Person attributes
Other attributes
MILTON BERLE
Mendel Berlinger.
American actor.
He was born on July 12, 1908 (New York, USA).
Becoming the epitome of American television of the golden age, Milton Berle was nicknamed "Mr. Television." The son of a salesman, Berle decided to try his hand at acting after winning an impersonation contest in 1913, brilliantly impersonating Charlie Chaplin. He went through stage school and went to conquer Broadway.
Berle became a children's performer and starred in a number of silent films like "Original Right of Origin" (1930) and "The Sign of Zorro" (1920), but the comedian managed to make a name for himself through radio. In the late 1940s, Berle took over his own radio show. The show aired on ABC radio, and in 1948 NBC moved "The Texaco Star Theatre" to television, and the name "Uncle Milty" became a household name. Noisy success followed, and in 1951 Burl signed a 30-year contract with NBC.
From 1948 until the early 1950s, Berle's antics were staples of Tuesday nights, along with restaurants closing between 8 p.m. and 9 p.m. and rumors of declining water levels in reservoirs. Burl was known for his cross-dressing in women's dresses. At the same time, Berle was a well-known favorite of women and was married five times (twice to Joyce Matthews).
By 1953 his fame began to fade, followed by a change of show sponsors, a drop in ratings, a search for a new television "gold mine," and in 1956 the actor decides to close The Milton Berle Show.
Beginning in the 1960s and continuing through the turn of the century, Berle appeared in films. His most famous films were This Crazy, Crazy, Crazy World (1963) and The Oscars (1966). The actor regularly starred in a large number of television series.
He passed away on March 27, 2002 (Los Angeles, California, USA).
