Paul Lynde

Name	Paul Lynde
Caption	Lynde in 1973
Birth name	Paul Edward Lynde
Birth date	June 13, 1926
Birth place	Mount Vernon, Ohio,
Death date	January 10, 1982
Death place	Beverly Hills, California, United States
Death cause	Heart attack
Occupation	Actor/Comedian
Years active	1952–81
Partner	Bing Davidson

Paul Edward Lynde (June 13, 1926January 10, 1982) was an American comedian and actor. A noted character actor, Lynde was well known for his roles as Uncle Arthur on Bewitched and Harry MacAfee, the befuddled father in Bye Bye Birdie. He was also the regular "center square" guest on the game show Hollywood Squares from 1968 to 1981.

Early life

Paul Lynde was born in Mount Vernon, Ohio, and studied drama at Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois, where his fellow students included Cloris Leachman, Charlotte Rae, Patricia Neal, Jeffrey Hunter and Claude Akins. At Northwestern, he joined the Upsilon chapter of Phi Kappa Sigma and is listed amongst the most famous members of the fraternity. He graduated in 1948 and moved to New York City, where he initially worked as a stand-up comic.

Career

Lynde made his Broadway debut in the hit revue New Faces of 1952 in which he co-starred with fellow newcomers Eartha Kitt, Alice Ghostley, and Carol Lawrence. In his monologue from that revue, the "Trip of the Month Club," Lynde portrayed a man on crutches recounting his misadventures on the African safari he took with his late wife. The show was filmed and released as New Faces in 1954.

After the revue's run, Lynde co-starred in the short-lived 1956 sitcom Stanley opposite Buddy Hackett and Carol Burnett, both of whom were also starting out their careers in show business. That same year, he guest starred on NBC's The Martha Raye Show, a comedy/variety show.

In 1960, Lynde returned to Broadway when he was cast as the father in Bye Bye Birdie. He reprised the role in the play's film adaptation, which was released in 1963 and co-starred Dick Van Dyke, Janet Leigh, and Ann-Margret. Also, in that same year, he recorded a live album, Recently Released, issued as an LP record (no other formats are available). All six tracks were written by him. Once he could afford writers, he rarely used his own material until his tenure on the Hollywood Squares years later. Over the years, Lynde made regular appearances on sitcoms such as The Phil Silvers Show, The Munsters, and I Dream of Jeannie, and variety shows such as The Perry Como Show and The Dean Martin Show. Lynde first appeared in episode 26 of Bewitched, "Driving is the Only Way to Fly", as Samantha's driving instructor Harold Harold, before taking on the recurring role of Uncle Arthur, Endora's brother. He was a frequent guest on the 1976-79 variety show, ''Donny and Marie.

Lynde also did extensive voice work on animated cartoons, particularly those of Hanna-Barbera Productions. His most notable roles included Sylvester Sneekly ("The Hooded Claw") in The Perils of Penelope Pitstop, Mildew Wolf from It's the Wolf (a segment of Cattanooga Cats), and Pertwee from Where's Huddles?. He also voiced the role of Templeton the gluttonous rat in the animated feature Charlotte's Web. Lynde's sardonic inflections added a dimension to such lines as the sly, drawn-out whine, "What's in it for meeee?" Lynde's distinctive voice is popular among impressionists. In the 1999 animated Queer Duck the character Bi-Polar Bear (voiced by Billy West) speaks with an imitation of Lynde's voice. Although it is sometimes assumed that actress Alice Ghostley based her speech patterns and mannerisms on Lynde's, according to actress Kaye Ballard "it was Paul who was influenced by Alice".

In 1972, Lynde starred in the short-lived ABC sitcom, The Paul Lynde Show, playing an uptight attorney and father at odds with his liberal-minded son-in-law. The series, which was a contractual fulfillment to ABC in place of a final season of Bewitched, was canceled after only one season. The network, and producer William Asher, then "transferred" Lynde to another comedy series that had debuted in 1972, Temperatures Rising, for the 1973 season, but his presence in the cast did not help flagging ratings and this series, too, was not renewed, and was replaced by Happy Days. The series’ failure reportedly exacerbated Lynde’s drinking problem, which led to numerous run-ins with the law and frequent arrests for public intoxication.

The Hollywood Squares

In 1966, Lynde debuted on the fledgling game show Hollywood Squares and quickly became its iconic guest. Eventually he assumed a permanent spot as the "center square," a move which ensured that he would be called upon by contestants at least once in almost every round. Despite an urban legend to the contrary, Paul Lynde remained in the center at the producers discretion. Many NBC tour guides claimed Lynde was afraid of earthquakes and the center square proved to be the safest square. However, the A&E; Biography on Lynde told an anecdote of an earthquake in the Hollywood Squares studio, where many guests had become upset. Lynde, however, remained in his seat, tapping his fingers, asking if they were going to finish the show.

It was on Hollywood Squares that Lynde was best able to showcase his comedic talents with short, salty one-liners, delivered in his trademark sniggering delivery. Asked whether it was against the law in Texas to call a Marine a "sissy," Lynde quipped, "I guess I’ll have to take the law into my own hands."

