''The Phil Silvers Show'', originally titled ''You'll Never Get Rich'', is a

sitcom A sitcom, a portmanteau of situation comedy, or situational comedy, is a genre of comedy centered on a fixed set of characters who mostly carry over from episode to episode. Sitcoms can be contrasted with sketch comedy, where a troupe may use ...

which ran on

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 ...

from 1955 to 1959. A pilot titled "Audition Show" was made in 1955, but it was never broadcast. 143 other episodes were broadcast – all half-an-hour long except for a 1959 one-hour live special. The series starred

Phil Silvers Phil Silvers (born Phillip Silver; May 11, 1911 – November 1, 1985) was an American entertainer and comedic actor, known as "The King of Chutzpah". His career as a professional entertainer spanned nearly sixty years. Silvers achieved major popu ...

as Master Sergeant Ernest G. Bilko of the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, ...

. The series was created by

Nat Hiken Nathan Hiken (June 23, 1914 – December 7, 1968) was an American radio and television writer, producer, and songwriter who rose to prominence in the 1950s. Early years Hiken was born on June 23, 1914, in Chicago, Illinois, the son of Jewish p ...

and won three consecutive

Emmy Award The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the calendar year, each with the ...

s for Best Comedy Series. The show is sometimes titled ''Sergeant Bilko'' or simply ''Bilko'' in

reruns A rerun or repeat is a rebroadcast of an episode of a radio or television program. There are two types of reruns – those that occur during a hiatus, and those that occur when a program is syndicated. Variations In the United Kingdom, the word ...

, and it is very often referred to by these names, both on-screen and by viewers. The show's success transformed Silvers from a journeyman comedian into a star and writer-producer Hiken from a highly regarded behind-the-scenes comedy writer into a publicly recognized creator.

Production

By 1955, the American television business was already moving westward to

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world ...

, but Nat Hiken insisted on filming the series in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

, believing it to be more conducive to comedic creativity and the show's humor. Early episodes were filmed at Dumont's television center in New York City – now home to

WNYW-TV WNYW (channel 5) is a television station in New York City, serving as the flagship of the Fox network. It is owned and operated by the network's Fox Television Stations division alongside Secaucus, New Jersey–licensed MyNetworkTV flagship WWO ...

– with later episodes shot at the CBS "Hi Brown" Studios in

Chelsea, Manhattan Chelsea is a neighborhood on the West Side of the borough of Manhattan in New York City. The area's boundaries are roughly 14th Street to the south, the Hudson River and West Street to the west, and Sixth Avenue to the east, with its norther ...

. Most of the series was filmed to simulate a live performance. The actors memorized their lines and performed the scenes in sequence before a studio audience. Thus, there are occasional flubs and awkward pauses. Actor Paul Ford, playing Bilko's commanding officer, was notorious for forgetting his lines; when he would get a blank expression on his face, Silvers and the rest of the cast would improvise something to save the scene, like "Oh, you remember, Colonel, the top brass is coming..." At that point, Ford would pick up where he left off. Creator Nat Hiken wrote or co-wrote 70 of the first 71 episodes, missing only episode 70 (the third season finale.) He then left the show. In fourth and fifth seasons there were numerous staff writers, but gaining prominence as the show went on was

Neil Simon Marvin Neil Simon (July 4, 1927 – August 26, 2018) was an American playwright, screenwriter and author. He wrote more than 30 plays and nearly the same number of movie screenplays, mostly film adaptations of his plays. He has received mo ...

. Simon wrote or co-wrote 20 episodes, including the series finale. Later episodes were filmed in California. Famous producer

Mike Todd Michael Todd (born Avrom Hirsch Goldbogen; June 22, 1909 – March 22, 1958) was an American theater and film producer, best known for his 1956 production of '' Around the World in 80 Days'', which won an Academy Award for Best Picture. Act ...

, making a guest appearance, insisted that his show should be filmed like a movie, out of sequence. The cast and crew tried it and soon found that Todd's way was indeed easier. Production continued in this manner until the series ended in 1959.

Premise

The series was originally set in Fort Baxter, a sleepy, unremarkable

U.S. Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cl ...

post in the fictional town of Roseville,

Kansas Kansas () is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its Capital city, capital is Topeka, Kansas, Topeka, and its largest city is Wichita, Kansas, Wichita. Kansas is a landlocked state bordered by Nebras ...

