After graduating from college, Lynde moved to New York City, taking
odd jobs while looking for his show-business break. His first appearance as a comic was at the famed
supper club Number One Fifth Avenue. He made his
Broadway debut in the hit revue
New Faces of 1952 in which he co-starred with fellow newcomers
Eartha Kitt,
Robert Clary,
Alice Ghostley, and
Carol Lawrence. 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 trip he took with his late wife. The show was filmed and released as
New Faces in 1954. After the revue's run, Lynde co-starred in the short-lived 1956 sitcom
Stanley opposite
Buddy Hackett and
Carol Burnett, both of whom were also starting their careers in show business. That year, he guest-starred on
NBC's sitcom
The Martha Raye Show. Lynde returned to Broadway in 1960, when he was cast as Harry MacAfee, the father in
Bye Bye Birdie. He also played the role in the
1963 film adaptation. That year, he recorded a live album,
Recently Released, issued as an
LP. He wrote all six tracks. Once he could afford writers, he rarely used his own material until his tenure on
The Hollywood Squares years later. Lynde was in great demand in the 1960s. During the 196162 television season, he was a regular on NBC's
The Perry Como Show as part of the Kraft Music Hall players with
Don Adams,
Kaye Ballard, and
Sandy Stewart. He was a familiar face on many sitcoms, including
The Phil Silvers Show, ''
The Farmer's Daughter, The Patty Duke Show, The Munsters, The Flying Nun, Gidget, I Dream of Jeannie, and F Troop, and on variety shows such as The Ed Sullivan Show and The Dean Martin Show. He also was featured in several 1960s films, including Send Me No Flowers and The Glass Bottom Boat'', both starring
Doris Day.
Bewitched in the 1968
Bewitched episode "The No Harm Charm" In 1965, Lynde made his debut appearance on
Bewitched during the first-season episode "Driving is the Only Way to Fly" (air date March 25, 1965). His role as mortal Harold Harold, Samantha Stephens' nervous driving instructor, was well received by viewers. Lynde also impressed series star
Elizabeth Montgomery and her husband, director/producer
William Asher, who created a recurring role for Lynde as Endora's practical-joking brother
Uncle Arthur. Lynde made 10 appearances on
Bewitched as the beloved character, the first being "The Joker is a Card" (air date October 14, 1965). His final appearance in the sitcom was in "The House That Uncle Arthur Built" (February 11, 1971) in the series' seventh season. Paul Lynde, Elizabeth Montgomery, and William Asher became good friends and were regularly seen together off the set. He eventually became disenchanted with being what he called "boxed in" to
The Hollywood Squares and he departed the series in 1979. In 1980,
The Hollywood Squares experienced a downward trend in
Nielsen ratings and Lynde was approached about returning to the program. He initially declined, but changed his mind when told he would receive co-star billing with host Peter Marshall. He returned to the series in the spring of 1980, and remained with the show until its cancellation in February 1981.
Voice acting Between 1969 and 1974, Lynde did extensive
voice work on
animated cartoons, particularly for
Hanna-Barbera Productions. His most notable roles include: • Templeton, the gluttonous rat in the 1973
animated feature ''
Charlotte's Web'' • Mildew Wolf, from ''
It's the Wolf! (a segment of Cattanooga Cats'') • Claude Pertwee, neighbor on ''
Where's Huddles?'' • Sylvester Sneekly ("Hooded Claw") in
The Perils of Penelope Pitstop Lynde's sardonic inflections added a dimension to such lines as the sly, drawn-out whine, "What's in it for
meeee?" His distinctive voice remains popular among impressionists. Although it is sometimes assumed that actress
Alice Ghostley based her speech patterns and mannerisms on Lynde's, according to actress
Kaye Ballard, "It was Paul who was influenced by Alice."
