''Henry Morgan's Great Talent Hunt'' is a TV series on
NBC Television
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 ...
hosted by
Henry Morgan
Sir Henry Morgan ( cy, Harri Morgan; – 25 August 1688) was a privateer, plantation owner, and, later, Lieutenant Governor of Jamaica. From his base in Port Royal, Jamaica, he raided settlements and shipping on the Spanish Main, becoming we ...
. The show aired from January 26 to June 1, 1951, originally from 9 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. ET and then to 9:30 p.m. to 10 p.m. ET.
Program formats
''Henry Morgan's Great Talent Hunt'' began January 26, 1951, replacing ''
Versatile Varieties
''Versatile Varieties'', also known as ''Bonnie Maid Versatile Varieties'' and ''Bonny Maid Versatile Varieties'', is a TV series that ran from 1949 to 1951 on NBC, CBS and ABC under three different formats. The sponsor was Bonnie Maid Linoleum.
...
''. The first format for the Morgan show was a take-off on ''
The Original Amateur Hour
''The Original Amateur Hour'' is an American radio and television program. The show was a continuation of ''Major Bowes Amateur Hour'' which had been a radio staple from 1934 to 1945. Major Edward Bowes, the originator of the program and its mas ...
'' with Morgan as host, and featuring
Kaye Ballard
Kaye Ballard (November 20, 1925 – January 21, 2019) was an American actress, comedian, and singer.
Early life
Ballard was born Catherine Gloria Balotta in Cleveland, Ohio, one of four children born to Italian immigrant parents, Lena (née Nac ...
(in her TV debut),
Art Carney
Arthur William Matthew Carney (November 4, 1918 – November 9, 2003) was an American actor and comedian. A recipient of an Academy Award, a Golden Globe Award, and six Primetime Emmy Awards, he was best known for his role as Ed Norton on the si ...
Arnold Stang
Arnold Sidney Stang (September 28, 1918 – December 20, 2009) ''
. The program "featured people who had unusual abilities", such as a man who picked a violin's strings with his teeth and a girl who played an instrument while tap dancing.
In April, NBC changed the title and format to ''The Henry Morgan Show'', a music-variety show featuring singers
Dorothy Claire
Dorothy Claire (born Marietta Wright, June 5, 1920 – September 4, 1982) was an American singer and actress on Broadway and with big bands.
Early years
The daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Nelson Wright, Claire was born in La Porte, Indiana on June 5, 1 ...
and Dorothy Jarnac in musical segments between Morgan's comedy skits. This latter format lasted until June 1.
*Alex McNeil, ''Total Television'', Fourth edition (New York:
Penguin Books
Penguin Books is a British publishing house. It was co-founded in 1935 by Allen Lane with his brothers Richard and John, as a line of the publishers The Bodley Head, only becoming a separate company the following year.Ballantine Books, 1964) {{ISBN, 0-345-31864-1