, and centered on the soldiers of the Fort Baxter motor pool under Master Sergeant Ernest G. Bilko. However, Bilko and his men seemed to spend very little time actually performing their duties—Bilko in particular spent most of his time trying to wheedle money through various get-rich-quick scams and promotions or to find ways to get others to do his work for him. While Bilko's soldiers regularly helped him with his schemes, they were just as likely to become "pigeons" in one of his schemes. Nevertheless, Bilko exhibited an odd paternalism toward his victims, and he would doggedly shield them from all outside antagonists. The sergeant's attitude toward his men has been described thus: "They were ''his'' men and if anyone was going to take them, it was going to be him and only him." Through it all, the platoon was generally loyal to Bilko, despite their wariness of his crafty nature, and would depend on him to get them out of any military misfortune. If one of his boys was treated unfairly or was cheated in any way, Bilko always helped the injured party, using the same psychological guile and chicanery he always used to outwit his suckers. This benevolent side of Bilko was toned down in the series's later seasons (with scripts, significantly, by different writers); Bilko became strictly mercenary, willing to swindle ''anyone'' for a fast buck. Bilko's swindles were usually directed toward (or behind the back of) Col. John T. Hall, the overmatched and beleaguered post commander who had early in his career been nicknamed "Melon Head". Despite his flaws and weaknesses, Col. Hall would get the best of Bilko just often enough to establish his credentials as a wary and vigilant adversary. The colonel would often be shown looking fretfully out his window, worried without explanation or evidence, simply because he knew that Bilko was out there ''somewhere'', planning something. The colonel's wife, Nell (Hope Sansberry), had only the kindest thoughts toward Bilko, who would shamelessly flatter her whenever he met her. Bilko and Hall were not always adversaries. In an episode entitled "The Court Martial" (1956), Bilko tries to assist the colonel in setting a speed record for inducting new recruits, which accidentally results in a private's pet chimpanzee being enrolled. The animal's failure to answer when addressed by the phrase "Hurry! Speak Up!" is soon misheard and interpreted as being his name, "Harry Speakup", continuing the error and the imposture. Harry passes the medical and psychiatric exams, receives a uniform, and is formally sworn in. With the superior officers in a panic, Bilko saves the day by orchestrating an honorable discharge for the chimpanzee. The show's setting changed with the fourth season, when the men of Fort Baxter were reassigned to

Camp Fremont Camp Fremont was a World War I-era military base located near Palo Alto, California. Construction started in July 1917 and the post closed in September, 1919. The post was named for John C. Frémont, a US Army officer and government official who was ...

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

. This mass transfer was explained in storyline as being orchestrated by Bilko, who had discovered a map showing a gold deposit near the abandoned army post. One reason for the change from Kansas was so that the series could more plausibly bring in guest stars from nearby Hollywood, such as

Dean Martin Dean Martin (born Dino Paul Crocetti; June 7, 1917 – December 25, 1995) was an American singer, actor and comedian. One of the most popular and enduring American entertainers of the mid-20th century, Martin was nicknamed "The King of Cool". M ...

Mickey Rooney Mickey Rooney (born Joseph Yule Jr.; other pseudonym Mickey Maguire; September 23, 1920 – April 6, 2014) was an American actor. In a career spanning nine decades, he appeared in more than 300 films and was among the last surviving stars of the ...

Diana Dors Diana Dors (born Diana Mary Fluck; 23 October 19314 May 1984) was an English actress and singer. Dors came to public notice as a blonde bombshell, much in the style of Americans Marilyn Monroe, Jayne Mansfield and Mamie Van Doren. Dors was p ...

and

Lucille Ball Lucille Désirée Ball (August 6, 1911 – April 26, 1989) was an American actress, comedienne and producer. She was nominated for 13 Primetime Emmy Awards, winning five times, and was the recipient of several other accolades, such as the Gold ...

. Silvers even played himself in an hourlong episode.

Cast

Bilko's right-hand men were Cpl. Rocco Barbella (

Harvey Lembeck Harvey Lembeck (April 15, 1923 – January 5, 1982) was an American comedic actor best remembered for his role as Cpl. Rocco Barbella on ''The Phil Silvers Show'' (a.k.a. ''Sgt. Bilko'', a.k.a. ''You'll Never Get Rich'') in the late 1950s, and a ...

) and Cpl. Steve Henshaw (

Allan Melvin Allan John Melvin (February 18, 1923 – January 17, 2008) was an American actor and impressionist, who was cast in hundreds of television episodes from the 1950s to the early 1990s, often appearing in recurring roles on various series. Some of th ...

), and his long-suffering superior was Col. John T. Hall ( Paul Ford). Bilko's motorpool platoon included Herbie Faye (a former burlesque crony of Silvers) as Cpl. Sam Fender,

Maurice Gosfield Maurice Lionel Gosfield (January 28, 1913 – October 19, 1964) was an American stage, film, radio and television actor, best remembered for his portrayal of Private Duane Doberman on the sitcom ''The Phil Silvers Show'' (1954–1959) and voi ...

as Pvt. Duane Doberman,

Billy Sands Billy Sands (January 6, 1911 – August 27, 1984) was an American character actor who appeared as a regular on ''The Phil Silvers Show'' (''Sgt Bilko'') as Pvt. Dino Papparelli and was a regular on ''McHale's Navy'' as Harrison "Tinker" Bell. He ...

as Pvt. Dino Paparelli,

Mickey Freeman Irving "Mickey" Freeman (February 12, 1917 – September 21, 2010) was an American actor and comedian. He was best known for playing Private Fielding Zimmerman in the American sitcom television series ''The Phil Silvers Show''. Freeman guest-st ...

as diminutive Pvt. Fielding Zimmerman,

Tige Andrews Tige is a masculine given name and nickname which may refer to: People: * Tige Andrews (1920-2007), American actor * Tige Reynolds (1877–1931), American cartoonist * Tige Rodgers, co-host of the ''Tige and Daniel Show'' American radio program * ...

