Steve Allen
Known for: Acting
Stephen Valentine Patrick William Allen was an American television personality, radio personality, musician, composer, actor, comedian, writer, and advocate of scientific skepticism. In 1954, he achieved national fame as the co-creator and first host of The Tonight Show, which was the first late night television talk show. Though he got his start in radio, Allen is best known for his extensive network television career. He gained national attention as a guest host on Arthur Godfrey's Talent Scouts. After he hosted The Tonight Show, he went on to host numerous game and variety shows, including his own The Steve Allen Show, I've Got a Secret, and The New Steve Allen Show. He was a regular panel member on CBS's What's My Line?, and from 1977 until 1981 wrote, produced, and hosted the award-winning public broadcasting show Meeting of Minds, a series of historical dramas presented in a talk format. Allen was a pianist and a prolific composer. By his own estimate, he wrote more than 8,500 songs, some of which were recorded by numerous leading singers. Working as a lyricist, Allen won the 1964 Grammy Award for Best Original Jazz Composition. He also wrote more than 50 books, including novels, children's books, and books of opinions, including his final book, Vulgarians at the Gate: Trash TV and Raunch Radio. In 1996 Allen was presented with the Martin Gardner Lifetime Achievement Award from the Committee for Skeptical Inquiry (CSICOP). He has two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame and a Hollywood theater named in his honor.
Filmography
Series
The Simpsons
Steve Allen (voice)
1989
Series
The Simpsons
Bart's Altered Voice (voice)
1989
Series
The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson
Self - Guest Host
1962
Series
The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson
Self
1962
Series
The Mike Douglas Show
Self - Guest
1961
Series
The Love Boat
Durwood Moss
1977
Series
Diagnosis: Murder
Ray Masters
1993
Series
Sabrina, the Teenage Witch
Fear
1996
Series
Batman
Allen Stevens
1966
Series
The Merv Griffin Show
Self
1962
Series
Love, American Style
Johny
1969
Series
Late Night with Conan O'Brien
Self - Guest
1993
Series
Homicide: Life on the Street
Mr. Cochran
1993
Series
St. Elsewhere
Lech Oseransky
1982
Series
Get Smart
Prime Minister's Aide (uncredited)
1965
Series
Hart to Hart
Himself
1979
Series
What's My Line?
Self
1950
Series
Hotel
1982
Series
WWF Wrestling Challenge
Self
1986
Series
American Masters
Self
1986
Series
Medical Center
1969
Series
I've Got a Secret
Self - Host
1952
Series
The Steve Allen Show
Self - Host
1956
Series
The Oscars
Self
1953
Series
Behind the Music
Self
1997
Series
The Ed Sullivan Show
Self
1948
Series
Space Ghost Coast to Coast
1994
Series
McCloud
Doug King
1970
Series
Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In
Self
1968
Series
The Dinah Shore Chevy Show
Self
1956
Series
Pinky and the Brain
Steve Allen (voice)
1995
Film
Casino
Steve Allen
1995
Series
Kraft Music Hall
Self
1958
Series
Kraft Music Hall
Self - Host
1958
Series
The Critic
Steve Allen (voice)
1994
Series
The DuPont Show with June Allyson
Dr. Ben Ellison
1959
Series
Solid Gold
Self
1980
Series
The Thin Man
1957
Series
Rich Man, Poor Man
1976
Film
The Player
Steve Allen
1992
Series
Nurse
Barney Ambler
1981
Series
The David Susskind Show
Self
1959
Series
Alice in Wonderland
Gentleman in Paper Suit
1985
Series
The Snoop Sisters
Steve Allen
1973
Series
What Really Happened to the Class of '65?
1977
Series
The Emmy Awards
Self
1949
Series
The Judy Garland Show
Self
1963
Film
Amazon Women on the Moon
Steve Allen (segment "Roast Your Loved One")
1987
Series
Meeting of Minds
Self - Host
1977
Film
Mitzi & 100 Guys
Self
1975
Film
Louis Armstrong's Black & Blues
Self (voice) (archive sound)
2022
Film
The Movie Orgy
Self (archive footage)
1968
Film
2Everything2Terrible2: Tokyo Drift
Self (archive footage)
2010
Film
Great Balls of Fire!