Other jokes relied on double entendre, an alleged fondness for deviant behaviors, or dealt with "touchy" subject matter for 1970s television. One example: :Q: The great writer George Bernard Shaw once wrote, "It's such a wonderful thing, what a crime to waste it on children." What is it? :Lynde: A whipping.

:Q: Paul, any good boat enthusiast should know that when a man falls out of your boat and into the water, you should yell 'Man overboard!' Now what should you yell if a woman falls overboard? :Lynde: Full speed ahead!

Lynde left the show in 1979 after thirteen seasons, but returned for the 1980–81 season.

Personal life

Paul Lynde's sexual orientation was something of an open secret in Hollywood, although, in keeping with the prejudices and social mores of the time, it was not acknowledged or discussed in public.

In 1965, Lynde was involved in an accident in which a young actor, reputed to be his lover, fell to his death from the window of their hotel room in San Francisco's Sir Francis Drake Hotel. The two had been drinking for hours before 24-year-old James "Bing" Davidson slipped

In 1978, Lynde was arrested outside of a gay bar in Salt Lake City. As a result of the arrest, he lost his guest starring role on The Donny and Marie Show. Increasingly in the late 1970s, acting jobs became harder for him to find, although it is unclear if this was because of anti-gay prejudice or his substance abuse problems, which often made him difficult to work with. He had been arrested for drunk driving and, while under the influence of alcohol, he was known to make rude and racist public comments to people. Lynde finally became sober and drug free in the early 1980s, shortly before his death. Lynde also suffered from weight control problems, along with substance abuse and was honored in 1977 by Weight Watchers.

Death and legacy

Lynde was found dead in his Beverly Hills, California, home by friend Paul Barresi on Monday, January 11, 1982. The coroner ruled the death a heart attack. Lynde's cremated remains are interred at Amity Cemetery, in Amity, Ohio (in Knox County, north of Mt. Vernon on Rt. 3) where he is buried next to his brother Johnny, and sister Helen.

Paul Lynde's popularity has continued after his death. According to cartoon creator/voice actor Seth McFarlane, the voice of Roger the Alien on the Fox television show American Dad! was modelled after him. The voice and humor of Queer Duck character Bi-Polar Bear (voiced by Ren & Stimpy and Futurama actor Billy West), is also done in the style of Paul Lynde, as was the supervillain The Scoutmaster in the Simpsons episode Radioactive Man. Steve Carell reprised Lynde's role as "Uncle Arthur" in the 2005 film Bewitched, very much in Lynde's style. The voice and humor of William A. Mummy on the new GSN game show Late Night Liars is performed in the vein of Paul Lynde as well.

Actor/Comedian Michael Airington also plays Paul Lynde in the show Oh My Goodness it's Paul Lynde. He plays him in An Evening with Paul Lynde recreating Lynde's 1976 live show and in Off Center: The Paul Lynde Show. Airington licenses the rights from the Paul Lynde Estate.

Filmography

Television

The Red Buttons Show (1955)

Stanley (1956–1957)

The Perry Como Show (1961–1963)

The Patty Duke Show (1963)

The Munsters (1964)

Bewitched (1965) (1966–1971)

The Hollywood Squares (1968–1981)

Dean Martin Presents the Golddiggers (1968–1969)

The Cattanooga Cats (1969–1971) (voice)

Love, American Style (1969–1974)

The Perils of Penelope Pitstop (1969–1971) (voice)

Gidget Grows Up (1969)

Where's Huddles (1970) (voice)

Gidget Gets Married (1972)

I Dream of Jeannie (1966–1968)

The Paul Lynde Show (1972–1973)

The New Temperatures Rising Show (1973–1974)

The Paul Lynde Halloween Special (1976)

Donny & Marie (1975)

'Twas the Night Before Christmas (1977)

Paul Lynde at the Movies (1979)

Film

New Faces (1954) (also writer)

Son of Flubber (1963)

Bye Bye Birdie (1963)

Under the Yum Yum Tree (1963)

For Those Who Think Young (1964)

Send Me No Flowers (1964)

Beach Blanket Bingo (1965)

The Glass Bottom Boat (1966)

How Sweet It Is! (1968)

Charlotte's Web (1973) (voice)

Journey Back to Oz (1974) (voice)

Hugo the Hippo (1975) (voice)

Rabbit Test (1978)

The Villain (1979)

Recordings

Recently Released (1960) Vinyl, LP, Mono; Columbia Records CL1534

References

External links

What Happened to Paul Lynde? at TVParty.com

Paul Lynde at the Rotten Library (also contains a list of Hollywood Squares quips)

Paul Lynde quips from Hollywood Squares

Sacks, Mike. Queer as folk Salon.com, August 23, 2005.

Category:1926 births Category:1982 deaths Category:Actors from Ohio Category:American comedians Category:American film actors Category:American musical theatre actors Category:American stage actors Category:People prosecuted under anti-homosexuality laws Category:Gay actors Category:LGBT people from the United States Category:American television actors Category:American voice actors Category:Deaths from myocardial infarction Category:Northwestern University alumni Category:People from Mount Vernon, Ohio Category:People self-identifying as alcoholics