Podcast Summary: Harold’s Old Time Radio

Episode: The Lucky Strike Program Starring Jack Benny (1955-01-02: Rose Bowl Parade)

Podcast Host: Harold’s Old Time Radio
Original Air Date: January 2, 1955
Summary Date: December 31, 2025

Episode Overview

This classic Jack Benny Program, unearthed by Harold’s Old Time Radio, transports listeners to the heart of post-New Year’s festivities in 1955. The episode captures Benny and cast recovering from New Year's Eve, preparing (or attempting) to present a more "sophisticated" show, and recounting their comedic misadventures at the legendary Rose Bowl Parade in Pasadena. With witty banter, running gags, musical interludes, and memorable recurring characters, this episode highlights the magic and chaos of live radio comedy in its golden age.

Key Discussion Points and Segments

1. Sponsor & Opening Humor

Time: 00:02–03:16

• The episode opens with the signature Lucky Strike cigarette jingle and banter about its "toasted" flavor.
  • Don Wilson and Dorothy Collins lead the promotional jingle touting Lucky Strike’s superior taste (“It’s toasted to give you the best taste yet.” [00:11])
• Jack interrupts the rehearsing orchestra to address the band’s disorderly state after New Year’s Eve.
  • Notable gag: Musicians are still hungover; Bagby plays piano lying down, a clarinetist is blowing confetti, and the drummer is weaving around.
  • Benny: “Bob, I don’t expect them to come in sober after Groundhog day, but this is ridiculous!” [01:31]
• Jack orders “new rules” for the band for the new year, including the requirement of doctor or warden’s notes for missing rehearsal and a ban on drinking during performances.

2. Backstage Chaos & Diet Resolutions

Time: 03:17–06:13

• Don Wilson is nervous about his New Year's diet.
  • Benny deadpans: “When did you go on this diet?”
    Wilson: “I start tomorrow.” [04:12]
• Running joke about Don attempting to lose 100 lbs as a New Year’s resolution.
  • Jack: “The only time 100 pounds ever left your body was when you had your tonsils removed. Remember? They weighed 50 pounds each.” [04:30]
• Scripts arrive late, leading to a frazzled script clerk lamenting the lack of organization in the radio business, parodying the grind of mass live programming.
  • Script Clerk: “First they come with Amos and Andy script, then Our Miss Brooks, then Meet Millie, then your lousy script, and then Bing Crosby...” [05:41]

3. Sophisticated Comedy—Or Not

Time: 06:51–09:59

• Formal introduction: “The Lucky Strike Program starring Jack Benny…”
• Jack resolves to “forgive and forget” old debts and start the year with “sophisticated humor, suave and smart comedy,” ditching old routines, only to be instantly derailed.
• Dennis Day appears—announcing he’s ‘a different person this year’, having changed his name to Orange Julius, leading to a parade of identity gags.
  • Dennis: “I told you I’d be a different person this year.”
    Jack: “So you changed your name to Julius, huh?”
    Dennis: “Yeah, that’s my last name.”
    Jack: “What’s your first name?”
    Dennis: “Orange.” [09:05]
• Further, Dennis insists he is the “Australian wood wobbler,” who does bird calls instead of singing.

4. The Rose Bowl Parade Story

Time: 13:17–25:03

• Don asks Benny how he spent New Year’s Day; Jack recounts his trip to the Rose Parade with his date and Rochester.
  • Jack: “I set the alarm for 3:30 AM. At a quarter of four we picked up my date. By four o’clock we were on our way.” [13:32]
• Colorful depiction of pre-dawn grogginess:
  • Rochester: “Nothing. My eyes are still closed.”
    Jack: “Open them, you’re driving.” [13:56]
  • Gertrude: “At 4 in the morning even Liberace ain’t smiling!” [13:59]
• Revelations about Jack’s army surplus convertible (“This is the new one I bought at the Army Surplus Store. The flap still says ‘Field Headquarters General Ridgeway!’” [16:10])
• The car reaches Pasadena but is soon snagged in a traffic jam caused by the parade.

