Joe Franklin Day

Joe Franklin Day is annually celebrated on March 9^th. It is the first talk show and one of the longest-running TV shows in history, with more than 28 thousand episodes and more than 300 thousand guests!

History of Joe Franklin Day

Legendary talk show host Joe Franklin is celebrated his birth. He is widely credited as the host of the first television talk show and the inventor of its format. Franklin is one of the longest running TV talk shows of all time, having aired for over 40 years with over 28,000 episodes. Often referred to as The Joe Franklin Show, it went by this name and a few others throughout its run.

Born as Joe Fortgang in the Bronx, New York City, on March 9, 1926, Joe Franklin started the show business as a teenager by writing for Kate Smith's variety radio show, The Kate Smith Hour. At the age of 16, Martin Block hired him to select records to play on his Make Believe Ballroom radio show. Later, Block helped him secure his own radio show, Vaudeville Not Dead.

Joe Franklin made his television debut on January 8, 1951 on WJZ-TV (now WABC-TV) Channel 7 in New York City. Disc Jockey was the first television talk show. Soon after, the name of the show was changed to The Joe Franklin Show. In 1962, it switched to WOR-TV (now WWOR-TV) and its name was changed to Joe Franklin's Memory Lane. It again took the name The Joe Franklin Show in 1970.

Deceased veteran stars, rising stars, and occasionally, current superstars, all love Joe Franklin's set, they often sit together on the same episode. The New York Times called Franklin's guests "surprisingly famous guests who have been interrupted and have never been." Because of his fondness for old stars, he is known by the nicknames "King of Nostalgia" and "The Wizard of Was." By the time he left television, he claimed to have interviewed more than 300,000 guests.

Notable guests in the early years of the Franklin show included Elvis Presley and John F. Kennedy. He brought in Dustin Hoffman, Barbara Streisand, Richard Pryor, Robin Williams, Liza Minnelli, Julia Roberts, and Woody Allen before they reached stardom. His in-house singer is Bette Midler, and her accompanist is Barry Manilow. Billy Crystal impersonated him on Saturday Night Live, and Franklin appeared as himself in such films as Ghostbusters and Broadway Danny Rose.

Though never shown on network television, Franklin's show was a huge hit. It was broadcast on local television in New York City, and beginning in 1979 was also available across the country to people with satellite television. He started Joe Franklin's Memory Lane Restaurant in 2000. It was replaced by Joe Franklin's Comedy Club, but later also played door. In his later years, Joe Franklin hosted late-night radio shows. He died of prostate cancer at age 88 on January 24, 2015. We celebrate his legacy today, on Joe Franklin Day.

How to celebrate Joe Franklin Day

Franklin has been called the King of Entertainment and the King of Nostalgia. I wonder if he's having a headache with how talk shows have been and are growing e.g. hits like The Oprah Winfrey Show, late night shows like The Tonight Show with Jay Leno and The David Letterman Show, such morning shows as Good Morning America, shows that combine a talk format with comedy and fake news like The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, and popular shows current daytime music such as The Ellen DeGeneres Show and The View. There are talk shows on politics, entertainment, issues, cars, sports and many more topics. So there are many ways for your choice to celebrate Joe Franklin Day. Let choose one for yourself.