Caesar, Sid (1922-2014), an American comedian, was one of the first stars in the early years of television. He gained his greatest fame for his TV appearances on the comedy-variety shows “Your Show of Shows” (1950-1954) and “Caesar’s Hour” (1954-1957).
Isaac Sidney Caesar was born on Sept. 8, 1922, in Yonkers, New York. In the early 1940’s, he played clarinet and saxophone in several dance bands. He then became a comedian, performing in nightclubs and theaters. Caesar appeared in the Broadway revue Make Mine Manhattan (1948) before turning to the then-young television industry. He starred in the “Admiral Broadway Revue” in 1949, which became “Your Show of Shows” the following year. That comedy-variety program also included comedians Carl Reiner, Imogene Coca, and Howard Morris. The program is considered a landmark of creative comedy in television history.
Beginning in the 1960’s, Caesar concentrated on motion pictures. He appeared in the comedies It’s a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World (1963), A Guide for the Married Man (1967), The Busy Body (1967), Silent Movie (1976), The Cheap Detective (1978), and Grease (1978). A selection of sketches from his television programs of the 1950’s was released in a motion-picture version as Ten from Your Show of Shows (1973). He also starred in the Broadway musical Little Me (1962). Caesar wrote an autobiography, Where Have I Been? (1982). He died on Feb. 12, 2014.
