Kaye starred in a
radio program of his own,
The Danny Kaye Show, on
CBS in 1945-1946. Despite its clever writing (by radio legend
Goodman Ace, Sylvia Fine, and respected playwright-director
Abe Burrows) and performing cast (including
Eve Arden, Lionel Stander, and big bandleader
Harry James), the show lasted only a year.
Kaye was sufficiently popular that he inspired imitations:
*The 1946
Warner Bros. cartoon
Book Revue had a lengthy sequence with
Daffy Duck impersonating Kaye singing "
Carolina in the Morning" with the Russian accent that Kaye would affect from time to time.
*Satirical songwriter
Tom Lehrer's 1953 song "
Lobachevsky" was based on a number that Kaye had done, about the Russian director
Stanislavsky, again with the affected Russian accent. Lehrer mentioned Kaye in the opening monologue, citing him as an "idol since childbirth".
According to
The New York Times, when he appeared at the
London Palladium music hall in 1948, he "roused the Royal family to shrieks of laughter and was the first of many performers who have turned English variety into an American preserve."
Life magazine described his reception as "worshipful hysteria" and noted that the royal family, for the first time in history, left the
royal box to see the show from the front row of the orchestra.
He hosted the
Academy Awards in
1952. http://www.imdb.com/Sections/Awards/Academy_Awards_USA/ The program was broadcast only on radio. Telecasts of the Oscar ceremony would come later.
He hosted his own variety hour on
CBS television, The Danny Kaye Show, from 1963 to 1967. During this period, beginning in 1964, he also acted as television host to the annual CBS telecasts of
MGM's The Wizard of Oz. Kaye also did a stint as one of the
What's My Line? Mystery Guests on the popular Sunday Night CBS-TV program. Later, Kaye also served as a guest panelist on that quiz show. Years later, Kaye also guest-starred in episodes of
The Muppet Show,
The Cosby Show and of the 1980s remake of
The Twilight Zone (see
The New Twilight Zone).
Kaye's influence was felt beyond the entertainment world in the world of
professional sports as well. Kaye was the original owner of the
Seattle Mariners along with his partner Lester Smith, from 1977-81. Prior to that, the lifelong fan of the
Brooklyn/Los Angeles Dodgers recorded a song called "The D-O-D-G-E-R-S Song (Oh really? No, O'Malley!)", describing a ficititious encounter with the
San Francisco Giants, which was a hit during those clubs' real-life pennant chase of 1962. That song is included on one of the
Baseball's Greatest Hits CD's.
During the 1950s, Kaye also acted in a
pantomime production of
Cinderella, in
Sydney, Australia, where he played the role of "
Buttons", Cinderella's stepfather's servant, and also Cinderella's friend. In the 1970s Kaye injured his leg during the run of the
Richard Rodgers musical
Two by Two, but went on with the show, cavorting on stage from a wheelchair.
In many of his movies, as well as on stage, Kaye proved to be an able actor, singer, dancer and comedian, often having his comedic talents showcased by special material written by his wife,
Sylvia Fine. He showed quite a different and serious side as Ambassador for
UNICEF, and in one of his few dramatic roles in the memorable TV-movie
Skokie, in which he played a
Holocaust survivor. Before he died in 1987, Kaye also demonstrated his ability to conduct an orchestra during a comical, but technically sound, series of concerts organized for
UNICEF fundraising. Kaye received two
Academy Awards, an
honorary award in 1955 and
the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award in 1982.
In 1980, Kaye hosted and sang in the 25th Anniversary of
Disneyland celebration, and hosted the opening celebration for
Epcot Center in 1982, both of which were aired on prime-time
American television.
In his later years he took to entertaining at home as chef—he had a special stove installed in his patio—and host. He specialized in Chinese cooking. The library at the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, NY is named for him.
He also had a longstanding interest in medicine, and was permitted to observe surgery on several occasions.
Kaye died in 1987 from a
heart attack, following a bout of
hepatitis. He left a widow,
Sylvia Fine, and a daughter, Dena. He is interred in the
Kensico Cemetery in
Valhalla, New York. His grave is adorned with a bench that contains friezes of a baseball and bat, an aircraft, a piano, a flower pot, musical notes, and a glove.
Throughout his life, Kaye donated to various charities.
He acted as the first International Ambassador for
UNICEF. Working alongside
UNICEF's Halloween fundraiser founder, Ward Simon Kimball Jr., Mr. Kaye educated the public on impoverished children in deplorable living conditions overseas and assisted in the distribution of donated goods and funds.
Kaye was enamored by music. While he often claimed an inability to read music, he was quite the conductor. Kaye was often invited to conduct symphonies as charity fundraisers. Over the course of his career he raised over $5,000,000 in support of musicians pension funds.
rss feed