Phil And Ted Prams Sydney
Phil Harris Is An Old-Time Radio Legend
The Phil Harris-Alice Faye Show was the show that made Phil Harris a household name in old time radio.
Born Wonga Phillip Harris in Linton, Indiana, Phil spent his childhood in Nashville, Tennessee. Growing up, he got into drumming from quite a young age, and took this further in the 1930s when he started up his very own band.
The film industry was another part of the entertainment world that Phil Harris dipped into. He made a film in 1933 called So This is Harris for RKO. The film garnered success after it won an Academy Award.
In 1936, just a couple of years later, the Jack Benny Show received a new musical director, Harris. As part of his role, he was lead singer and performer for the band. But he also had a speaking role as a comic Southern character. It was at this time that he became as well known for his comedy as for his musical talent. At the same time he began recording swing tunes with unusual arrangements that made his music really stand out from the crowd.
In 1941 he married Alice Faye, who he remained married to for 54 years. It was the second marriage for both, but clearly they found the right person this time around. Soon enough, the two joined the Fitch Bandwagon.
The show’s original concept was a focus on swing music, but Phil and Alice became successful in their own right and so the show became their own, the Phil Harris-Alice Faye Show.
Each episode featured a song from the two and the show was also reformatted as a comedy. As the show gained great popularity, it ran for 6 years. 1954 was when the show finally broadcast its last show. At this time old time radio shows were becoming obsolete and the television age was dawning.
As a musician, he kept with his musical career upbringing. He starred in many TV shows and provided the voices of popular Disney characters, such as Baloo the bear in the Jungle Book, and Little John in Robin Hood.
Later on in his life, Harris gave back to the communities in which he grew up, with donations to students of Linton (his hometown) and Palm Springs, where he spent much time as a young adult. A lot of his merchandise was handed over to the Linton Public Library, and it can still be found there. He had a heart attack at the age of 91, and passed away in 1995. 3 years later his wife Alice Faye also passed on.