Burns, George (1896-1996), had one of the longest careers in American show business history. By the time he died at the age of 100, Burns had become a national institution as a comedian and actor. He was especially appreciated for his dry wit, raspy singing voice, and ever-present cigar.
Burns was born on Jan. 20, 1896, in New York City. His real name was Nathan Birnbaum. He began his show business career in vaudeville. In 1923, he met Gracie Allen and they soon formed one of the most beloved comedy teams of the 1900’s. The couple married in 1926. In their act, Allen played a scatterbrained character, and Burns was her long-suffering straight man. The team of Burns and Allen starred in a popular radio show from 1932 to 1950, when they moved to television. They performed in a weekly TV series from 1950 to 1958, when Gracie Allen retired. Burns starred in two more TV series, “The George Burns Show” (1958-1959) and “Wendy and Me” (1964-1965).
In 1929, Burns and Allen appeared in their first short movie comedy, Lamb Chops. Burns and Allen made many other short comic films, all variations on the theme of Burns trying to cope with the zany Allen.
They made their feature-length film debut in the comedy The Big Broadcast (1932). He appeared with Gracie Allen in 13 more feature comedies of the 1930’s, including International House (1933) and The Big Broadcast of 1936 (1935).
Burns won an Academy Award as best supporting actor for his performance as a member of a once popular vaudeville team in The Sunshine Boys (1975). Burns also appeared in the movies Oh God! (1977), Just You and Me Kid (1979), Going in Style (1980), Oh God! Book II (1982), Oh God! You Devil (1984), and 18 Again (1988). Burns died on March 9, 1996.
