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The ABC Comedy Hour was an American television variety series that aired on ABC in 1972. Seven of the 13 episodes featured a guest host and a team of comedy impressionists known as The Kopykats. Guest hosts included Steve Lawrence, Orson Welles, Ed Sullivan, Raymond Burr, Robert Young, Debbie Reynolds and Tony Curtis. The remaining six episodes were variety specials and included two Friars Club roasts and a revival of the musical Hellzapoppin' starring Jack Cassidy and Ronnie Schell. The show was nominated for an Emmy Award in the category of "Outstanding Writing Achievement in Variety or Music."
Original Release
01/12/1972 on ABC
US Release
01/12/1972
Cast
| Name | Character |
|---|
| George Kirby | Self / Self - Various Characters |
| Frank Gorshin | Self / Self - Various Characters |
| Marilyn Michaels | Self / Self - Various Characters |
| Joe Baker | Self / Self - Various Characters |
| Rich Little | Self / Self - Various Characters |
| Fred Travalena | Self / Self - Various Characters |
| Alan King | Self - Host / Self |
| Charlie Callas | Self |
| Tony Curtis | Self - Host / Self |
| Robert Young | Self - Host / Self |
| # | Title | Air Date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | The Friars Roast Joe Namath | Wednesday, 12 January 1972 |
| 2 | The Kopykats with guests Steve Lawrence and Robert Young | Wednesday, 19 January 1972 |
| 3 | The Kopykats with guests Orson Welles and Ron Moody | Wednesday, 26 January 1972 |
| 4 | If You Think Last Year Was Bad, Wait! | Wednesday, 02 February 1972 |
| 5 | The Kopykats with guests Ed Sullivan and Will Jordan | Wednesday, 09 February 1972 |
| 6 | The Twentieth Century Follies | Wednesday, 16 February 1972 |
| 7 | The Kopykats with guest Raymond Burr | Wednesday, 23 February 1972 |
| 8 | Hellzapoppin' | Wednesday, 01 March 1972 |
| 9 | The Kopykats with guest host Robert Young | Wednesday, 08 March 1972 |
| 10 | The Danny Thomas Special: A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to a Special | Wednesday, 15 March 1972 |
| 11 | The Kopykats with guests Debbie Reynolds and Shecky Greene | Saturday, 06 May 1972 |
| 12 | The Friars Roast Sammy Davis Jr. | Wednesday, 29 March 1972 |
| 13 | The Kopykats with guest Tony Curtis | Wednesday, 05 April 1972 |
Directors
Dwight Hemion, Clark Jones, Stan Harris, Dave Wilson
Writers
Sam Bobrick, Ron Clark, John Aylesworth, Sol Weinstein, Howard Albrecht, Jay Burton, Jack Burns, Danny Simon, Tony Hawes, Martin Ragaway, Arthur Phillips, Bryan Blackburn, Bob Ellison, Frank Peppiatt, Hugh Wedlock Jr., Sheldon Keller, Ernest Chambers, Marc B. Ray, Arnie Kogen, Larry Alexander, Bernard Rothman, Saul Ilson, Gene Perret, Stan Dreben, Buddy Arnold, Robert Hilliard, Craig Nelson, Dan Shapiro, Pat McCormack, Stan Davis, Mark Richards, Barry Levinson, Pat McCormick, Rudy De Luca, John Rappaport, Gail Parent, Kenny Solms
Cast
| Name | Character |
|---|
| George Kirby | Self / Self - Various Characters |
| Frank Gorshin | Self / Self - Various Characters |
| Marilyn Michaels | Self / Self - Various Characters |
| Joe Baker | Self / Self - Various Characters |
| Rich Little | Self / Self - Various Characters |
| Fred Travalena | Self / Self - Various Characters |
| Alan King | Self - Host / Self |
| Charlie Callas | Self |
| Tony Curtis | Self - Host / Self |
| Robert Young | Self - Host / Self |
| Ron Carey | Self |
| Sammy Davis Jr. | Self |
| Totie Fields | Self |
| Raymond Burr | Self - Host |
| Jack Cassidy | Self - Host |
| Danny Thomas | Self - Host |
| Buddy Hackett | Self - Roastmaster |
| Steve Lawrence | Self - Host |
| Ed Sullivan | Self - Host |
| Joe Namath | Self |
Producers
| Name | Role |
|---|
| Alan King | Executive Producer |
| Alexander H. Cohen | Executive Producer |
| Sam Bobrick | Producer |
| Ron Clark | Producer |
| Dwight Hemion | Producer |
| Gary Smith | Producer |
| Carolyn Raskin | Producer |
| Ernest Chambers | Producer |
| Saul Ilson | Producer |
| Year | Type | Category | Won |
|---|
| 1972 | Emmy | Outstanding Achievement in Video Tape Editing | Nominated |