(billed under his given name, Tiger Andrews) as Pvt. Gander, Jack Healy as the tough-talking Pvt. Mullen, Maurice Brenner as Pvt. Irving Fleischman,

Karl Lukas Karl Lukas, born Karol Louis Lukasiak (August 21, 1919 – January 16, 1995) was an American film and television actor. He was best known for playing Pvt. Stash Kadowski in ''The Phil Silvers Show''. Lukas guest-starred in numerous television ...

as Pvt. Stash Kadowski, former boxer

Walter Cartier Walter Cartier (March 29, 1922 – August 17, 1995) was an American professional boxer and actor, born and raised in the Bronx in New York City, New York. He was of Irish ancestry, and his grandfather had changed the family surname from McCart ...

as botany fiend Pvt. Claude Dillingham, and Terry Carter as African-American Pvt. Sugarman, at a time when American society was still largely segregated. Other characters included Hope Sansberry as Mrs. Hall, Harry Clark as camp cook Sgt. Stanley Sowici, succeeded after Clark's death by burlesque comic

Joe E. Ross Joe E. Ross (born Joseph Roszawikz; March 15, 1914 – August 13, 1982) was an American actor known for his trademark "Ooo! Ooo!" exclamation, which he used in many of his roles. He starred in such TV sitcoms as ''The Phil Silvers Show'' and '' C ...

as Sgt. Rupert Ritzik;

Beatrice Pons Beatrice Pons ( Posner; January 28, 1906 – June 17, 1991) was an American stage, radio, television and film character actress. She is best known for her recurring television roles on ''The Phil Silvers Show'' and ''Car 54, Where Are You?'' She a ...

as loud-mouthed Mrs. Ritzik,

Ned Glass Nusyn "Ned" Glass (April 1, 1906 – June 15, 1984) was a Polish-born American character actor who appeared in more than eighty films and on television more than one hundred times, frequently playing nervous, cowardly, or deceitful characters. ...

as quartermaster Sgt. Andy Pendleton, Jimmy Little as Sgt. Francis Grover, Nicholas Saunders as Hall's adjutant Captain Barker and John Gibson as an unnamed Chaplain. Some episodes gave Bilko a romantic interest,

Elisabeth Fraser Elisabeth Fraser (born Elisabeth Fraser Jonker, January 8, 1920 – May 5, 2005) was an American actress, best known for playing brassy blondes. Life and career Born Elisabeth Fraser Jonker on January 8, 1920, in Brooklyn, New York, she was ...

as Sgt. Joan Hogan. The series frequently featured so many secondary cast members, with so many speaking parts, that the show ultimately became too expensive to sustain. It was this factor more than any significant decline in ratings that led to the show's demise in 1959. Though ''The Phil Silvers Show'' was never a huge ratings magnet, it was considered the top television comedy of its time. The show was

-nominated for both Comedy Writing and Best Series in all four of its seasons, winning both awards in 1956, 1957, and 1958. The series received nine other nominations during its run, with Silvers winning one individual Emmy for his performance and Nat Hiken winning one for direction. As Silvers later recalled, "We went out at our height." Guest stars included

Alan Alda Alan Alda (; born Alphonso Joseph D'Abruzzo; January 28, 1936) is an American actor, screenwriter, and director. A six-time Emmy Award and Golden Globe Award winner, he is best known for playing Captain Benjamin "Hawkeye" Pierce in the war come ...

Bea Arthur Beatrice Arthur (born Bernice Frankel; May 13, 1922 – April 25, 2009) was an American actress and comedian. Born and raised in Brooklyn, New York City, Arthur began her career on stage in 1947, attracting critical acclaim before achieving ...

Charlotte Rae Charlotte Rae Lubotsky (April 22, 1926 – August 5, 2018) was an American character actress and singer whose career spanned six decades. Rae was known for her portrayal of Edna Garrett in the sitcoms '' Diff'rent Strokes'' and its spin-off, ...

Dick Van Dyke Richard Wayne Van Dyke (born December 13, 1925) is an American actor, entertainer and comedian. His award-winning career has spanned seven decades in film, television, and stage. Van Dyke began his career as an entertainer on radio and telev ...

, Eric Fleming, Fred Gwynne,

Mark Rydell Mark Rydell (born Mortimer H. Rydell; March 23, 1929) is an American film director, producer, and actor. He has directed several Academy Award-nominated films including '' The Fox'' (1967), '' The Reivers'' (1969), ''Cinderella Liberty'' (1973) ...

