''The Leslie Uggams Show'' is an American

variety television series Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...

starring actress/singer

Leslie Uggams Leslie Marian Uggams (born May 25, 1943) is an American actress and singer. Beginning her career as a child in the early 1950s, Uggams is recognized for portraying Kizzy Reynolds in the television miniseries ''Roots'' (1977), earning Golden Globe ...

. The series aired on

CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainm ...

as part of its 1969 fall lineup, and was the second variety series to feature an

African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...

host, the first since the 1956 - '57 ''

The Nat King Cole Show Nathaniel Adams Coles (March 17, 1919 – February 15, 1965), known professionally as Nat King Cole, was an American singer, jazz pianist, and actor. Cole's music career began after he dropped out of school at the age of 15, and continued f ...

'' on

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are l ...

Synopsis

''The Leslie Uggams Show'' gave Uggams, who had first come to wide public notice as a singer on the early 1960s hit ''

Sing Along With Mitch Mitchell William Miller (July 4, 1911 – July 31, 2010) was an American choral conductor, record producer, record-industry executive, and professional oboist. He was involved in almost all aspects of the industry, particularly as a conductor ...

'', her own program to showcase herself and other

black Black is a color which results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without hue, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness. Black and white ...

performers; unlike other early variety programs which were hosted by black entertainers but featured a large number of

whites White is a racialized classification of people and a skin color specifier, generally used for people of European origin, although the definition can vary depending on context, nationality, and point of view. Description of populations as ...

in the cast, only one of Uggams' regulars, comedian Dennis Allen, was white. A recurring feature of the program was the ongoing series of sketches entitled "Sugar Hill", which dealt with the lives of

middle class The middle class refers to a class of people in the middle of a social hierarchy, often defined by occupation, income, education, or social status. The term has historically been associated with modernity, capitalism and political debate. Com ...

black family in a large American city. The series was given the challenging time slot of 9:00 P.M. on Sunday nights which in the early to mid 60's had proven to be unsuccessful for such variety shows as ''

The Judy Garland Show ''The Judy Garland Show'' is an American Variety show, musical variety television series that aired on CBS on Sunday nights during the 1963–1964 television season. Despite a sometimes stormy relationship with Judy Garland, CBS had found succes ...

'' and ''

The Garry Moore Show ''The Garry Moore Show'' is the name for several separate American variety series on the CBS television network in the 1950s and 1960s. Hosted by experienced radio performer Garry Moore, the series helped launch the careers of many comedic talent ...

'' since the chief competition for both programs was the venerable western series '' Bonanza''. When Moore's show was cancelled in January, 1967, ''

The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour ''The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour'' was an American comedy and variety show television series hosted by the Smothers Brothers and initially airing on CBS from 1967 to 1969. The series was a major success, especially considering it was sc ...

'' premiered and immediately became a huge hit for CBS managing to more than hold its own against ''Bonanza''. However, in the spring of 1969, CBS pulled that variety series due to its controversial content and scheduled Uggams's show for the 1969-1970 fall season. Scheduled opposite ''Bonanza'', which was still a massive hit for

, and a series of fairly recent (by the standards of the era) movies on

ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...

, ''The Leslie Uggams Show'' had difficulty developing an audience and was cancelled in December 1969. ''

The Glen Campbell Goodtime Hour ''The Glen Campbell Goodtime Hour'' was an American music and comedy television variety show hosted by singer Glen Campbell from January 29, 1969, to June 13, 1972, on CBS. He was offered the show after he hosted a 1968 summer replacement for ' ...

'' took over the Sunday night slot on CBS starting on 21 December 1969, with ''

Hee Haw ''Hee Haw'' is an American television variety show featuring country music and humor with the fictional rural "Kornfield Kounty" as the backdrop. It aired first-run on CBS from 1969 to 1971, in syndication from 1971 to 1993, and on TNN from 1 ...

'' taking over Campbell's vacated Wednesday night slot.

Cast

* Leslie Uggams.....Host * Dennis Allen.....Regular * Johnny Brown.....Regular *

Lillian Hayman Lillian Irene Hayman (July 17, 1922 – October 25, 1994) was an American actress and singer. Career Born in Baltimore, Maryland, Hayman graduated from Wilberforce University with a BA before she began her career in the Broadway theatre. Sh ...

.....Regular *

Lincoln Kilpatrick Lincoln Kilpatrick (February 12, 1932 – May 18, 2004) was an American film, television, and stage actor. Biography Career Born in St. Louis, Missouri, Kilpatrick attended Lincoln University and earned a degree in drama before he began acting. ...

....Regular * Allison Mills.....Regular * Roger Carroll.....Announcer * Nelson Riddle.....Orchestra Leader

Episodes

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Leslie Uggams Show 1969 American television series debuts 1969 American television series endings 1960s American comedy television series 1960s American variety television series English-language television shows CBS original programming