards,'' a mock awards show hosted by
Ricky Schroder
Richard Bartlett Schroder (born April 13, 1970) is an American actor and filmmaker. As a child actor billed as Ricky Schroder he debuted in the film '' The Champ'' (1979), for which he became the youngest Golden Globe award recipient, and went o ...
that honored the best children's TV programming of the year.
South of Caliente
'' South of Caliente '' is a 1951 American Western film directed by William Witney and starring Roy Rogers
Roy Rogers (born Leonard Franklin Slye; November 5, 1911 – July 6, 1998) was an American singer, actor, and television host. Follow ...
'', and '' Blonde Ransom''; and Lee appeared on television shows, including Ed Sullivan's ''Toast of the Town''.
Lee also appeared in regional theaters throughout the U.S. in '' Sugar Babies'' and other shows in the late 1980s.
Filmography
Film
Personal life
Lee was married to Bebe (née Beatrice Dancis), with whom he had two children, Patricia Bonnie Lee and Morgan David Lee. Lee's brother-in-law was well-known
Tin Pan Alley
Tin Pan Alley was a collection of music publishers and songwriters in New York City that dominated the popular music of the United States in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. It originally referred to a specific place: West 28th Street ...
songwriter
Al Sherman
Avrum Sherman (September 7, 1897 – September 16, 1973), pen name Al Sherman, was a Russian-American songwriter and composer active during the Tin Pan Alley era in American music history. Some of his most recognizable song titles include: "Yo ...
. Lee was also the uncle of the
Sherman Brothers
The Sherman Brothers were an American songwriting duo that specialized in musical films, made up of Robert B. Sherman (December 19, 1925 – March 6, 2012) and Richard M. Sherman (born June 12, 1928). Together they received various accolades in ...
,
Robert
The name Robert is an ancient Germanic given name, from Proto-Germanic "fame" and "bright" (''Hrōþiberhtaz''). Compare Old Dutch ''Robrecht'' and Old High German ''Hrodebert'' (a compound of '' Hruod'' ( non, Hróðr) "fame, glory, honou ...
and
Richard
Richard is a male given name. It originates, via Old French, from Frankish language, Old Frankish and is a Compound (linguistics), compound of the words descending from Proto-Germanic language, Proto-Germanic ''*rīk-'' 'ruler, leader, king' an ...
, with whom he also worked from time to time in the 1950s.
Later years and death
In later years, Lee worked as a teacher and appeared in regional musical theater productions. He died in 1993 in
Mission Viejo, California
Mission Viejo ( ; corruption of ''Misión Vieja'', Spanish for "Old Mission") is a commuter city in the Saddleback Valley in Orange County, California, United States. Mission Viejo is considered one of the largest master-planned communities eve ...
. His interment was at
Mount Sinai Memorial Park Cemetery
Mount Sinai Memorial Park Cemetery is the largest Jewish cemetery organization in California.
History
Mount Sinai Memorial Parks and Mortuaries, owned by Sinai Temple of Los Angeles, refers to two Jewish cemeteries in the Los Angeles metropo ...
* In '' Grease'', Rizzo remarks, "To you from me, Pinky Lee!", after she throws Kenickie's milkshake in his face.
*
Gene Kelly
Eugene Curran Kelly (August 23, 1912 – February 2, 1996) was an American actor, dancer, singer, filmmaker, and choreographer. He was known for his energetic and athletic dancing style and sought to create a new form of American dance accessibl ...
plays dancing comic Pinky Benson in ''
What a Way to Go!
''What a Way to Go!'' is a 1964 American black comedy film directed by J. Lee Thompson and starring Shirley MacLaine, Paul Newman, Robert Mitchum, Dean Martin, Gene Kelly, Bob Cummings and Dick Van Dyke.
Plot
In a dream-like pre-credit sequ ...
'' (1964)
* In a third-season episode of ''
The Golden Girls
''The Golden Girls'' is an American sitcom created by Susan Harris that aired on NBC from September 14, 1985, to May 9, 1992, with a total of 180 half-hour episodes, spanning seven seasons. With an ensemble cast starring Bea Arthur, Betty White ...
'', Sophia Petrillo describes how her friend Lillian thinks "she is Pinky Lee."
* In a first-season episode of ''
Night Court
''Night Court'' is an American television sitcom that aired on NBC from January 4, 1984 to May 31, 1992. The setting was the night shift of a Manhattan municipal court presided over by a young, unorthodox judge, Harold "Harry" T. Stone (portray ...
'', Dan Fielding remarks that Judge Stone's age is one of the things he never wonders about, "like is Pinky Lee still alive?" Broadcast in 1984, the answer at the time was "yes".
* Lee is referenced in the 2013 posthumously released autobiography of Robert B. Sherman, '' Moose: Chapters from My Life'' in the chapters entitled, "Wee Stinky (Part 1)" and "Wee Stinky (Part 2)".
* Lee along with Rosie (Rosemary) Clooney and Red Skelton are mentioned as targets of the Chad Mitchell Trio's satirical "The John Birch Society" song.
* Lee's collapse on stage was spoofed on ''
The Simpsons
''The Simpsons'' is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series is a satirical depiction of American life, epitomized by the Simpson family, which consists of Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa, ...
'' in the 1990 episode where "
Krusty Gets Busted
"Krusty Gets Busted" is the twelfth and penultimate episode of the first season of the American animated television series ''The Simpsons''. It originally aired on the Fox Network in the United States on April 29, 1990.Bride of Boogedy'', Pinky Lee's name is mentioned in a fake seance as a possible spirit to contact (along with Alexander the Great and Julius Caesar), even though Pinky Lee is still alive and didn't die until 1993.
He was also an inspiration for the Pee Wee Herman character
TV Party
Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or the medium of television transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertising, ...