Paul Lynde - Career

Career

Lynde made his Broadway debut in the hit revue New Faces of 1952 in which he co-starred with fellow newcomers Eartha Kitt, Alice Ghostley, and Carol Lawrence. In his monologue from that revue, the "Trip of the Month Club," Lynde portrayed a man on crutches recounting his misadventures on the African safari he took with his late wife. The show was filmed and released as New Faces in 1954.

After the revue's run, Lynde co-starred in the short-lived 1956 sitcom Stanley opposite Buddy Hackett and Carol Burnett, both of whom were also starting out their careers in show business. That same year, he guest starred on NBC's The Martha Raye Show, a comedy/variety show.

In 1960, Lynde returned to Broadway when he was cast as "Harry MacAfee," the father in Bye Bye Birdie. He reprised the role in the play's film adaptation, which was released in 1963. That same year, he recorded a live album, Recently Released, issued as an LP record (no other formats are available). All six tracks were written by him. Once he could afford writers, he rarely used his own material until his tenure on Hollywood Squares years later.

Over the years, Lynde made regular appearances on sitcoms such as The Phil Silvers Show, The Munsters, and I Dream of Jeannie, and variety shows such as The Perry Como Show and The Dean Martin Show. Lynde first appeared in episode 26 of Bewitched, "Driving is the Only Way to Fly," as Samantha's driving instructor Harold Harold, before taking on the recurring role of Uncle Arthur, Endora's brother. He was also a frequent guest on the 1976-79 variety show, Donny and Marie.

Lynde also did extensive voice work on animated cartoons, particularly those of Hanna-Barbera Productions. His most notable roles included The Hooded Claw in The Perils of Penelope Pitstop (though he was uncredited), Mildew Wolf from It's the Wolf (a segment of Cattanooga Cats), and Pertwee from Where's Huddles?. He also voiced the role of Templeton the gluttonous rat in the animated feature Charlotte's Web. Lynde's sardonic inflections added a dimension to such lines as the sly, drawn-out whine, "What's in it for meeee?" Lynde's distinctive voice is popular among impressionists. In the 1999 animated series Queer Duck the character Bi-Polar Bear (voiced by Billy West) speaks with an imitation of Lynde's voice. Although it is sometimes assumed that actress Alice Ghostley based her speech patterns and mannerisms on Lynde's, according to actress Kaye Ballard "it was Paul who was influenced by Alice".