Robert Dennis Woodbury (born February 9, 1924) is an American comedian, actor, television personality and talk show host. He is known for his best-selling comedy albums of risqué stories, most of which were released in the early 1960s. He was among the first standup comedians to receive a

gold record Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au (from la, aurum) and atomic number 79. This makes it one of the higher atomic number elements that occur naturally. It is a bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile me ...

Biography

Woodbury was born February 9, 1924, in

Saint Paul Paul; grc, Παῦλος, translit=Paulos; cop, ⲡⲁⲩⲗⲟⲥ; hbo, פאולוס השליח (previously called Saul of Tarsus;; ar, بولس الطرسوسي; grc, Σαῦλος Ταρσεύς, Saũlos Tarseús; tr, Tarsuslu Pavlus; ...

Minnesota Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...

,. He was a U.S. Marine Corps

flight instructor A flight instructor is a person who teaches others to operate aircraft. Specific privileges granted to holders of a flight instructor qualification vary from country to country, but very generally, a flight instructor serves to enhance or evaluate ...

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

and

Korean War , date = {{Ubl, 25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953 (''de facto'')({{Age in years, months, weeks and days, month1=6, day1=25, year1=1950, month2=7, day2=27, year2=1953), 25 June 1950 – present (''de jure'')({{Age in years, months, weeks a ...

. Appearing at a night club in Florida, Woodbury met Fletcher Smith, who recorded Woody's material and through his connections in Hollywood led Woodbury to appear in a few films. By 1948, he was working at the Clover Club in

Miami Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a coastal metropolis and the county seat of Miami-Dade County in South Florida, United States. With a population of 442,241 at ...

. Woodbury's most substantial film role was that of "Uncle Woody" in 1964's '' For Those Who Think Young'' (with

James Darren James William Ercolani (born June 8, 1936) known by his stage name James Darren, is an American television and film actor, television director, and singer. During the late 1950s and early 1960s, he had notable starring and supporting roles in fi ...

Pamela Tiffin Pamela Tiffin Wonso (October 13, 1942 – December 2, 2020) was an American film and television actress. Early life Tiffin was born in Oklahoma City to Stanley Wonso and Grace Irene (Tiffin) Wonso of Russian and British ancestry, but grew up in ...

Tina Louise Tina Louise ( Blacker; born February 11, 1934) is an American actress widely known for her role as movie star Ginger Grant in the CBS television situation comedy ''Gilligan's Island''. With the death of Dawn Wells in 2020, Louise became the las ...

and

Paul Lynde Paul Edward Lynde (; June 13, 1926January 10, 1982) was an American comedian, actor and game show panelist. A character actor with a distinctively campy and snarky persona that often poked fun at his barely closeted homosexuality, Lynde was we ...

). Among Woodbury's other film appearances: '' Safe at Home!'' (with

Mickey Mantle Mickey Charles Mantle (October 20, 1931 – August 13, 1995), nicknamed "the Commerce Comet" and "the Mick", was an American professional baseball player. Mantle played his entire Major League Baseball (MLB) career (1951–1968) with the New York ...

and Roger Maris, 1962); '' Beyond the Bermuda Triangle'' (TV movie with Fred MacMurray and

Donna Mills Donna Mills (born Donna Jean Miller on December 11, 1940) is an American actress. She began her television career in 1966 with a recurring role on '' The Secret Storm'', and in the same year appeared on Broadway in the Woody Allen comedy '' Do ...

, 1975); ''

Super Fuzz ''Super Fuzz'' ( it, Poliziotto superpiù), also known as ''Super Snooper'', is a 1980 superhero comedy film directed by Sergio Corbucci. The film stars Terence Hill and Ernest Borgnine. It is about Dave Speed, a bumbling Miami police officer w ...

'' (with

Ernest Borgnine Ernest Borgnine (; born Ermes Effron Borgnino; January 24, 1917 – July 8, 2012) was an American actor whose career spanned over six decades. He was noted for his gruff but relaxed voice and gap-toothed Cheshire Cat grin. A popular perfor ...

, 1981); and '' Hardly Working'' (with Jerry Lewis, 1981). In 1962, Woodbury replaced Johnny Carson as host of the game show ''

Who Do You Trust? ''Who Do You Trust?'' (originally titled ''Do You Trust Your Wife?'' until July 1958) is an American television game show. The show aired from September 30, 1957 to November 15, 1957, at 4:30 pm Eastern on ABC, and from November 18, 1957 ...

'' when Carson left to succeed Jack Paar in helming ''

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'', a job for which Woodbury had also been competing. In the mid to late 1960s, Woodbury often performed at Caesars Palace in

Las Vegas Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vegas ...

, touring nationally and performing in charity golf tournaments with Hope, Gleason, and others. He hosted a beauty pageant in

West Virginia West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian, Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States.The Census Bureau and the Association of American Geographers classify West Virginia as part of the Southern United States while the B ...

with

Gordon MacRae Albert Gordon MacRae (March 12, 1921 – January 24, 1986) was an American actor, singer and radio/television host who appeared in the film versions of two Rodgers and Hammerstein musicals ''Oklahoma!'' (1955) and '' Carousel'' (1956) and who p ...

and

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. In the 1970s, Woodbury performed standup comedy, mostly in the Fort Lauderdale, Florida, area, his home base for many years. He performed at the Bahama Hotel. ''The Woody Woodbury Show'' was on television from 1967 to 1968, a 90-minute talk/variety show which aired weekday afternoons in most markets.

Personal life

By the mid to late 1960s, Woodbury moved from

Plantation, Florida Plantation is a city in Broward County, Florida, United States. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the population was 91,750. It is a principal city of the Miami metropolitan area. The city's name comes from the previous part-owner of the land, the E ...

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

with his second wife, Sussanne, and their two children, Kimberly and Bobby. In the mid to late 1970s, he divorced his second wife. On August 8, 2019, Woodbury helped to honor Eugene "Gene" Witkowski, 97, who served in

, who lived in the Fort Lauderdale, Florida area for fifty years.

Discography

*''Woody Woodbury Looks At Love And Life'' (1959) *''Woody Woodbury's Laughing Room'' (1960) *''First Annual Message From The President Of The "Booze Is the Only Answer" Club'' (1960) *''Woody Woodbury's Concert In Comedy'' (1961) *''Woody Woodbury's Saloonatics'' (1961) *''Woody Woodbury In The Spice Is Right'' (1962) *''The Best Of Woody Woodbury'' (1963) *''Thru The Keyhole With Woody Woodbury'' (1964) *''More Of Woody'' (1973) *''Woody Woodbury's Merriment'' (2001)

References

Sources

* * *

External links

*
Interview with Woody Woodbury
by

Kliph Nesteroff Kliph Nesteroff is a best-selling author regarded for his vast knowledge of show business. '' Vice Magazine'' called him "The Human Encyclopedia of Comedy," and ''Los Angeles Magazine'' profiled him as "The King of Comedy Lore." ''The New York T ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Woodbury, Woody 1924 births Living people American television talk show hosts United States Marine Corps officers United States Marine Corps pilots of World War II United States Marine Corps personnel of the Korean War American Korean War pilots 20th-century American comedians