"All Hail to Jack Benny!"

With the U.S. spending billions for defense, radio last week dedicated a great deal of time and money for tribute. The occasion was the start of the tenth year of big-time broadcasting for silver-haired, jello-jowled Comedian Jack Benny, No.1 U.S. radio entertainer. The tribute, carefully prepared by a hard-working phalanx of publicists, was about the biggest thing of its kind radio had ever seen.

To prepare U.S. radio listeners for a week during which it became difficult to tune in without hearing Benny hailed or Jell-O joshed, Variety had published a Benny issue, complete with impressive data on the rise and take* of radio's richest earner. On one program Eddie Cantor recited: "You've come up the hard way. old fellow, I mean the hard way, not the soft way like Jell-O." On another', Punster Fred Allen spent 60 minutes abusing his friendly enemy while Wife Portland tried to finish a squeaky paean beginning: ''All hail to Jack Benny!"

Culmination came with the 800-place banquet, held like most Hollywood shindigs in the Biltmore Hotel Bowl. NBC played host. Master of Ceremonies Rudy Vallee presented Comedians Bob Hope, Burns & Allen, Fibber McGee & Molly (Jim and Marion Jordan), Bergen & McCarthy, George Jessel. He called upon NBC's President Niles Trammell, who ended by giving Benny two gold keys that would unlock any door in NBC's Manhattan or Hollywood headquarters.

At last they came to Benny. He read his speech, with a crack for all comedians present. and an introduction for each of lis assistants (for his famed Negro valet: 'Next week I start Charley's Aunt, and ;hat's one picture Rochester won't steal; he won't be in it."). When the party finished, it was 4 a.m., everybody was right, and they all went home. NBC was proud of its show for Showman Benny. It should have been: the blowout alone cost over $10,000.

In a young industry that still possesses few big names of its own, Jack Benny is a valuable prestige property. With a superb timing, and a disarming shuffling diffidence as his stock in trade, he has led the radio field for eight of his nine broadcasting years. But few days after his superfete, Crossley (Cooperative Analysis of Broadcasting) released its latest ratings. First on the list, instead of Benny, were the everlasting corn-belt comedy favorites, Fibber McGee & Molly. Benny stood second highest.

* Estimated at one half a million a year for total radio and cinema earnings.

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