''The Betty White Show'' is a television series that aired on

KLAC-TV KCOP-TV (channel 13) is a television station in Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California, United States, serving as the West Coast of the United States, West Coast flagship (broadcasting), flagship of MyNetworkTV. It is owned-and-operated station, ow ...

(now KCOP-TV) in 1952 and 1953, and on NBC in 1954. The show was a daytime

talk show A talk show (or chat show in British English) is a television programming or radio programming genre structured around the act of spontaneous conversation.Bernard M. Timberg, Robert J. Erler'' (2010Television Talk: A History of the TV Talk Show ...

that also featured entertainment segments that are typical of

variety show Variety show, also known as variety arts or variety entertainment, is entertainment made up of a variety of acts including musical theatre, musical performances, sketch comedy, magic (illusion), magic, acrobatics, juggling, and ventriloquism. It is ...

s. Betty White served as both host and producer.

Background

Betty White began as a cast member of the TV talk show ''

Hollywood on Television {{Inline, date=January 2018 ''Hollywood on Television'' is a five-and-a-half-hour, six-day-a-week live television talk show that starred newcomer Betty White and radio disc jockey Al Jarvis that ran from 1949-1953. When Jarvis left the show in 19 ...

'' in 1949, which was hosted by Al Jarvis and Eddie Albert. ''The Eddie Albert Show'' was created as a spinoff of this show, and it premiered on

KTLA KTLA (channel 5) is a television station in Los Angeles, California, United States, serving as the West Coast flagship of The CW. It is the largest directly owned property of the network's majority owner, Nexstar Media Group, and is the seco ...

in January 1952. However, as Albert was in demand as a Hollywood actor, he left the show later that year to film ''

Roman Holiday ''Roman Holiday'' is a 1953 American romantic comedy film directed and produced by William Wyler. It stars Audrey Hepburn as a princess out to see Rome on her own and Gregory Peck as a reporter. Hepburn won an Academy Award for Best Actress f ...

''. With his departure, the show was renamed for Betty White, who became the host and producer of the show. The show continued to air on

until the end of that year. In 1953, NBC had a weak television lineup, and executives began a search for new content. Hearing of White's popularity, executives flew to LA to audition her. Impressed with her performance, they agreed to air her show on NBC. The show's national premiere was on February 8, 1954. Each episode of the Betty White show featured White singing. She also interviewed guests, performed in skits, and each episode had a children's segment. The show had positive reviews, with ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

'' describing White as "attractive, charming and talented", and ''

TV Guide TV Guide is an American digital media company that provides television program Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or t ...

'' said she had "...the disposition of a storybook heroine."

Controversy

One of White's regular performers was the tap dancer

Arthur Duncan Arthur Duncan (born September 25, 1933) is an American tap dancer, also called an "Entertainer's Entertainer,"“About the International Tap Dance Hall of Fame: Biographies,” American Tap Dance Foundation, accessed April 27, 2022. known for hi ...

. Duncan's role on White's show was his big break that launched his career. Duncan was also the first black person to be a series regular on a talk show. However, as the show reached a national audience, television stations in the

Jim Crow The Jim Crow laws were state and local laws enforcing racial segregation in the Southern United States. Other areas of the United States were affected by formal and informal policies of segregation as well, but many states outside the Sout ...

-influenced

Southern United States The Southern United States (sometimes Dixie, also referred to as the Southern States, the American South, the Southland, or simply the South) is a geographic and cultural region of the United States of America. It is between the Atlantic Ocean ...

threatened a boycott if Duncan remained on the show. White refused to fire him, saying "I'm sorry, but, you know, he stays. Live with it." Duncan was unaware of the controversy until years later. In addition to the controversy about Duncan, the show also struggled to attract sponsors.

Cancellation

During 1954, NBC repeatedly changed the show's time slot and it was quietly canceled on December 31. White starred in two other television shows of the same name, in 1958 and from 1977 to 1978.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Betty White Show (1952 TV series) 1952 American television series debuts 1954 American television series endings 1950s American television talk shows English-language television shows NBC original programming Television controversies in the United States Race-related controversies in television Betty White