, Paul Reed, Peggy Cass,

Suzanne Storrs Suzanne Storrs (April 13, 1934 – January 25, 1995), born Suzanne Storrs Poulton and later known by her married name Suzanne Pincus, was a former Miss Utah and an American television actress, who appeared in sixteen television series between 19 ...

, Darryl Richard, and

Paul Lynde Paul Edward Lynde (; June 13, 1926January 10, 1982) was an American comedian, actor and game show panelist. A character actor with a distinctively campy and snarky persona that often poked fun at his barely closeted homosexuality, Lynde was we ...

, then near the beginning of their careers. Later episodes used a wealth of veteran Hollywood character actors, including

Harold Huber Harold Huber (born Harold Joseph Huberman, December 5, 1909September 29, 1959) was an American actor who appeared on film, radio and television. Early life Huber was born in the Bronx to Jewish immigrants from Imperial Russia, who had arrived in ...

, Margaret Hamilton, Marjorie Gateson,

Natalie Schafer Natalie Schafer (November 5, 1900 – April 10, 1991) was an American actress, known for her role as Lovey Howell on the sitcom ''Gilligan's Island'' (1964–1967). Early life and career Natalie Schafer was born on November 5, 1900, in Manhatta ...

and

Frank Albertson Francis Healey Albertson (February 2, 1909 – February 29, 1964) was an American actor who had supporting roles in films such as ''It's a Wonderful Life'' (1946) and ''Psycho (1960 film), Psycho'' (1960). Early life Albertson was a nat ...

George Kennedy George Harris Kennedy Jr. (February 18, 1925 – February 28, 2016) was an American actor who appeared in more than 100 film and television productions. He played "Dragline" opposite Paul Newman in ''Cool Hand Luke'' (1967), winning the Academ ...

was the show's

US Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...

technical adviser; he had roles as a military policeman in several episodes.

Finale

In the

series finale A series finale is the final installment of an episodic entertainment series, most often a television series. It may also refer to a final theatrical sequel, the last part of a television miniseries, the last installment of a literary series, or ...

, "Weekend Colonel", Bilko discovers a short-order cook named Charlie Clusterman who is the exact double of Colonel Hall. Bilko hires the cook to impersonate the colonel, so he can cheat the other officers in a bogus charity effort. The real Colonel Hall learns of the scam, and Bilko, Henshaw, and Barbella end up being locked away in the guardhouse. As Colonel Hall looks at his prisoners on a newly installed

closed-circuit TV Closed-circuit television (CCTV), also known as video surveillance, is the use of video cameras to transmit a signal to a specific place, on a limited set of monitors. It differs from broadcast television in that the signal is not openly tr ...

system, he quips: "It's a wonderful show, and as long as I'm the sponsor, it will never be cancelled." The camera cuts to Bilko and his henchmen finally behind bars. Bilko waves to the camera and says, " Th-th-that's all, folks!"

Episodes

Aftermath

Following the show's cancellation,

shortsightedly sold the rights to

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are l ...

: the rival network immediately aired reruns five days a week to great financial returns. Some of the show's other actors were recruited by "Bilko" producer Edward J. Montagne to appear in Nat Hiken's follow-up sitcom ''

Car 54, Where Are You? ''Car 54, Where Are You?'' is an American sitcom that aired on NBC from September 1961 to April 1963. Filmed in black and white, the series starred Joe E. Ross as Gunther Toody and Fred Gwynne as Francis Muldoon, two mismatched New York City p ...

'' and in ''

McHale's Navy ''McHale's Navy'' is an American sitcom starring Ernest Borgnine that aired 138 half-hour episodes over four seasons, from October 11, 1962, to April 12, 1966, on the ABC television network. The series was filmed in black and white and originate ...

''. Silvers was able to parody, or play off, his enduring Bilko persona for the rest of his career. In 1963–1964, he starred in '' The New Phil Silvers Show'', which attempted to transplant his mercenary character to a factory setting, but the result proved unpopular. Silvers frequently guest-starred on ''

The Beverly Hillbillies ''The Beverly Hillbillies'' is an American television sitcom that was broadcast on CBS from 1962 to 1971. It had an ensemble cast featuring Buddy Ebsen, Irene Ryan, Donna Douglas, and Max Baer Jr. as the Clampetts, a poor, backwoods family f ...

'' as a character called Honest John. He also played unscrupulous Broadway producer Harold Hecuba on an episode of ''

Gilligan's Island ''Gilligan's Island'' is an American sitcom created and produced by Sherwood Schwartz. The show's ensemble cast features Bob Denver, Alan Hale Jr., Jim Backus, Natalie Schafer, Tina Louise, Russell Johnson and Dawn Wells. It aired for th ...

'', stealing the castaways' concept for a musical version of ''

Hamlet ''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play, with 29,551 words. Set in Denmark, the play depicts ...

