Comic Al Pearce had been a moderate success on the radio from 1934 to 1946 on NBC, CBS and ABC before trying his hand at television in 1952 with his act of jokes and characters, including Elmer Blurt, a clumsy salesman whose catchphrase was “Nobody’s home, I hope, I hope.”
The show aired live from Hollywood at 7.45 am Western Time from February to May. CBS offered free coffee and doughnuts for in-studio audiences but refused to make kinescopes (it would have cost $1,000 per show).
Pearce relocated his show to New York in late June but it did not last the year out due to high costs and no sponsors.
Pearce returned to daytime with a daily local TV show in Los Angeles in 1954. He died in 1961.
