But Seriously... : A Special Tribute to Steve Allen Is No Laughing Matter--Well, Almost

Some of Hollywood’s funniest comedians--Don Knotts, Louis Nye and Bill Dana--were invited to honor entertainer Steve Allen at a luncheon Friday.

But then, in a letter from Pacific Pioneer Broadcasters’ program chairwoman Jeanne Devivier Brown, they were cautioned not to be too funny. The event, sponsored by the group of former radio performers, technicians and executives was not to be a roast.

“The letter said, ‘We treat our honorees with the greatest reverence,’ ” said Allen’s sister-in-law, actress Audrey Meadows.

So, the entertainers said, they toned down their remarks.

But toning down for this amusing group still meant drawing plenty of laughter from the 600 people who attended the luncheon at the Sportsmen’s Lodge in Studio City.

Knotts re-enacted his audition tape for the “Tonight Show,” which Allen created. In the tape, he portrays a nervous speaker at a medical convention who takes a pill and goes to sleep. Knotts ended the skit by snoring into the microphone.

Dana, who also got his start on the early “Tonight Show” when Allen was the host, did Jose Jimenez, his trademark character with a Latin accent. He also displayed a handwritten sign that read “Will Talk Funny for Food,” which he said he holds up at freeway on-ramps.

Nye made note of the advanced ages of many members of the audience. “I don’t want to be on too long. Many of us need our 1:30 naps,” he quipped.

Several speakers mentioned the tape recorder Allen always carries with him.

In the early days of broadcasting, Dana said, “there was no such thing as a tape recorder and Steve had to talk to people.”

Allen, whose quick wit and energy belies his 70 years, was in characteristic form. “I’ve never won an electric yo-yo before,” he said after master of ceremonies Ralph Edwards presented him with the group’s achievement award, a round, gold clock.

A longtime Encino resident, Allen said that he had been coming to the Sportsmen’s Lodge for 35 years, but “I’ve yet to see an actual sportsman.”

Turning to the men on the dais with him, Allen quipped, “It’s an honor to be included in this very handsome display of hairpieces.”

The entertainer ended his monologue with a reading of Abraham Lincoln’s “Gettysburg Address,” altered to the form he said those who misuse the English language might deliver it today.

“Four score and, you know, about seven years ago . . . ,” he began.

The reading was peppered with pauses in which Allen inserted phrases such as “you know what I mean” and “but, hey, in a larger sense.”

Humor aside, those on the program, including his wife, actress Jayne Meadows, and son, William Allen, president of MTM Television, displayed respect and affection for Allen.

Comedian Pat Buttram, the organization’s resident humorist, noted that Allen, who has written more than 40 books and 4,000 songs, is “a doer of many things.”

Dana said Allen is “the greatest underacknowledged talent in the history of show business.”

“This is the most beautiful party I’ve ever been to,” Jayne Meadows told the audience.