''. In an episode of ''

The Lucy Show ''The Lucy Show'' is an American sitcom that aired on CBS from 1962 to 1968. It was Lucille Ball's follow-up to '' I Love Lucy''. A significant change in cast and premise for the fourth season (1965–1966) divides the program into two distin ...

'', Silvers was a demanding efficiency expert; at one point, Lucy's boss Mr. Mooney (

Gale Gordon Gale Gordon (born Charles Thomas Aldrich Jr., February 20, 1906 – June 30, 1995) was an American character actor perhaps best remembered as Lucille Ball's longtime television foil—and particularly as cantankerously combustible, tightfiste ...

), remarks that Silvers reminds him of a sergeant he used to know. Silvers also portrayed greedy connivers in various movies, such as ''

It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World ''It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World'' is a 1963 American comedy film produced and directed by Stanley Kramer with a story and screenplay by William Rose and Tania Rose. The film, starring Spencer Tracy with an all-star cast of comedians, is a ...

'' (1963), in which Paul Ford had a supporting role as a colonel, though they shared no scenes, and ''

A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum ''A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum'' is a Musical theatre, musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and book by Burt Shevelove and Larry Gelbart. Inspired by the farces of the Ancient Rome, ancient Roman playwright Plautu ...

'' (1966). The British film ''

Follow That Camel ''Follow That Camel'' is a 1967 British comedy film, the 14th in the series of 31 ''Carry On'' films (1958–1992). Like its predecessor ''Don't Lose Your Head'', it does not have the words "Carry On" in its original title (though for screenin ...

'' (1967) cast him as a scheming sergeant, this time in the

French Foreign Legion The French Foreign Legion (french: Légion étrangère) is a corps of the French Army which comprises several specialties: infantry, Armoured Cavalry Arm, cavalry, Military engineering, engineers, Airborne forces, airborne troops. It was created ...

. The original ''You'll Never Get Rich'' program, which was filmed in

black-and-white Black-and-white (B&W or B/W) images combine black and white in a continuous spectrum, producing a range of shades of grey. Media The history of various visual media began with black and white, and as technology improved, altered to color. ...

, was widely rerun into the 1970s. The advent of

color television Color television or Colour television is a television transmission technology that includes color information for the picture, so the video image can be displayed in color on the television set. It improves on the monochrome or black-and-white t ...

rendered it and many similar programs less marketable than they had been previously. The series reemerged in the late 1980s on the fledgling cable channel

Comedy Central Comedy Central is an American basic cable channel owned by Paramount Global through its network division's MTV Entertainment Group unit, based in Manhattan. The channel is geared towards young adults aged 18–34 and carries comedy programming ...

, then again on

Nick at Nite Nick at Nite (stylized as nick@nite) is an American nighttime basic cable television channel that broadcasts over the channel space of Nickelodeon. It typically broadcasts Mondays to Thursday nights from 9 p.m. - 6:30 a.m. Eastern Time Zone, ET/Pac ...

for a short time during the 1990s (serving as charter programming for

TV Land TV Land is an American pay television channel owned by Paramount Global through its networks division. Originally a spinoff of Nick at Nite consisting exclusively of classic television shows, the channel now airs a combination of recent and cla ...

in 1996), and

MeTV MeTV, an acronym for Memorable Entertainment Television, is an American broadcast television network owned by Weigel Broadcasting. Marketed as "The Definitive Destination for Classic TV", the network airs a variety of classic television program ...

. In the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

the show enjoyed intermittent showings for many years, finally being broadcast on the

BBC Two BBC Two is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network owned and operated by the BBC. It covers a wide range of subject matter, with a remit "to broadcast programmes of depth and substance" in contrast to the more mainstream an ...

channel in 2004. Currently, it can be seen on

Decades TV Decades is an Americans, American Digital terrestrial television, digital broadcast television network owned by Weigel Broadcasting. The network, which is mainly carried on the digital subchannels of television stations, primarily airs classic te ...

(a network broadcast on secondary television channels in many markets, and a sister channel to Me-TV, with

CBS Television Stations CBS News and Stations (formerly CBS Television Stations) is a division of the CBS Entertainment Group unit of Paramount Global that owns and operates a group of American television stations. , Paramount owns 28 stations, broken down as follows: ...

owning the network with the owner of Me-TV,

Weigel Broadcasting Weigel Broadcasting Co. is an American television broadcasting company based in Chicago, Illinois, alongside its flagship station WCIU-TV (Channel 26), at 26 North Halsted Street in the Greektown neighborhood. It currently owns 25 television sta ...

Legacy

The Bilko persona was borrowed by the

Hanna-Barbera Hanna-Barbera Cartoons, Inc. ( ) was an American animation studio and production company which was active from 1957 to 2001. It was founded on July 7, 1957, by William Hanna and Joseph Barbera following the decision of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer to c ...

animation studio for its television cartoon series ''

Top Cat ''Top Cat'' is an American animated sitcom produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions and originally broadcast in prime time on the ABC network. It aired in a weekly evening time slot from September 27, 1961, to April 18, 1962, for a single season of ...

