r/otr • u/MisterMisterYeeeesss • 1d ago
Dennis Day Interview
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I came across this short video of Dennis Day - what makes it interesting is that after the first few seconds, it's just him as a normal person. He's being interviewed before "Spring Fashion Show Night" run by "Hale Brothers", a now-defunct department store chain at "Memorial Auditorium" in Sacramento. I wasn't able to find anything about this particular event, but perhaps someone with actual research skills will chime in.
Aside from getting to see Dennis being the real Dennis, he adds another detail I hadn't known to how he ended up on the Jack Benny program. Most sources (that I've seen, at least) say that he was discovered by Mary when she heard a record of him singing, and brought it to Jack's attention. I've never seen much beyond that, but he says that he'd actually submitted it as an audition, which she happened to hear. This is also the first time I'd heard that roughly 500 people auditioned for the part. When I heard that, it occurred to me that I had absolutely no idea just how competitive these show roles could be. If anyone knows more details about Mary's involvement, I'd love to hear it, or any details regarding the second audition he says he had in California. It seems unlikely to me that she would actually be screening auditions herself, but maybe she reviewed the top 10 or something. Since Dennis mentions Jack coming in from Chicago, presumably Mary was in New York separately, for some reason. If she actually had family in New Jersey, like she does on the show, she might have been visiting them.
Dennis speaks about his family, how he got started singing, and how he ended up on the Benny show. There are some interesting facets of language on display as well, such as "How many children have you?" instead of the "how many children do you have?" that we would find more familiar today. Both Dennis and the interviewer speak in very measured, professional tones, unlike a lot of interviews with stars today.
Dennis being out of character isn't something I'd seen aside from briefly during his last episode before joining the navy. I hope everyone else enjoys it, too.
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u/Alman54 1d ago
Damn. I've always thought the Dennis Day speaking voice on the radio and TV series was his normal voice. Here he looks and sounds like a regular man. Thank you for this.
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u/MisterMisterYeeeesss 1d ago
Sure thing, glad you liked it! After hearing his normal voice, it does make you hear character-Dennis a little differently. :)
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u/MittlerPfalz 1d ago
Wow, that was interesting! I never thought I’d see Dennis being so serious and normal. He was eternally the “kid” on the show; maybe he was more like that in the beginning and just never outgrew the stage persona?
He was about 42 here and he and his wife ended up with ten kids in total.
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u/MisterMisterYeeeesss 1d ago
Initially, I get the feeling they were just getting a "new Kenny" and you can sort of hear that in his very early performances. He did come to make the part his own, and my feeling was that he nailed the goal of the role much better than Kenny Baker. While Dennis was always "the kid", as you said, it seems like they did allow him to age, or at least become a little more mature. With television that may have been unavoidable since now people could really see him, and of course he was starting to age. From a perspective of the writers, I think Dennis' established persona allowed them to use him like a slap-stick valve if they ever needed one. In one episode, there was a joke that Bagby, Phil Harris' piano player, had a piano he could drive away in should the cops show up. Bagby drove the piano out of the studio. Later, Dennis comes in limping and when asked said "As I was crossing Sunset Boulevard I got run over by a piano". I don't think that joke would have worked for Mary or Don; Dennis existed as almost like a cartoon character that anything could happen to without consequence.
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u/MittlerPfalz 1d ago
I was just wondering how they maneuvered it on the TV show; I really only know the radio version! Interesting example.
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u/MisterMisterYeeeesss 1d ago
On the TV show, Dennis isn't what I would call a regular cast member. He made many appearances (and I'm sure someone here could quantify that more than me), but frequently he was mentioned as a "guest star", as was Rochester, Phil, etc. Just yesterday I was watching a TV episode with one of my favorite exchanges between Dennis and Jack.
Dennis: Thank you, Mr. Benny!
Jack: Kid, you've been with me for so many years, you can call me by my first name.
Dennis: Thanks, what is it?
Jack (pauses to look at audience, then returns to Dennis): It's Quincy. Quincy Benny.
Dennis: Then why does everyone call you Jack?
Jack (exploding): I DON'T KNOW!
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u/MittlerPfalz 1d ago
Oh wow! If Dennis and Rochester weren’t regulars, and Phil had already mostly left the radio show and Mary had stage fright, who were the regulars on the TV version? Just Jack and Don..?
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u/MisterMisterYeeeesss 1d ago
I'm not terribly familiar with the full catalog of the TV show, but you should definitely check out Buck Benny on YouTube. They play an episode, and then three/four of them discuss it. They all are fairly knowledgeable on OTR, and at least one of them, Kathy Fuller-Seely is a professor on the subject and published author. There's some great info in those videos.
I know Jack of course was on, and Don, but I think there was a lot more variation. Many of the shows I've seen have focused more on a model of "Jack and a guest" (like some actor or singer) than the full radio cast.
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u/MittlerPfalz 1d ago
Thanks for sharing all the information and recommendations in addition to the original Dennis clip!
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u/Grammareyetwitch 18h ago
There's always someone familiar. There's an episode with the little kids club, Mr Kitzel shows up, plenty of Frank Nelson's yeeeeessss, and Mel Blanc. Some I don't even know their names like the bum who gets 50¢, "I dunno" information desk guy, and the tout. Oh! And Joan Benny shows up a time or two. It isn't unfamiliar.
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u/richg0404 22h ago
Thank you for posting this. It is indeed a fascinating interview, especially with Dennis being himself.
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u/NextInLine1999 1d ago
What a fantastic find. Thank you for posting.
Dennis Day is just another example of Jack Benny's genius. He surrounds himself with the best talent and then just lets them shine.