George Gobel Birthday & Fun Facts

George Gobel Birthday Highlights

Birth Name

George Goebel

Place Of Birth

Chicago, USA

Age

104 years old

Birth Date

May 20 1919

George Gobel Facts

Child Star?

no

Occupation

Comedian

Education & Qualifications

Theodore Roosevelt High School

Net Worth

$1,000,000

Current Partner

Alice Gobel

Parents

Hermann Goebel, Lillian Goebel

George Gobel, a squat, easygoing brush-cut comedian, originally gained fame in the Midwest by singing on the radio as ‘Little Georgie Gobel.’
George Gobel was an American actor and soundtrack composer. Born in Chicago, he was best known for the television series ‘The George Gobel Show.’
During WWII, he served as a flight instructor, interrupting his career. In later years, he started doing stand up for his fellow military men. He began performing in nightclubs, hotels, and county fairs. Gobel's mild-mannered comedy delivery combined with a friendly atmosphere caught fire when he first appeared on television in 1952.
He then went on to star in his own show, 'The George Gobel Show,' for which he won an Emmy award. His alter-ego was a hapless, humble spouse who did his best to get through life. Gobel lost a lot of steam once his TV programs ended.
He appeared in guest appearances or as a guest on chat shows like 'The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson' and 'The Dean Martin Show.' He replaced the late Charley Weaver in the famous game prom, 'Hollywood Squares.'

What was George Gobel's net worth?

George Gobel was an American comedian and actor from Chicago. His net worth was estimated to be around $1 million.

How tall was George Gobel?

George Gobel was 5 ft 5 in (165.1 cm) tall.

How old was George Gobel?

George Gobel was 71 years old when he died. He was born on May 20, 1919. He died on February 24, 1991.

George Gobel was born George Leslie Goebel in Chicago, Illinois. His father had immigrated to the United States with his parents from Austro-Hungarian Empire in the 1890s.
Gobel was a country song performer on the National Barn Dance on Chicago's WLS radio and KMOX in St. Louis. He later graduated from Theodore Roosevelt High School in 1937.
During World War II, he joined the US Army Air Forces. He worked as a flying instructor in AT-9 planes in Altus, Oklahoma, and then in B-26 Marauder bombers in Frederick, Oklahoma.
After the war, he continued his career as an entertainer, albeit he chose to concentrate on humor rather than singing.

Who was George Gobel's family?

George Gobel was born to Hermann Goebel and Lillian Goebel.

Who was George Gobel's spouse?

Gobel married Alice Rose Humecki, his high school sweetheart, in 1942. They had three children.

Best Known For…

Gobel began his career in showbiz as a country music performer. He performed on WLS radio's National Barn Dance and then on KMOX in St. Louis. Gobel enrolled in the US Army Air Forces during World War II and served as a flying instructor. He shifted from singing to comedy after his discharge at the conclusion of the war.
On October 2, 1954, Gobel launched his comic series, 'The George Gobel Show' on NBC. It featured his gentle, down-home sense of humor. This popular series was a major hit, and it made Gobel one of the biggest comedic stars of the '50s.
Jimmy Stewart, Henry Fonda, Fred MacMurray, Kirk Douglas, and Tennessee Ernie Ford were among the many guests on this weekly program. It also included singer Peggy King and actress Jeff Donnell. In 1955, Gobel earned an Emmy Award for Most Outstanding New Personality Award.
The show's highlight was the monologue on his purported former events and experiences. It included anecdotes and sketches reportedly about his real-life wife, Alice Gobel. Actress Jeff Donnell performed the role during the first four years of the series' existence. In the stories, Gobel's slow, even timid delivery and love of long, complicated digressions made them laugh more than the actual subject of the story itself.
Hal Kanter, Jack Brooks, and Norman Lear were among the greatest television writers of the day on Gobel's program. Peggy King was a frequent singer on the show, while guest performers included Shirley MacLaine and Evelyn Rudie, as well as Bob Feller and Phyllis Avery.
George Gobel coined the moniker 'Lonesome George,' which he used for the remainder of his career. The TV program sometimes had a piece in which Gobel arrived with a guitar, began to sing, then became distracted by a tale. He left the song incomplete after sporadic starts and stops, a comic method similar to Victor Borge.
He had a unique version of the Gibson L-5 archtop guitar built for him. It had a reduced neck scale and body depth to match his small size. In the late '50s and early '60s, several dozens of these L-5CT or George Gobel variants were built. He was also a harmonica player.
He appeared in shows like 'The Andy Williams Show,' 'The Red Skelton Show,' 'The Dean Martin Show,' 'The Bing Crosby Show,' 'The Dinah Shore Show,' 'The Carol Burnett Show,' and 'Johnny Carson's The Tonight Show.'
In December 1960, Gobel appeared in an episode of 'My Three Sons,' starring Fred MacMurray. It was called 'Lonesome George,' and he portrayed himself.
Gobel was a frequent panelist on Peter Marshall's television game program 'Hollywood Squares' in the '70s. He also sang the song 'Give Your Heart A Try' in the 1974 Christmas special ‘Twas The Night Before Christmas.’
When ratings of 'The George Gobel Show' soared, Paramount promoted Gobel as their new comedy star. They cast him as the lead in the box office flop 'The Birds And The Bees'.
George Gobel was best known for 'Alice Through The Looking Glass,' 'Rabbit Test,' 'Twas the Night Before Christmas,' 'I Married A Woman,' 'Valentine's Day,' 'Benny And Barney: Las Vegas Undercover Drunk,' Hollywood Squares,' and 'The Birds And The Bees.' 

