Bill Idelson (August 21, 1919 – December 31, 2007) was an American actor, writer, director and producer widely known for his teenage role as Rush Gook on the radio comedy '' Vic and Sade'' and his recurring television role as Herman Glimscher on ''

The Dick Van Dyke Show ''The Dick Van Dyke Show'' is an American sitcom created by Carl Reiner that initially aired on CBS from October 3, 1961, to June 1, 1966, with a total of 158 half-hour episodes spanning five seasons. It was produced by Calvada Productions"Calv ...

'' in the 1960s.

Background

Idelson was born in

Forest Park, Illinois Forest Park (formerly Harlem) is a village in Cook County, Illinois, United States, and a suburb of Chicago. The population was 14,339 at the 2020 census. The Forest Park (CTA station), Forest Park terminal on the Chicago Transit Authority, CTA ...

, his parents were Russian immigrants. He joined the U.S. Navy in

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

and was awarded a Distinguished Flying Cross and four

Air Medal The Air Medal (AM) is a military decoration of the United States Armed Forces. It was created in 1942 and is awarded for single acts of heroism or meritorious achievement while participating in aerial flight. Criteria The Air Medal was establi ...

s as a night fighter pilot. He later married actress Seemah Wilder with whom he had three sons, Paul, Howie and Jonathan as well as a daughter, TV writer and actress Ellen Idelson, who died in 2003. Idelson died in 2007 from complications due to a hip injury. On his death, writer-director

Norman Corwin Norman Lewis Corwin (May 3, 1910 – October 18, 2011) was an American writer, screenwriter, producer, essayist and teacher of journalism and writing. His earliest and biggest successes were in the writing and directing of radio drama during th ...

told the ''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' is an American Newspaper#Daily, daily newspaper that began publishing in Los Angeles, California, in 1881. Based in the Greater Los Angeles city of El Segundo, California, El Segundo since 2018, it is the List of new ...

'' Idelson was "a luminary, he stood out among the radio comedians." Creator of ''The'' ''Dick Van Dyke Show,''

Carl Reiner Carl Reiner (March 20, 1922 – June 29, 2020) was an American actor, author, comedian, director and screenwriter whose career spanned seven decades. He was the List of awards and nominations received by Carl Reiner, recipient of many awards and ...

, said Idelson was "a very subtle actor. He made no big movements, and every time you cut to him you could get a laugh."

Career

Radio

Idelson's acting career began in 1931 on Chicago's WGN radio, when he played Skeezix on '' Uncle Walt and Skeezix'', a radio drama based on the '' Gasoline Alley'' comic strip.DeLong, Thomas A. (1996). ''Radio Stars: An Illustrated Biographical Dictionary of 953 Performers, 1920 through 1960''. McFarland & Company, Inc. . P. 136. One year later he landed the role of Rush on the long-running ''Vic and Sade'', playing the role until he joined the U.S. Navy. He also had the title role on ''Cousin Willie'' and portrayed Bill Clark on ''Secret City'', Hugo on ''The Trouble with the Truitts'', and Chuck on '' That Brewster Boy''. After the war, his acting credits included radio and television versions of the daytime drama series ''

One Man's Family ''One Man's Family'' is an American radio soap opera, heard for almost three decades, from 1932 to 1959. Created by Carlton E. Morse, it was the longest-running uninterrupted dramatic serial in the history of American radio. Television version ...

''.

Television

In ''

'' Idelson played Herman Glimscher, the

milquetoast Caspar Milquetoast was a popular American cartoon character created by H. T. Webster. The term “milquetoast” has since come to be used for a meek or timid person. Milquetoast may also refer to: *Dr. Milquetoast, a character in " The Pacifis ...

boyfriend of Sally Rogers (

Rose Marie Rose Marie (born Rose Marie Mazzetta; August 15, 1923 – December 28, 2017) was an American actress, singer, comedian, and vaudeville performer with a career spanning nine decades, which included film, radio, records, theater, night clubs and ...

). "Herman could never marry because his mother wouldn't sign off on it yet, and when he had a date with Sally Rogers he brought his mother a couple of times," show creator and co-star

told the ''

''. He re-created the role in the first decade of the 21st century for a reunion show of ''

'', with Herman finally married to Sally as she joins her former colleague Rob Petrie (

Dick Van Dyke Richard Wayne Van Dyke (born December 13, 1925) is an American actor, entertainer and comedian. Dick Van Dyke on screen and stage, His work spans screen and stage, and List of awards and nominations received by Dick Van Dyke, his awards includ ...

) to write a new special for their megalomaniacal former boss, Alan Brady (Reiner). Idelson guest starred on episodes of '' Dragnet'', ''

The Twilight Zone ''The Twilight Zone'' is an American media franchise based on the anthology series, anthology television series created by Rod Serling in which characters find themselves dealing with often disturbing or unusual events, an experience described ...

'', ''

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'', ''

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'', ''

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'', ''

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'' and ''

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'', in which he appeared along with his wife and daughter. He wrote the ''

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'' episode of ''

'' (1960) for

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then several episodes of ''

'', leading him to further writing work on '' Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C.'', ''

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'', ''

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'', ''

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'' and ''

''. He received two Writers Guild Awards for best episodic comedy, one for an episode of ''

'' and the other for an episode of ''

''. His producing credits included '' The McLean Stevenson Show'', ''

The Bob Newhart Show ''The Bob Newhart Show'' is an American television sitcom produced by MTM Enterprises that aired on CBS from September 16, 1972, to April 1, 1978, with a total of 142 half-hour episodes over six seasons. Comedian Bob Newhart portrays a psychol ...

'', ''

Anna and the King ''Anna and the King'' is a 1999 American biographical period drama film directed by Andy Tennant. Steve Meerson and Peter Krikes loosely based their screenplay on the 1944 novel '' Anna and the King of Siam'', which gives a fictionalized a ...

'' and ''

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''.

Film

Idelson appeared as the head of a band organization in the film '' Pete Kelly's Blues''.

Writing

He was the author of three books, ''The Story of Vic and Sade'', ''Gibby'' (an autobiographical novel about a fighter pilot) and ''Bill Idelson's Writing Class''.

References

External links

*
"Bill Idelson, 88; actor, writer, producer played the son on radio's 'Vic and Sade'."
McLellan, Dennis. (January 6, 2008). ''Los Angeles Times''. {{DEFAULTSORT:Idelson, Bill 1919 births 2007 deaths Male actors from Illinois American people of Russian descent American male television actors American male radio actors American male voice actors People from Forest Park, Illinois Recipients of the Distinguished Flying Cross (United States) 20th-century American male actors Screenwriting instructors 20th-century American screenwriters Writers Guild of America Award winners