'', which drew on elements from ''The Phil Silvers Show''.

from the original platoon voiced Benny the Ball. ''

Hokey Wolf ''Hokey Wolf'' is a Hanna-Barbera cartoon about the adventures of a con-artist wolf who is always trying to cheat his way into the simple life. He is often accompanied alongside by his young, diminutive, sidekick son Ding-A-Ling Wolf, both of who ...

'' was another Hanna-Barbera production that borrowed heavily from ''The Phil Silvers Show''. The episode of ''

The Flintstones ''The Flintstones'' is an American animated sitcom produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions. The series takes place in a romanticized Stone Age setting and follows the activities of the titular family, the Flintstones, and their next-door neighb ...

'' that introduced Dino gave the pet dinosaur a Sgt. Bilko-styled voice and character. After this atypical debut, Dino never spoke again. Another episode recruited

Fred Flintstone Fred Flintstone is the main character of the animated sitcom '' The Flintstones'', which aired during prime-time on ABC during the original series' run from 1960 to 1966. Fred is the husband of Wilma Flintstone and father of Pebbles Flintsto ...

and

Barney Rubble Barney Rubble is a fictional character who appears in the television animated series ''The Flintstones''. He is the diminutive, blond-haired caveman husband of Betty Rubble and adoptive father of Bamm-Bamm Rubble. His best friend is his next d ...

into the army, where they were conned by an unnamed Bilko-like character into becoming astronaut test pilots. The film ''

The Manchurian Candidate ''The Manchurian Candidate'' is a novel by Richard Condon, first published in 1959. It is a political thriller about the son of a prominent U.S. political family who is brainwashed into being an unwitting assassin for a Communist conspiracy. Th ...

'' (1962) used the names of several people associated with ''Sgt Bilko'' for the members of a Korean War patrol – Cpl Allan Melvin, Pvt Silvers, Pvt Hiken, and Pvt Lembeck. The characters also appear in the novel ''

'', which has been plagued with multiple assertions of

plagiarism Plagiarism is the fraudulent representation of another person's language, thoughts, ideas, or expressions as one's own original work.From the 1995 '' Random House Compact Unabridged Dictionary'': use or close imitation of the language and thought ...

. In 1987, a British tourist visited

Tibet Tibet (; ''Böd''; ) is a region in East Asia, covering much of the Tibetan Plateau and spanning about . It is the traditional homeland of the Tibetan people. Also resident on the plateau are some other ethnic groups such as Monpa people, ...

wearing a Phil Silvers "Sgt Bilko" T-shirt. Chinese soldiers attempted to rip it off her because they thought the picture was the

Dalai Lama Dalai Lama (, ; ) is a title given by the Tibetan people to the foremost spiritual leader of the Gelug or "Yellow Hat" school of Tibetan Buddhism, the newest and most dominant of the four major schools of Tibetan Buddhism. The 14th and current Dal ...

Larry David Lawrence Gene David (born July 2, 1947) is an American comedian, writer, actor, and television producer. He and Jerry Seinfeld created the television sitcom ''Seinfeld'', on which David was head writer and executive producer for the first seve ...

, creator and star of ''

Curb Your Enthusiasm ''Curb Your Enthusiasm'' is an American television sitcom produced and broadcast by HBO since October 15, 2000, and created by Larry David, who stars as a semi-fictionalized version of himself. It follows David's life as a semi-retired televisio ...

'', has called ''The Phil Silvers Show'' his favorite television show. From 1957 to 1960,

DC Comics DC Comics, Inc. (doing business as DC) is an American comic book publisher and the flagship unit of DC Entertainment, a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery. DC Comics is one of the largest and oldest American comic book companies, with thei ...

published a Sergeant Bilko

comic book A comic book, also called comicbook, comic magazine or (in the United Kingdom and Ireland) simply comic, is a publication that consists of comics art in the form of sequential juxtaposed panels that represent individual scenes. Panels are of ...

which lasted 16 issues and a Sergeant Bilko's Private Doberman series that lasted 11 issues. Most of the covers and inside artwork were by

Bob Oksner Bob Oksner (October 14, 1916 in Paterson, New Jersey – February 18, 2007) was an American comics artist known for both adventure comic strips and for superhero and humor comic books, primarily at DC Comics. Biography Oksner's early wo ...

Broadcast history

* September 1955-October 1955 – Tuesdays at 8:30-9:00 pm on CBS * November 1955-January 1958 – Tuesdays at 8:00-8:30 pm on CBS * February 1958-September 1959 – Fridays at 9:00-9:30 pm on CBS

Reception

Broadcast ratings

Primetime Emmy Award Nominations and Wins

1955 (presented March 17, 1956)

* Best Comedy Series – Won * Best Actor (Continuing Performance): Phil Silvers – Won * Best Comedy Writing: Nat Hiken, Barry Blitzer, Arnold Auerbach, Harvey Orkin, Vincent Bogert, Arnold Rosen, Coleman Jacoby, Tony Webster and Terry Ryan – Won * Best Producer (Film Series): Nat Hiken – Nominated (Winner:

Walt Disney Walter Elias Disney (; December 5, 1901December 15, 1966) was an American animator, film producer and entrepreneur. A pioneer of the American animation industry, he introduced several developments in the production of cartoons. As a film p ...

