Steve Allen
Biography
Stephen Valentine Patrick William Allen was an American television personality, radio personality, musician, composer, actor, comedian, writer, and advocate of scientific skepticism. In 1954, he achieved national fame as the co-creator and first host of The Tonight Show, which was the first late night television talk show.
Though he got his start in radio, Allen is best known for his extensive network television career. He gained national attention as a guest host on Arthur Godfrey's Talent Scouts. After he hosted The Tonight Show, he went on to host numerous game and variety shows, including his own The Steve Allen Show, I've Got a Secret, and The New Steve Allen Show. He was a regular panel member on CBS's What's My Line?, and from 1977 until 1981 wrote, produced, and hosted the award-winning public broadcasting show Meeting of Minds, a series of historical dramas presented in a talk format.
Allen was a pianist and a prolific composer. By his own estimate, he wrote more than 8,500 songs, some of which were recorded by numerous leading singers. Working as a lyricist, Allen won the 1964 Grammy Award for Best Original Jazz Composition. He also wrote more than 50 books, including novels, children's books, and books of opinions, including his final book, Vulgarians at the Gate: Trash TV and Raunch Radio.
In 1996 Allen was presented with the Martin Gardner Lifetime Achievement Award from the Committee for Skeptical Inquiry (CSICOP). He has two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame and a Hollywood theater named in his honor.
Acting (65 movies)
Mitzi & 100 Guys
1975
The Movie Orgy
1968
The Player
1992
Allen in Movieland
1955
Where Were You When the Lights Went Out?
1968
The Benny Goodman Story
1956
Laurel and Hardy: A Tribute to the Boys
1992
Don't Worry, We'll Think of a Title
1966
Rodney Dangerfield's The Really Big Show
1991
Lenny Bruce: Without Tears
1972
College Confidential
1960
Warning Shot
1967
Lenny Bruce: Swear to Tell the Truth
1998
The Adventures of Errol Flynn
2005
Happy Birthday, Bob: 50 Stars Salute Your 50 Years with NBC
1988
The Big Circus
1959
Casino
1995
No More to Say & Nothing to Weep For: An Elegy for Allen Ginsberg
1997
I'll Get By
1950
The Power of the Market
1980
The Sunshine Boys
1975
The Definitive Elvis: The Television Years
2002
Stone
1979
Rodney Dangerfield's 75th Birthday Toast
1997
Let Me In, I Hear Laughter: A Salute to the Friars Club
1999
Elvis: #1 Hit Performances
2007
Lucy Calls the President
1977
Great Balls of Fire!
1989
Don't Ask Me, Ask God
1984
Louis Armstrong's Black & Blues
2022
TV's Funniest Comedians - 14 Stars Do Classic Routines
1986
The Comic
1969
The Sunshine Boys
1975
Abbott & Costello Meet Biography
1996
2Everything2Terrible2: Tokyo Drift
2010
Eat That Question: Frank Zappa in His Own Words
2016
The Universal Mind of Bill Evans
1966
Heart Beat
1980
James Dean and Me
1995
Joys
1976
The Gossip Columnist
1980
Tasmanian Devil: The Fast and Furious Life of Errol Flynn
2007
The Ratings Game
1984
Elvis: The King of Rock 'n' Roll
2007
James Dean Remembered
1974
The Funny Farm
1983
Erroll Garner: No One Can Hear You Read
2013
Nobody's Perfect: The Making of Some Like It Hot
2001
Computability: How to Make the Most of Your Home Computer
1984
Now You See It, Now You Don't
1968
Have I Got a Christmas for You
1977
The Muppets Go Hollywood
1979
Richard Lewis: I'm Exhausted
1988
WWE WrestleMania VI
1990
Nichols and May: Take Two
1996
Boulevard! A Hollywood Story
2021
Down Memory Lane
1949
Night of 100 Stars
1982
Something's Got to Give
1962
Amazon Women on the Moon
1987
Elvis: Rare Moments with the King
2003
On and Off the Res' with Charlie Hill
2000
James Dean: A Portrait
1995
Classic Comedy Teams
1986
Starfest: The Stars Salute Public Television 1983
1983
| Title | Year | Job |
|---|---|---|
| Down Memory Lane | 1949 | Writer |