Joey Bishop | |
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 Bishop in 1967 | |
| Born | Joseph Abraham Gottlieb (1918-02-03)February 3, 1918 The Bronx, New York, U.S. |
| Died | October 17, 2007(2007-10-17) (aged 89) |
| Occupations |
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| Years active | 1948–1996 |
| Spouse | |
| Children | Larry Bishop |
Joseph Abraham Gottlieb (February 3, 1918 – October 17, 2007), known professionally asJoey Bishop, was an American entertainer who appeared on television as early as 1948 and eventually starred in his own weekly comedy series playing atalk/variety show host, then later hosted a late-night talk show withRegis Philbin as his young sidekick on ABC. He also was a member of the "Rat Pack" withFrank Sinatra,Dean Martin,Sammy Davis Jr. andPeter Lawford.[1] He is listed as the 96th entry on Comedy Central's list of 100 greatest comedians.[2]
Bishop, the youngest of five children, was born on February 3, 1918, in theBronx, New York City, the son ofPolish-Jewish immigrants Anna (née Siegel) and Jacob Gottlieb.[1][3][4] His father was a bicycle repairman.[5] Bishop was raised inSouth Philadelphia,Pennsylvania.[5]
Bishop was drafted into the US Army duringWorld War II, and he rose to the rank of sergeant in theSpecial Services, serving atFort Sam Houston inTexas.[6]
Bishop began his career in the 1930s when he skipped his final semester of high school to form a comedy trio with two other boys, performing in nightclubs andburlesque houses in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and throughout theEast Coast. The boys were not related, but called themselves the "Bishop Brothers", borrowing the name of their driver, Glenn Bishop, with each adopting "Bishop" as their stage name. The act was originally made up of Morris "Rummy" Spector, Joey, and Sammy Reisman - who soon dropped out and was replaced by Mel Farber - and were individually known as Rummy Bishop, Joey Bishop, and Mel Bishop - stage names they would keep throughout their careers. The act broke up when Rummy was drafted duringWorld War II, with Joey Bishop continuing as a solo performer until he himself was drafted in 1942. Bishop would later include his former partners in his projects, with Rummy Bishop having a small role inOceans 11 and Mel Bishop appeared in several roles onThe Joey Bishop Show, including one episode. "Must the Show Go On?" in which all three "Bishop Brothers" were reunited for the first time since the 1940s.[7][8][9][10]
Bishop resumed his solo career after he was discharged from the military in August 1945, working at the Casablanca Roadhouse in New Jersey and then becoming an opening act inNew York City at the Greenwich Village Inn. He became a regular performer at New York'sLatin Quarter nightclub for $1,000 a week,[11] which led to appearances on television and film.[9] Bishop appeared onThe Ed Sullivan Show on May 28, 1950. In 1952,Frank Sinatra saw Bishop perform at the Latin Quarter and, impressed, asked Bishop to be his opening act at the Bill Miller'sRiviera inFort Lee, New Jersey and then at theCopacabana in New York and at other venues, leading to Bishop becoming known as "Sinatra's comic" as Sinatra's career ascended in the 1950s.[12]
Bishop's growing celebrity led to his being a headliner in top nightclubs his own right, and television appearances onThe Dinah Shore Chevy Show on April 19, 1957, and many other variety programs in the early days of television. He guest-hostedThe Tonight Show substituting forJack Paar, and then guest-hostedThe Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson at least 175 times in the 1960s, and from 1971 to 1976 more than anyone else until that time (Jay Leno andJoan Rivers later surpassed his record[citation needed]). He also frequently appeared onSteve Allen's andJack Paar's previous versions ofThe Tonight Show. He later had his own late-night show.[13]
Bishop starred in thesituation comedyThe Joey Bishop Show that premiered on September 20, 1961, and ran for 123 episodes over four seasons, first onNBC and laterCBS. Bishop played Joey Barnes, at first a publicity agent and then later atalk show host.Abby Dalton joined the cast in 1962 as his wife.[14]
Bishop later hosted a 90-minute late-night talk show, also titledThe Joey Bishop Show, that was launched byABC on April 17, 1967, as competition to Carson'sTonight Show and ran until December 26, 1969. His sidekick was then-newcomerRegis Philbin.[15]
Bishop was among the stars of the originalOcean's 11 film about military veterans who reunite in a plot to rob five Las Vegas casinos on New Year's Eve. He co-starred withFrank Sinatra,Dean Martin,Sammy Davis Jr., andPeter Lawford, also known as theRat Pack, although the five of them did not publicly acknowledge that name.
During filming, the five entertainers performed together onstage in Vegas at theSands Hotel. Bishop did only a little singing and dancing, but he told jokes and wrote most of the act's material. He later appeared with Sinatra, Martin, Davis, and Lawford in the military adventureSergeants 3 (1962), a loose remake ofGunga Din (1939), and with Martin in the Western comedyTexas Across the River (1966), in which he portrayed an American Indian.[16]
Sinatra fell out with Bishop in 1964 when Sinatra asked him to fill in for him at theCal-Neva Lodge inLake Tahoe as a favor and Bishop demanded $50,000 and to be flown in a private jet. Sinatra, offended, hung up on Bishop and cut him out of the Rat Pack.[17]
Bishop was the only member of the Rat Pack to work with members of a younger group of actors dubbed theBrat Pack, appearing (as a ghost) in the filmBetsy's Wedding (1990) withMolly Ringwald andAlly Sheedy.[18] His final appearance in a film was a non-speaking role inMad Dog Time (1996), written and directed by his son, Larry. His character was named Gottlieb, which was his real surname. The film was panned by critics.[19]
Bishop was portrayed byBobby Slayton in theHBO filmThe Rat Pack (1998).[20]
Bishop wed Sylvia Ruzga in 1941, and they were married for 58 years until her death fromlung cancer in 1999. They had one son,Larry Bishop, a film director and actor.
Thereafter, Bishop had a longtime companion, Nora Garibotti. In failing health for some time, Bishop died at age 89 ofmultiple organ failure on October 17, 2007, in his home onLido Isle, a man-made island in the harbor ofNewport Beach, California,[1] as the last survivingRat Pack member. Per Bishop's wishes, his remains were cremated and scattered in the Pacific Ocean near his home.
TheBroadcast Pioneers of Philadelphia posthumously inducted Bishop into their Hall of Fame in 2009.[21]
Joey Bishop, the long-faced comedian and the last surviving member of the Rat Pack, Frank Sinatra's celebrated retinue of the 1960s, died Wednesday night at his home in Newport Beach, Calif. He was 89. His death was of multiple causes, said his longtime publicist, Warren Cowan.
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