Jackie Gleason's "You're In The Picture"

[The Great One]

Jackie Gleason was the host of "You're In The Picture" which aired on CBS for only one episode, on January 20, 1961. The show is considered by many to be one of the biggest flops in television history. I was wondering if anyone on this message board knows if any compilation dvds have been released that include a complete and uncut version of this show.

[T-Greg]

Actually, it aired twice. The first one is called "Gleason's Big Bomb". The second and last is called "The Apology show", where Gleason basically apologizes the entire show about how bad the first show was. He goes into detail about the concept and discussion with CBS execs and what they would do next. The next time it aired, the format was changed to a variety show I think.

http://www.tvparty.com/picture.html

[The Great One]

Originally Posted by T-Greg

Actually, it aired twice. The first one is called "Gleason's Big Bomb". The second and last is called "The Apology show", where Gleason basically apologizes the entire show about how bad the first show was. He goes into detail about the concept and discussion with CBS execs and what they would do next. The next time it aired, the format was changed to a variety show I think.

http://www.tvparty.com/picture.html

Thanks for posting the link!!!

[gilligan fanatic]

I have both of them. The second episode is a lot me entertaining seeing him talk and smoke all at the same time.

[VIDEOWACK]

I think that second show (the apology) was one of the best shows he ever did on TV

[TV Knowledge Fan]

...came about because Jackie was under contract to CBS {$100,000 a year, under a 15 year contract}, and the network wanted him to do SOMETHING approaching a weekly series in the 1960-'61 season. Okay, he says, how's a about a panel show using cutouts, and have them guess what they're supposed to be? Steve Carlin produced the first two shows--- and there WAS a second show, waiting to be aired, until Gleason came up with the idea of an on-air "apology". Seems he promised to mention, during the "apology", that "YOU'RE IN THE PICTURE" might return....but he didn't. What Jackie said, in effect, was that the whole idea of that show was a bomb, and "We'll see what happens next week". By doing that, CBS could NOT show the second "YOU'RE IN THE PICTURE" episode he had taped, and Steve Carlin abruptly left the show....as did the show's co-sponsor, Kellogg's. They didn't like the idea that Jackie was sipping something out of his coffee cup that he suggested was something other than "coffee", during the "apology" {Liggett & Myers, the alternate sposnor, stayed because they liked the way Jackie smoked his cigarette on camera}. That's when Jackie decided he'd do a weekly "one-on-one" interview format with some of his close friends {Art Carney, Mickey Rooney, Bobby Darin, etc.}, and "THE JACKIE GLEASON SHOW" fulfilled the rest of the 13 shows he was obligated to appear in, ending on March 24, 1961. Jim Aubrey, president and "The Smiling Cobra" of CBS, really didn't want Gleason on "YOU'RE IN THE PICTURE" or the interview format, and told the executive who launched the deal, after the show ended, "Now you've got him out of your system", as though Jackie were a disease waiting to be cured.

As far as I know, Jackie saved those 13 shows on kinescope, and they're in that vault of his in Florida, waiting for Jack Philbin or another Gleason rep to authorize its release.......