The Jack Benny Program and Eddie Anderson disembark from a train in Los Angeles in 1943 with a camel. Anderson's first appearance on
The Jack Benny Program was on March 28, 1937. He was originally hired to play the one-time role of a
redcap for a storyline in which the show traveled from Chicago to California by train, which coincided with the show's actual return to NBC's
Radio City West in Hollywood after a brief stint in New York. After the show received many positive fan letters regarding Anderson's guest appearances, Benny invited him to join the cast as Rochester van Jones, the butler and valet for the fictionalized version of Benny. This job made Anderson the first African American with a regular role on a nationwide radio program. Anderson first appeared as Rochester on the program of June 20, 1937.,
Phil Harris,
Mary Livingstone,
Jack Benny,
Don Wilson and
Mel Blanc Neither Benny nor Anderson could recall the origin of the name of Rochester for the character. Several episodes offered origin stories for Rochester, including an ''
Amos 'n' Andy'' backstory. A later television show explained that Benny met Rochester on a railroad train, with Benny responsible for Rochester being fired and then hiring him as a valet. Benny became frustrated with Anderson's habitual tardiness and fined him $50 each time that he arrived late at the studio. Benny often asked cast members to check on Anderson, who frequently lost track of time, just before travel dates to ensure that he was ready, and occasionally the cast was forced to leave Anderson behind. In one incident, Anderson sped to the
Pasadena train station with an
LAPD motorcycle squad escort in order to catch his train. Especially after
World War II, Rochester was second only to Benny in popularity and frequently received the most enthusiastic applause. Although he was not normally involved in the opening minutes of the show, he began to surpass
Mary Livingstone as Benny's main foil, especially as Livingstone's
stage fright caused her to appear less frequently. Benny's character and Rochester engaged in numerous running gags, often based on Rochester's attempts to evade work or to go to
Central Avenue to drink or on Benny's business ventures or trademark frugality. In Rochester's early appearances, a running gag also involved his gambling habits, although this aspect of his character was considerably downplayed after World War II.
Mayor of Central Avenue Although Anderson was born and raised in the Oakland area, he came to the Los Angeles black community in the 1930s in search of film work. The people of the Central Avenue area would hold mock elections to name the "Mayor of Central Avenue," who had the right and the duty to advocate for the black community. In May 1940, Anderson launched a campaign for the post. From his headquarters at the
Dunbar Hotel, Anderson conducted his campaign based mainly on real issues, such as advocacy for black military aviators. He took flying lessons and lectured with a
Tuskegee Institute representative about the subject. Anderson won the election. According to Benny's posthumous autobiography
Sunday Nights at Seven, the amount of racial humor regarding Rochester lessened following
World War II after the enormity of
the Holocaust was revealed. Benny and his writers initiated a conscious effort to remove all stereotypical aspects from the Rochester character. When a rehashed 1940 script was used for a February 1950 show that included several black stereotypes, some listeners sent angry letters in protest. Thereafter, Benny insisted that his writers guarantee that no racial jokes or references should be heard on his show. Benny often afforded key guest-star appearances to African American performers such as
Louis Armstrong and
the Ink Spots, and Benny made numerous personal appeals on his show asking listeners to reject racism in favor of fraternity and peaceful racial relations. The relationship between Rochester and Benny became more complex and familiar as the popularity of Rochester's character grew, with Rochester's role becoming less stereotypical and subservient. However, as a butler, the character remained subservient to the entire cast and was always called Rochester, but he addressed the other characters with formal titles. Although some of the humor remained stereotypical, the racial element of the jokes would emanate from Rochester only. During World War II, Benny toured with his show, but Anderson did not participate because racial segregation in the armed forces would have required separate living quarters. However, during performances staged before military audiences at bases and military hospitals, Rochester routinely drew enthusiastic applause. In 1943, when Benny brought his show to
Canada to perform for Canadian forces, Anderson and his wife received a warm welcome. Benny recounted an incident in his autobiography in which he rebuked an American soldier who had expressed bigotry toward Anderson. Benny was also reported to have threatened to move his entire company from a
Saint Joseph, Missouri, hotel that denied lodging to Anderson. The hotel relented and allowed Anderson to remain as a guest. A similar incident occurred in New York, where a hotel manager attempted to relocate Anderson after a couple from the South complained about staying in the same hotel with him. Benny replied by removing his entire cast and crew of 44 from the hotel in a show of solidarity with Anderson. how Benny pinches a penny on
Bachelor Father, 1962. Among the most highly paid performers of his time, Anderson invested wisely and became wealthy. Until the 1950s, Anderson was the highest paid African American actor, earning an annual salary of $100,000. Despite this success, he was so strongly identified with the Rochester role that many mistakenly believed that he was Benny's actual valet. Anderson's frequent visits to Benny's home may have helped perpetuate the myth, as Benny held weekly cast rehearsals at his private residence in
Beverly Hills. Anderson appeared as Rochester in a 1953 episode of
The Milton Berle Show and a 1962 episode of
Bachelor Father. During a February 1958 taping of a
Shower of Stars special to celebrate Benny's "40th birthday," Anderson suffered a mild heart attack. A
Life magazine photo after the incident showed Benny's concern for Anderson. After Benny's show left the airwaves, it was four years before the two men worked together again, but they remained in contact with each other. Anderson said, "We always exchange Christmas gifts and he's not as stingy as he pretends to be."
Films Anderson's film career began with
George Cukor's
What Price Hollywood? (1932) as a butler, and he appeared in many Hollywood films through the 1930s and 1940s. Anderson appeared on screen with Benny for the first time in
Man About Town (1939). They appeared in several other feature films, including
Buck Benny Rides Again (1940). In addition to his role with Benny, Anderson appeared in more than 60 films including
The Green Pastures (1936) as Noah,
Jezebel (1938) as Gros Bat, Capra's ''
You Can't Take It with You (1938) as Donald and Gone with the Wind (1939) as Uncle Peter. He reprised his Rochester role in Topper Returns (1941). He had a rare leading role in the all-star black Hollywood musical Cabin in the Sky'' (1943) as Joseph 'Little Joe' Jackson. He also starred in ''
Brewster's Millions'' (1945), which was banned in some Southern areas. For example, censors in
Memphis said that Anderson "has an important role and has too familiar a way about him" and lamented that the film "presents too much social equality and racial mixture." Anderson, Benny and the remaining cast members of
The Jack Benny Program (
Mary Livingstone,
Don Wilson, and
Mel Blanc) also provided their voices to the
Warner Bros. cartoon The Mouse that Jack Built (1959). Anderson's last significant feature-film performance was as a taxi driver in
Stanley Kramer's comedy ''
It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World'' (1963), in which Benny made a cameo appearance (although the two did not appear together). Anderson was inducted into the
Black Filmmakers Hall of Fame in 1975.
Other performances Anderson appeared as a mystery guest on the television game show ''
What's My Line?'' in 1952. As the panel was blindfolded,
Dorothy Kilgallen's question "Are you brunette?" brought a roar of laughter from the audience, and Anderson laughed so hard that he was not able to reply to the question. In 1957,
Hallmark Hall of Fame presented
The Green Pastures, affording Anderson the chance to reprise his film role as Noah on television, and the program was nominated for an
Emmy Award. Anderson also appeared on episodes of
The Dick Powell Show,
It Takes a Thief and
Love, American Style. In the early 1970s, Anderson provided the voice for cartoon character Bobby Joe Mason in
Harlem Globetrotters and
The New Scooby-Doo Movies. ==Other business ventures==