, ''Disneyland'') * Best Director (Film Series) Nat Hiken – Won

1956 (presented March 16, 1957)

* Best Series (Half Hour or Less) – Won * Best Continuing Performance by a Comedian in a Series: Phil Silvers – Nominated (Winner:

Sid Caesar Isaac Sidney Caesar (September 8, 1922 – February 12, 2014) was an American comic actor, comedian and writer. With a career spanning 60 years, he was best known for two pioneering 1950s live television series: ''Your Show of Shows'' (1950� ...

, '' Caesar's Hour'') * Best Supporting Performance by an Actor: Paul Ford – Nominated (Winner:

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, ...

, ''Caesar's Hour'') * Best Comedy Writing (Variety or Situation Comedy): Nat Hiken,

Billy Friedberg William Friedberg (April 22, 1915 - April 7, 1965) was an American television producer, producer and screenwriter. Friedberg started his career in 1950 writing for ''Four Star Revue, All Star Revue''. In 1951 he appeared in the broadway play '' ...

, Tony Webster, Leonard Stern, Arnold Rosen and Coleman Jacoby – Won

1957 (presented April 15, 1958)

* Best Comedy Series – Won * Best Continuing Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Dramatic or Comedy Series: Phil Silvers – Nominated (Winner: Robert Young, ''

Father Knows Best ''Father Knows Best'' is an American sitcom starring Robert Young, Jane Wyatt, Elinor Donahue, Billy Gray and Lauren Chapin. The series, which began on radio in 1949, aired as a television show for six seasons and 203 episodes. Created by E ...

'') * Best Continuing Supporting Performance by an Actor in a Dramatic or Comedy Series: Paul Ford – Nominated (Winner: Carl Reiner, ''Caesar's Hour'') * Best Comedy Writing: Nat Hiken, Billy Friedberg, Phil Sharp, Terry Ryan, Coleman Jacoby, Arnold Rosen, Sydney Zelinka, A.J. Russell and Tony Webster – Won

1958–1959 (presented May 6, 1959)

* Best Comedy Series – Nominated (Winner: ''

The Jack Benny Show ''The Jack Benny Program'', starring Jack Benny, is a radio-TV comedy series that ran for more than three decades and is generally regarded as a high-water mark in 20th century American comedy. He played one role throughout his radio and televis ...

'') * Best Actor in a Leading Role (Continuing Character) in a Comedy Series: Phil Silvers – Nominated (Winner:

Jack Benny Jack Benny (born Benjamin Kubelsky, February 14, 1894 – December 26, 1974) was an American entertainer who evolved from a modest success playing violin on the vaudeville circuit to one of the leading entertainers of the twentieth century with ...

, ''The Jack Benny Show'') * Best Supporting Actor (Continuing Character) in a Comedy Series: Maurice Gosfield – Nominated (Winner:

Tom Poston Tom or TOM may refer to: * Tom (given name), a diminutive of Thomas or Tomás or an independent Aramaic given name (and a list of people with the name) Characters * Tom Anderson, a character in ''Beavis and Butt-Head'' * Tom Beck, a character ...

, ''

The Steve Allen Show ''The Steve Allen Show'' was an American variety show hosted by Steve Allen from June 1956 to June 1960 on NBC, from September 1961 to December 1961 on American Broadcasting Company, ABC,

'') * Best Writing of a Single Program of a Comedy Series: Billy Friedberg, Arnie Rosen and Coleman Jacoby for "Bilko's Vampire" - Nominated (Winner: Sam Perrin, George Balzer, Hal Goldman and Al Gordon for ''The Jack Benny Show'': "Jack Benny Show with Ernie Kovacs")

UK broadcasts

The series was shown weekly on

BBC Television BBC Television is a service of the BBC. The corporation has operated a public broadcast television service in the United Kingdom, under the terms of a royal charter, since 1927. It produced television programmes from its own studios from 193 ...

during its original run from 20 April 1957 onwards, in varying timeslots, with the final first-run episode "Weekend Colonel" airing on 15 January 1961. The series returned in repeats on BBC Television (later

BBC1 BBC One is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's flagship network and is known for broadcasting mainstream programming, which includes BBC News television bulletins, ...

) from June 1961 to March 1967, after which it was absent from the screen until April 1973, when it returned in a late-night timeslot (although listed in ''

Radio Times ''Radio Times'' (currently styled as ''RadioTimes'') is a British weekly listings magazine devoted to television and radio programme schedules, with other features such as interviews, film reviews and lifestyle items. Founded in May 1923 by J ...

