Pinky Lee

Pinky Lee in Lady of Burlesque (1943)

Pinky Lee (May 2, 1907, Saint Paul, Minnesota–April 3, 1993, Mission Viejo, California), born Pincus Leff, was a male burlesque comic and host of the children's television program, The Pinky Lee Show, in the early 1950s.

Lee worked as comic of the "baggy pants" variety on stage, becoming an expert at the slapstick, comic dancing and rapid-fire jokes of the burlesque style. During the 1940s, he was heard on Drene Time and other radio programs.

Easily recognized by his trademark lisp and his high-energy antics, his signature costume was a loud plaid suit with baggy checkered pants and an undersized hat. During his routines, whenever anybody irritated him (which happened frequently) he would unleash his catchphrase: "Oooooh! You make me so mad!"

Television

In 1950, he had his own 30-minute primetime variety television show, The Pinky Lee Show, featuring vaudevillians and burlesque comics. In 1951-52 he starred with Vivian Blaine in a 15-minute sitcom, Those Two.

He returned in 1954 with The Pinky Lee Show, an Emmy-nominated afternoon children's program that spawned later imitators such as Pee-Wee's Playhouse. It was followed each day by the popular Howdy Doody Show. He opened each show with his trademark theme song, "Yoo Hoo, It's Me!":

Yoo hoo, it's me,

My name is Pinky Lee.

I skip and run with lots of fun

For every he and she.

It's plain to see

That you can tell it's me

With my checkered hat

And my checkered coat,

The funny giggle in my throat

And my silly dance

Like a billy goat.

Put 'em all together,

Put 'em all together,

And it's whooooo?

(Audience):Pinky!

Others in the cast: Betty Jane Howarth, Jimmy Brown, Molly Bee, Jack McCoy, Mel Koontz, Cindy Sue, Susabelle, Ken Mayer, Isabel Dwan, Sidney Fields, Margie Lizst, Milton Newberger and Jymme Shore.

In 1955, Lee collapsed on camera due to an infection, and the show continued without him until 1956. Rumors that Lee died of a heart attack, prompted by this incident, persisted for decades. Occasionally, newspapers carried items mentioning the "late" Lee - even though he was performing at a dinner theater in the same city as the reporting newspaper. The incident even spawned rumors that Lee had been institutionalized after going insane on live television.

In 1957, Lee hosted The Gumby Show, the original appearance of that "claymation" character. In 1964, Pinky attempted a return to kids TV by hosting a local children's comedy program on KABC-TV Channel 7 in Los Angeles. This series was in national syndication for the 1964-65 TV seasons, but the program fell prey to creative interference from the show's producers and station management. Lee tried to fight off the interference, but his efforts were for naught. The Pinky Lee Kids TV Show went off the air after one season.

Movies

Lee can be seen in films, including Lady of Burlesque, Earl Carroll's Vanities, and Blonde Ransom among several others, and he appeared on other television shows, including Ed Sullivan's Toast of the Town.

In later years, he worked as a teacher and appeared in regional musical theater productions.

One episode of The Pinky Lee Show was released on DVD/VHS by Shokus Video. More recently, a DVD with two episodes was released by Alpha Video.

Watch

• 1987 interview with Pinky Lee
• A Kinescope of "The Pinky Lee Show" from 1954

Legacy

• Rizzo from Grease remarks, "To you from me, Pinky Lee!", after she throws Kenickie's milkshake in his face.
• Gene Kelly plays "Pinky Benson" a dancing comic in What a Way to Go! (1964)
• Paul Reubens loosely based his Pee Wee Herman character on Pinky Lee, with a similar outfit and mannerisms.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Pinky Lee

• IMDB entry
• Pinky Lee Show at TV Party.