The Paul Lynde Show and Temperatures Rising In 1972, Lynde starred in a short-lived
ABC sitcom,
The Paul Lynde Show. The series was a contractual fulfillment to ABC in place of an aborted ninth season of
Bewitched. Lynde starred as Paul Simms, an uptight attorney, and father who was at odds with his liberal-minded son-in-law. The family included wife Martha (
Elizabeth Allen), daughters Sally (
Pamelyn Ferdin) and Barbara (
Jane Actman), Barbara's husband Howie (
John Calvin) and Howie's parents (
Jerry Stiller and
Anne Meara). Critics considered the show to be derivative of
All in the Family, television's then most-popular primetime program, although many admitted the writing was excellent and that the sexual innuendoes gave it an extra note of spice. Lynde was nominated for a
Best Actor Golden Globe for the show. Scheduled opposite the first half of the top-30 hit
The Carol Burnett Show on
CBS and the top-20 hit
Adam-12 on NBC, the series garnered low ratings and was canceled after one season. Contemporaneous media reports showed that viewers liked Lynde, but not
The Paul Lynde Show and liked another ABC show,
Temperatures Rising, but disliked co-star
James Whitmore. Unhappy himself, Whitmore left the show and ABC moved Lynde to
Temperatures Rising for the 197374 season. This move came despite the objections of
William Asher, producer of both shows, who also quit in protest of ABC's meddling. Ratings for
The New Temperatures Rising were even lower than the previous season, in part because Asher's replacements shifted the show's tone to a much darker one than the previous season. ABC canceled the show and its time slot was taken by mid-season replacement
Happy Days. ABC later decided to resuscitate the program, with additional cast changes (most notably, Alice Ghostley, who replaced Sudie Bond in the role of Lynde's sister, Edwina). ABC also convinced Asher, who admitted Lynde's presence likely saved the series, to come back. Seven further episodes were produced for summer 1974 airings, after which the series was permanently canceled.
Summer stock theater Lynde was a fixture on the
Kenley Players summer stock theater circuit, appearing in ''
Don't Drink the Water (1970, 1979), The Impossible Years (1969, 1978), Mother is Engaged
(1974), My Daughter is Rated X
(1973), Plaza Suite (1971), and Stop, Thief, Stop!
(a retitled production of the play Three Goats and a Blanket,'' 1975). In all he appeared in nine Kenley Players productions, more than any other headliner. In the summer of 1980 Lynde toured the United States and Canada, headlining three one-act plays of "California Suite", "Plaza Suite", and "Last of the Red Hot Lovers", entitled 'Neil Simon's Suite', with cast members Beverly Sanders, friend and bodyguard Paul Barresi, and Kristie Siverson.
Television specials and variety shows Lynde's continuing popularity led to his being signed by ABC to host a series of specials from 1975 to 1979, including: •
The Paul Lynde Comedy Hour (November 6, 1975) with
Jack Albertson,
Nancy Walker, and
the Osmonds •
The Paul Lynde Halloween Special (October 29, 1976) featuring the first prime-time network appearance of
Kiss, along with
Margaret Hamilton recreating her role as the Wicked Witch of the West from
The Wizard of Oz. Hamilton and
Billie Hayes (as
H. R. Pufnstuf's Witchiepoo) teamed up in a skit where they ask Lynde to help them improve their (witches) image. Other guests included
Betty White,
Donny and
Marie Osmond,
Tim Conway, and
Roz Kelly •
The Paul Lynde Comedy Hour (April 23, 1977) with
Cloris Leachman and
Tony Randall • ''
'Twas the Night Before Christmas'' (December 7, 1977) with Alice Ghostley,
Martha Raye,
George Gobel, and
Foster Brooks •
The Paul Lynde Comedy Hour (May 20, 1978) with
Juliet Prowse,
Brenda Vaccaro, and
Harry Morgan •
Paul Lynde at the Movies (March 24, 1979) with Betty White,
Vicki Lawrence,
Robert Urich, and
Gary Coleman •
Paul Lynde Goes M-A-A-A-AD (May 20, 1979) with Marie Osmond,
Charo, and Vicki Lawrence Lynde was a regular guest on the variety show
Donny & Marie between 1976 and 1978, until he lost his guest-starring role due to very public, drunken arguments with police officers.
Guest appearances and film roles Acting jobs continued to be scarce for Lynde, although whether or not this was related to his alcoholism, which made him difficult to work with, is unclear. In the 1979 comedy
The Villain (released as
Cactus Jack in the UK), he appeared as Indian chief Nervous Elk alongside former
Bye Bye Birdie co-star Ann-Margret. It was his final film role. In November 1980, the Beaux Arts Society, Inc. (founded in 1857) designated Paul Lynde "King" of the
Beaux Arts Ball, with
Kitty Carlisle designated as "Queen". Paul Lynde remained a life member of the Beaux Arts Society from 1980 until his untimely death.
Awards In 1976, at the Sixth Annual
American Guild of Variety Artists (AGVA) "Entertainer of the Year Awards", Lynde received an award for being voted the funniest man of the year. Lynde immediately turned his award over to host
Jackie Gleason, citing him as "the funniest man ever". The unexpected gesture shocked Gleason. == Personal life ==