'' as ''Sergeant Bilko''/''Bilko''), becoming a staple of BBC1's post-11pm late-night schedule throughout the 1970s and 1980s, usually appearing immediately prior to the channel's signoff (before BBC One, as the channel was now rendered, became a 24-hour broadcaster in November 1997). The series was moved to an early evening timeslot on

BBC2 BBC Two is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network owned and operated by the BBC. It covers a wide range of subject matter, with a remit "to broadcast programmes of depth and substance" in contrast to the more mainstream an ...

, beginning a repeat run of all four seasons in broadcast order from 7 November 1984. This repeat run continued through to 22 November 1991, at which point the BBC had aired all available episodes. Episodes continued to be shown, although no longer in their original broadcast order, from 1993 to 2004, with the BBC's last broadcast episode, "Bilko and the Flying Saucers", appearing on 5 November 2004. The UK publication ''Radio Times Guide to Comedy'' ranked ''The Phil Silvers Show'' as its top TV sitcom in 2003. Phil Silvers as Sergeant Bilko appeared on the B.B.C's

Tommy Trinder Thomas Edward Trinder CBE (24 March 1909 – 10 July 1989) was an English stage, screen and radio comedian whose catchphrase was "You lucky people!". Described by cultural historian Matthew Sweet as "a cocky, front-of-cloth variety turn", he was ...

series ''The Trinder Box'' during June 1959. The ''Radio Times'' of 12 June 1959 had a full cover photo of Phil Silvers as Bilko.

Home media

In May 2006,

CBS DVD CBS Home Entertainment (formerly CBS Video Enterprises, Inc., MGM/CBS Home Video, CBS/Fox Video and CBS Video, currently branded as CBS DVD for DVD releases and CBS Blu-ray for Blu-ray releases) is a home entertainment company owned by Paramoun ...

released a 50th anniversary collection entitled ''The Phil Silvers Show: 50th Anniversary Edition''. The three-disc set features 18 episodes from the series. On July 27, 2010,

(distributed by

Paramount Paramount (from the word ''paramount'' meaning "above all others") may refer to: Entertainment and music companies * Paramount Global, also known simply as Paramount, an American mass media company formerly known as ViacomCBS. The following busin ...

) released the first season of ''The Phil Silvers Show'' on DVD in Region 1 format. A region 2 release followed on September 6 of the same year. On August 5, 2014, it was announced that

Shout! Factory Shout! Factory is an American home video and music company founded in 2002 as Retropolis Entertainment. Its video releases include previously released feature films, classic and contemporary television series, animation, live music, and comedy ...

had acquired the rights to the series in Region 1 and would release ''Sgt. Bilko -The Phil Silvers Show: The Complete Series'' on November 4, 2014. In 2015, they began releasing individual season sets, season 2 was released on April 28, 2015 followed by season 3 on August 4, 2015. The fourth and final season was released on November 17, 2015. In Region 2, Mediumrare Entertainment has acquired the rights in the UK and released ''Sgt. Bilko – The Phil Silvers Show: - Complete Collection'' on DVD on September 22, 2014.

In other media

Film

''The Phil Silvers Show'' was the basis of a critically and commercially unsuccessful movie, '' Sgt. Bilko'' (1996), starring

Steve Martin Stephen Glenn Martin (born August 14, 1945) is an American actor, comedian, writer, producer, and musician. He has won five Grammy Awards, a Primetime Emmy Award, and was awarded an Honorary Academy Award in 2013. Additionally, he was nominated ...

as Bilko,

Dan Aykroyd Daniel Edward Aykroyd ( ; born July 1, 1952) is a Canadian actor, comedian, producer, musician and writer. He was an original member of the "Not Ready for Prime Time Players" on ''Saturday Night Live'' (1975–1979). During his tenure on ''SNL'' ...

as Colonel Hall,

Max Casella Max Casella (born Maximilian Deitch; June 6, 1967) is an American actor. He is known for his roles on the television series ''Doogie Howser, M.D.'', ''The Sopranos'', ''Boardwalk Empire'', ''Vinyl'', '' Cro'' and the voice of Daxter in the ''Jak ...

as Paparelli, and Eric Edwards as Doberman, with Phil Silvers' daughter, Cathy Silvers, at Lt. Monday. The plot centers around an investigation into wrongdoings in Fort Baxter by Major Thorn (played by

Phil Hartman Philip Edward Hartman (; September 24, 1948 – May 28, 1998) was a Canadian-American actor, comedian, screenwriter and graphic designer. Hartman was born in Brantford, Ontario, Canada, and his family moved to the United States w ...

), an old rival of Bilko's, who will stop at nothing to get the better of Bilko.

References

External links

*
The Phil Silvers Show
at the

Museum of Broadcast Communications The Museum of Broadcast Communications (MBC) is an American museum, the stated mission of which is "to collect, preserve, and present historic and contemporary radio and television content as well as educate, inform and entertain through our archi ...

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