[Ads-l] Joke: Television: It's called a medium because it=?utf-8?Q?=E2=80=99s_?=never well done (UNCLASSIFIED)

[MULLINS, WILLIAM D (Bill) CIV USARMY CCDC AVMC (USA)]

CLASSIFICATION: UNCLASSIFIED

Somewhat related:

_Milwaukee [WI] Journal_ 30 Jul 1950 Sunday magazine section p 30
"Television is called a medium because it's so rare. -- Easy Aces"

"Easy Aces" was a TV show (formerly a radio show) on the Dumont network.  Both the radio and TV version starred Goodman Ace (see the 1953 cite in your article).

Fred Allen probably used the version you quote him as saying in 1950 on the radio broadcast _The Big Show_ which premiered on Nov 5.  See this review of the show: 

https://archive.org/stream/broadcasting391unse#page/n671/mode/1up

> -----Original Message-----
> From: American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU> On Behalf Of
> ADSGarson O'Toole
> Sent: Thursday, July 25, 2019 9:13 AM
> To: ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU
> Subject: [Non-DoD Source] Joke: Television: It's called a medium because it’s
> never well done
> 
> 
> 
> 
> ----
> 
> Here is another version of the wordplay joke in the subject line:
> Television is called a medium because it is neither rare nor well done.
> 
> Comedian Goodman Ace wrote a letter to Groucho Marx containing an
> instance of the subject line quip in 1953. In 1973 “The Filmgoer’s Book of
> Quotes” by Leslie Halliwell credited the joke to comedian Ernie Kovacs.
> 
> Many references attribute the joke to Goodman Ace or Ernie Kovacs while
> presenting one of these citations (or no citations), e.g.:
> 
> The Macmillan Dictionary of Quotations (1989) The Best Guide to Humorous
> Quotations (2011) Encarta Book of Quotations (2000) Oxford Dictionary of
> Humorous Quotations (2008) The Yale Book of Quotations (2006)
> 
> The Quote Investigator website now has an entry on this topic with a
> 1950 citation ascribing the joke to Fred Allen.
> 
> https://quoteinvestigator.com/2019/07/24/tv/
> 
> Feedback welcome
> Garson


CLASSIFICATION: UNCLASSIFIED

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