Steve Allen
1989
Series
Hallmark Hall of Fame
Martin Kaplan
1951
Series
Tonight Starring Steve Allen
Self - Host
1954
Series
General Electric Theater
Andy Fletcher
1953
Film
Tab Hunter Confidential
Self (archive)
2015
Film
Joys
Self
1976
Film
The Sunshine Boys
Self
1975
Film
The Sunshine Boys
Narrator of Fictional TV Program (uncredited)
1975
Film
Warning Shot
Steve Allen
1967
Film
Night of 100 Stars
Self
1982
Bob Hope's World of Comedy
Self (archive footage)
1976
Film
The Ratings Game
Steve Allen
1984
Series
The People Next Door
Self
1989
Series
The New Steve Allen Show
Self - Host
1961
Film
The Adventures of Errol Flynn
Self (archive footage)
2005
On the Road to Desolation
Self
1997
Series
Life's Most Embarrassing Moments
Self - Host
1983
Film
The Muppets Go Hollywood
Self
1979
Film
Where Were You When the Lights Went Out?
Radio Announcer
1968
Film
50 Years of NBC Late Night
Self (archive footage)
2001
Film
Heart Beat
Steve Allen
1980
Film
The Comic
Steve Allen
1969
Film
The Big Circus
Self
1959
Film
Boulevard! A Hollywood Story
Self (archive footage)
2021
Film
Now You See It, Now You Don't
Herschel Lucas
1968
Film
Lenny Bruce: Without Tears
Self / DJ (archive footage)
1972
Film
Elvis: #1 Hit Performances
Self (archive footage)
2007
Film
Don't Ask Me, Ask God
Self
1984
Film
On and Off the Res' with Charlie Hill
Himself
2000
Film
Have I Got a Christmas for You
Martin Kaplan
1977
Film
Laurel and Hardy: A Tribute to the Boys
Self
1992
Film
Down Memory Lane
Steve Allen
1949
Film
Eat That Question: Frank Zappa in His Own Words
Self (archive footage)
2016
Film
Stone
Steve Allen
1979
Film
The Benny Goodman Story
Benny Goodman
1956
Film
Nichols and May: Take Two
Self
1996
Film
Tasmanian Devil: The Fast and Furious Life of Errol Flynn
Self (archive footage)
2007
Film
The Making of the Stooges
Self - Host
1984
Film
WWE WrestleMania VI
Self
1990
Film
Lucy Calls the President
Steve Allen
1977
Film
Richard Lewis: I'm Exhausted
Self
1988
Film
Elvis: Rare Moments with the King
Self (archive footage)
2003
The Steve Allen Comedy Hour
Self - Host
1980
Film
James Dean Remembered
Self
1974
Film
The Gossip Columnist
Steve Allen
1980
The Wil Shriner Show
Self
1987
Film
Ernie Kovacs: Television's Original Genius
Self
1982
Film
The Funny Farm
Self
1983
Film
Lenny Bruce: Swear to Tell the Truth
Self
1998
Film
Nobody's Perfect: The Making of Some Like It Hot
Self (archive footage)
2001
Film
Rodney Dangerfield's 75th Birthday Toast
Self
1997
Film
Erroll Garner: No One Can Hear You Read
Self (archive footage)
2013
Film
James Dean: A Portrait
Self
1995
Film
College Confidential
Steve MacInter
1960
Film
Happy Birthday, Bob: 50 Stars Salute Your 50 Years with NBC
Self
1988
Film
Let Me In, I Hear Laughter: A Salute to the Friars Club
Self
1999
Film
Rodney Dangerfield's The Really Big Show
Self
1991
Film
Classic Comedy Teams
Host
1986
Film
The Definitive Elvis: The Television Years
Self (archive footage)
2002
Film
Allen in Movieland
Self
1955
Film
James Dean and Me
Self (uncredited)
1995
Film
The Universal Mind of Bill Evans
1966
Film
Don't Worry, We'll Think of a Title
Bookstore Customer with Little Boy (uncredited)
1966
Film
Starfest: The Stars Salute Public Television 1983
1983
Film
TV's Funniest Comedians - 14 Stars Do Classic Routines
Self
1986
Film
Abbott & Costello Meet Biography
Self
1996
I've Got a Secret
Self - Host
1972
The Vent Event
1978
Film
The Power of the Market
1980
Film
I'll Get By
Peter Pepper
1950
Film
Elvis: The King of Rock 'n' Roll
Self (archive footage)
2007
On Location: Myron Cohen
Self - Host
1976
Film
Computability: How to Make the Most of Your Home Computer
1984
Film
No More to Say & Nothing to Weep For: An Elegy for Allen Ginsberg
Self (archive footage)
1997