Philip Rapp, born March 26, 1907, gave us 88 years of solid laughs. One of the most gifted comedy writers of his time, 1932 saw Phil writing for Eddie Cantor’s radio show. He also directed The Eddie Cantor Show in 1936-37, while contributing special material to Cantor’s film Strike Me Pink and Jimmy Durante’s Star Cheering.

During his stint as screenwriter for Danny Kaye in the 1940’s (penning such hits as Wonder Man, The Secret Life of Walter Mitty, and The Inspector General), Rapp came out with one of the classic radio comedy teams of all time. The Bickersons. Starring Don Ameche and Frances Langford, this short sketch show, that soon landed its own half-hour radio program in 1946, had husband and wife John and Blanche Bickerson at each other’s throats while audiences around the world howled with laughter. It soon became a cult classic, recording phenomenon, TV program, and almost made it as a cartoon series! Jackie Gleason was inspired enough by it to create The Honeymooners.

During all this time Rapp was also working on Baby Snooks, which he created in 1936. It made Ziegfield comedienne Fanny Brice into a radio star. The character first began as a skit on shows like Ziegfield Follies of the Air and Maxwell House Coffee Time before launching into its own show in 1944. It lasted through 1951, when Fanny died.

Rapp also wrote for the stage. He contributed material for The Ziegfield Follies of ’33, wrote Spring In Brazil (starring Milton Berle) for the Shuberts, and penned a Bickersons play entitled Match Please, Darling.

In the 1950s Rapp had his biggest TV hit with the Topper series, based on the best-selling book by Thorne Smith. This lovable show featured Leo G. Carroll as bank vice president Cosmo Topper suffering through the adventures of happy ghosts, John and Marion Kirby, and their ghost-dog Neil. Rapp served as head writer and director. 78 episodes were filmed, running from October 1953 to September 1955. Several of the early shows were written by composer Stephen Sondheim! Reruns were frequent.

Rapp wrote and directed other TV series, including: the first variety show for TV, The Dumont Star Time Revue, which ran from 1949 to 1951. The pilot of I Married Joan, in 1952 for Joan Davis. Squeegee, a series for Ben Blue in 1955. And 22 episodes of The Adventures of Hiram Holliday for NBC in 1957, which starred Wally Cox as an unlikely adventure hero.

The decade ended with a possible new series called Deputy Seraph that was to reunite the three Marx Brothers for television. Alas, it was called off when Chico couldn’t be insured, due to atherosclerosis. Rapp had promised Groucho a Rolls-Royce if the pilot sold.

From 1960 to 1961, Rapp served as Executive Producer for The Tab Hunter Show. In later years, Phil made good money by writing TV and radio commercials featuring the Bickersons, for Coffee Rich, General Motors, American Motors and others. Cleverly, Rapp always retained total artistic control, as well as the rights to his creations.

Rapp wrote over 600 scripts for the Bickersons series, and was one of the most prolific and well-respected comedy men of the Golden Age of Radio. Baby Snooks and Bickersons tapes and CDs continue to be eagerly snapped up today by the public who realize their timeless qualities. Though Phil died on January 23, 1996, his comedy legacy continues to live on.

Philip Rapp's life works can be found in the archives at the Grant Brimhall Library, 1401 E. Janss Rd, Thousand Oaks, CA 91362. He maintained virtually all of his lifes work and the files are voluminous. Contact Jeanette Berard at (805) 449-2660 ext 228.