After great success on Your Show of Shows, NBC gave funnyman Sid Caesar his own live sketch comedy and variety show in 1954.
Caesar took with him many of the same creative people who had been with him from the start.
For his new leading lady, he replaced Imogene Coca with the vivacious Nanette Fabray, and she quickly became an excellent partner. She also won two Emmy Awards for her performance.
Unlike contemporary sketch shows, Caesar’s Hour often featured extended pieces that ran 20 minutes or longer, functioning almost like one-act plays. A recurring domestic sketch, The Commuters,featured the three male leads as husbands travelling from the suburbs to the city (pictured above).
Despite high critical praise and multiple Emmy wins, the show struggled in the ratings against The Lawrence Welk Show on ABC and was cancelled in 1957.
Sid Caesar
Nanette Fabray
Howard Morris
Carl Reiner
Ellen Parker
Sandra Deel
Pat Carroll
William Lewis
Earl WIld
Shirl Conway
Vaughn Monroe
Hugh Downs
The Bernie Green Orchestra
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