What awards had George Gobel won?

George Gobel won the 1955 Primetime Award and the Peabody Award. In 1960, he received a star on the Walk of Fame.

George Gobel's Hobbies And Interests

Gobel's fascination with entertainment started when he was a toddler. He sang in a church choir and learned to play the guitar in elementary school. The choir made an appearance on a Chicago radio station.
Young George's solo earned him an invitation to the Barn Dance program. It was one of the only performances in radio history to charge studio audience entry.
In 'The Tom Mix Show,' George portrayed Jimmy, the adoring boy who held the hero's horse.
Gobel's career in the show business began as a country music performer. He appeared on WLS radio's National Barn Dance and then on KMOX in St. Louis.

The monologues of George Gobel popularized several catchphrases. These included 'Well, I'll be a dirty bird' spoken by Kathy Bates in the film 'Misery' and 'You can't hardly get them like that no more' spoken by James Dean in the movie ‘Rebel Without a Cause.’
Gobel had learned himself to fly and joined the Army Air Corps in 1943. He was posted as a B-26 pilot instructor at Frederic, Oklahoma, despite his desire to be a fighter pilot.
Gobel worked as a DJ in St. Louis after graduating from high school in Chicago when WWII started. George was a flight instructor in AT-9 aircraft at Altus, Oklahoma, and then in B-26 Marauder bombers at Frederick, Oklahoma.
Three B-52 Stratofortress bombers of the United States Air Force made the first nonstop round-the-world trip by turbojet aircraft in 1957. 'Lonesome George' was the name of one bomber. Later, the team went on Gobel's primetime television program to discuss the operation. Gobel was also named after Lonesome George, the non-breeding Galapagos turtle that was the last of its subspecies and died in June 2012.
George Gobel was also a talented guitarist, and the Gibson guitar business commissioned a specially built electric guitar in his honor in 1959, dubbed ‘The George Gobel Model.’
Gibson picked the model name 'George Gobel' since he was one of the most well-known television personalities at the time, having a nationally aired program five nights a week. Gibson felt that naming their new model guitar after a lesser-known jazz performer, for example, would get it more publicity on national television. Gobel used this guitar in a lot of his stand-up performances.
Gobel performed a 12-minute promo for 'Light's Diamond Jubilee.' It was a two-hour TV special that aired on all four US television networks at the time.
Gobel starred on 'The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson' in 1969. In the Tonight Show, he said, ‘there was not one Japanese aircraft that went beyond Tulsa.’
Gobel and his business manager, David P. O'Malley, created 'Gomalco.' It is a production firm named after their last names. The first four years of the television series 'Leave It To Beaver' were produced by this business.
Gobel was known for bringing a guitar to the stage and beginning to play it, only to switch to a story and never complete the song.
George Gobel was also a Broadway performer. In 1961, he starred in 'Let It Ride.' It was a musical adaptation of George Abbott's ‘Three Men On A Horse.’
In a laid-back style, Gobel's singing voice proved accurate and attractive. The play only lasted a few months in New York before closing.
Walt Disney considered Gobel for the role of Winnie-the-Pooh. However, after reading the books, he declined and considered Pooh a terrible bore.
During the '70s and '80s, he featured in nine TV movies.
Following bypass surgery, the comedian died in 1991 at 71. He was buried at the San Fernando Mission Cemetery.

We would love your help! If you have a photo of George Gobel, either of them alone or a selfie that you would be happy to share, please send it to [email protected].
If you have knowledge or information that you think would help us improve this article, please contact us.