Paul Lynde

Paul Lynde
Lynde in 1973
Born	Paul Edward Lynde June 13, 1926(1926-06-13) Mount Vernon, Ohio, USA
Died	January 10, 1982 (aged 55) Beverly Hills, California, USA
Domestic partner(s)	Bing Davidson[1][2]

Paul Edward Lynde (13 June 1926 – 10 January 1982)^[3][4] was an American comedian and actor. A noted character actor, Lynde was well known for his roles as Uncle Arthur on Bewitched and Harry McAfee, the befuddled father in Bye Bye Birdie. He was also the regular "center square" guest on the classic game show, Hollywood Squares, from 1968 to 1981.

Biography

Early years

Paul Lynde was born in Mount Vernon, Ohio, and studied drama at Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois, where his classmates included Cloris Leachman, Charlotte Rae, Patricia Neal, Jeffrey Hunter and Claude Akins. At Northwestern University, he joined the Upsilon chapter of Phi Kappa Sigma and is listed amongst the most famous members of the fraternity. He graduated in 1948 and moved to New York City, where he initially worked as a stand-up comic.^[5]

Career

Lynde made his Broadway debut in the hit revue New Faces of 1952 in which he co-starred with fellow newcomers Eartha Kitt, Alice Ghostley, and Carol Lawrence.^[6] In his monologue from that revue, the "Trip of the Month Club," Lynde portrayed a man on crutches recounting his misadventures on the African safari he took with his late wife.^[7] The show was filmed and released as a movie in 1954.

After the revue's run, Lynde co-starred in the short-lived sitcom Stanley opposite Buddy Hackett and Carol Burnett, both of whom were also starting out their careers in show business. In 1960, Lynde returned to Broadway when he was cast as the father in Bye Bye Birdie. He reprised the role in the play's film adaptation, which was released in 1963 and co-starred Dick Van Dyke and Ann-Margret.

Over the years, Lynde made regular appearances on sitcoms such as The Phil Silvers Show, The Munsters, and I Dream of Jeannie, and variety shows such as The Perry Como Show and The Dean Martin Show. Lynde first appeared in episode 26 of Bewitched, "Driving is the Only Way to Fly", as Samantha's driving instructor Harold Harold, before taking on the recurring role of Uncle Arthur, Endora's brother. He was a frequent guest on the Donny and Marie Osmond Show.

Lynde also did extensive voice work on animated cartoons, particularly those of Hanna-Barbera Productions. His most notable roles included Sylvester Sneakly ("The Hooded Claw") in The Perils of Penelope Pitstop and Pertwee from Where's Huddles?. He also voiced the role of Templeton the gluttonous rat in the animated feature Charlotte's Web. Lynde's sardonic inflections added a dimension to such lines as the sly, drawn-out whine, "What's in it for meeee?" Lynde's trademark voice is popular among impressionists. In the 1999 animated Queer Duck the character Bi-Polar Bear (voiced by Billy West) speaks with an imitation of Lynde's voice. The voice for the character Roger from American Dad! was also based on Lynde's.

In 1972, Lynde starred in the short-lived ABC sitcom, The Paul Lynde Show, playing an uptight attorney and father at odds with his liberal-minded son-in-law. The series was canceled after only one season. The network then "transferred" Lynde to another comedy series that had debuted in 1972, Temperatures Rising, for the 1973 season, but his presence in the cast did not help flagging ratings and this series, too, was not renewed. The series’ failure reportedly exacerbated Lynde’s pre-existing drinking problem, which led to numerous run-ins with the law and frequent arrests for public intoxication.^[5]

Hollywood Squares

In 1966, Lynde debuted on the fledgling game show Hollywood Squares. Eventually he assumed a permanent spot as the "center square," a move which ensured that he would be called upon by contestants at least once in almost every round. The story as to Lynde’s choice of the center square was told by Universal Studios tour guides during the 1970’s where Hollywood Squares was filmed. Lynde’s permanent choice to occupy the center square came after an earthquake rattled the set during filming. Lynde was deathly afraid of earthquakes and asked the engineers who designed the squares what the safest location was. The center square was the safest and thus became Paul Lynde’s square during filming.

It was on Hollywood Squares that Lynde was best able to showcase his comedic talents with short, salty one-liners.^[5] Many of these gags were thinly-veiled allusions to his homosexuality. Others relied on double entendre, an alleged fondness for deviant behaviors, or dealt with "touchy" subject matter for television. Even the more generic punchlines were often punched up by Lynde's trademark snickering delivery. Lynde left the show in 1979 after thirteen seasons, but returned for the 1980-81 season.

Personal life

In 1965, Lynde was involved in an accident where his lover, a young actor, fell to his death from the window of their hotel room in San Francisco's Sir Francis Drake Hotel. The two had been drinking for hours before 24-year-old James "Bing" Davidson slipped^[1] and fell eight stories, an event witnessed by two policemen.^[8] Even though the scandal did not ruin his career, the incident offered insight into the precarious life of drinking and partying that Lynde enjoyed.^[9]

Lynde was found dead in his Beverly Hills, California home by friend Paul Barresi on Monday, January 11, 1982.^[10] The coroner ruled the death a heart attack. It has been suggested that he might have been dead for two days, but his death appears in most references as having occurred on January 10, 1982.

Lynde is interred next to his brother Johnny, his sister Helen, and James "Bing" Davidson ^[11] at Amity Cemetery in Knox County, Ohio, some eight miles northeast of Paul's hometown.^[1]

Legacy

Paul Lynde's popularity has continued after his death. According to cartoon creator/voice actor Seth McFarlane, the voice of Roger the Alien on the Fox television show American Dad! was modelled after him.^[12]

The Big Cheese, the lead villain on the Japanese cartoon Samurai Pizza Cats also recalls Lynde's voice and public persona.

A caller identifying himself as Lynde often phones radio station KCJJ 1630 AM in Coralville, IA, during its morning show impersonating Lynde and offering sarcastic one-liners during the reading of local police reports.

Filmography

References

External links

• Paul Lynde at the Internet Movie Database
• Paul Lynde at the Internet Broadway Database
• Paul Lynde at the Internet off-Broadway Database
• Paul Lynde Fan Site!
• What Happened to Paul Lynde? at TVParty.com
• Paul Lynde at the Rotten Library (also contains a list of Hollywood Squares quips)
• Paul Lynde at Find a Grave
• Paul Lynde quips from Hollywood Squares
• Sacks, Mike. Queer as folk Salon.com, August 23, 2005.
• Center Square: The Paul Lynde Story (2005) by Steve Wilson and Joe Florenti