Musical Interlude: Lucky Strike Floats & Parade Song

Time: 17:13–18:45

• The parade, with Lucky Strike float and drum majors, arrives—cast members join in with a Lucky Strike promotional musical number:
  • “When you hear that drumming you know we’re coming and the Lucky Strikes are on parade...” [17:16]
• The group unintentionally becomes part of the parade after a float starts pushing their dead car.
  • Jack: “Smile, boss, smile. We’re in the parade. See?” [22:43]

Comedic Encounters Along the Parade Route

Time: 19:12–24:48

• Jack is stopped at a police barricade and discovers the officer is Mr. Kitzel, a beloved recurring character, moonlighting as a deputy for the parade.
  • Mr. Kitzel: “Every year for this parade, I am a deputy.” [20:56]
  • Jack: “Did you write many tickets?”
    Mr. Kitzel: “I wrote up my brother-in-law for speeding, making a U turn, loose brakes, a defective horn, and faulty headlights.”
    Jack: “That must have cost him plenty.”
    Kitzel: “Would have, but I couldn’t make it stick—he was walking.” [21:22]
• The car breaks down in the middle of Colorado Blvd, leaving Jack, his date, and Rochester stranded—until a parade float starts shoving their car down the street, making them unwilling parade participants. [22:37]
  • Bystander: “Mommy, what kind of car is that?”
    Mother: “I don’t know. Must be a foreign make.”
    Jack: “Madam, it’s not a foreign make. This is an American car.”
    Mother: “Not so loud. I want my boy to be proud of his country!” [23:57]
• More slapstick as they are stuck for “three hours” in the parade.
  • Rochester: “Happy New Year, everybody! Happy New Year!” [25:03]

5. closing PSA & Musical Curtain

Time: 25:24–27:20

• Jack issues a serious and now quaint-sounding PSA on fire safety: “One of our greatest national hazards is fire...Don’t smoke in bed.” [25:24]
• The Lucky Strike Toasting Song is reprised as a closing jingle.
• Jack delivers his traditional sign-off: “On behalf of my sponsor, my entire staff, I want to wish all of you a Happy New Year. Of course, everybody will be a year older—but not me. Goodnight, folks.” [27:20]

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On the band’s post-New-Year state:
  “Bob, I don’t expect them to come in sober after Groundhog Day, but this is ridiculous!” – Jack Benny [01:31]

• On New Year’s Diet Resolutions:
  Jack: “When did you go on this diet?”
  Don: “I start tomorrow.” [04:12]

  Jack: “The only time 100 pounds ever left your body was when you had your tonsils removed.” [04:30]

• On changing for the new year:
  Dennis: “I told you I’d be a different person this year.”
  Jack: “So you changed your name...”
  Dennis: “Orange. Orange Julius!” [09:05]

• Parade Mishaps:
  Jack: “Smile, boss, smile, we're in the parade!” – Rochester [22:43]

  Bystander Child: “Mommy, what kind of car is that?”
  Mother: “I don’t know. Must be a foreign make.” [23:57]

  Jack: “I just wanted to see the parade. I didn’t want to BE in it!” [24:43]

Timestamps for Major Segments

• Lucky Strike Opening Jingle: 00:02–01:14
• Band New Year’s Chaos & New Rules: 01:14–03:16
• Don’s Diet & Script Room Panic: 03:17–06:13
• Jack’s “Sophisticated Show” & Orange Julius Gags: 06:51–09:59
• Dennis Day’s Song & Gags: 09:59–13:17
• Rose Parade Adventure - Setup: 13:17–16:24
• Arrival in Pasadena & Parade Begins: 16:24–18:45
• Enmeshed in the Parade: 18:45–25:03
• Fire Safety PSA & Musical Reprise: 25:24–27:20
• Final Sign-Off: 27:20–END

Tone & Style

True to Jack Benny's wry, gentle humor, the episode dances between quick-witted banter, absurd situations, and satirical takes on showbiz, radio bureaucracy, and New Year’s traditions. The legendary recurrence of running gags—Jack’s stinginess, Dennis’ non-sequiturs, Rochester's deadpan, and escalating slapstick—deliver a lasting example of old-time radio’s comedic craft.

For listeners interested in the flavor of 1950s American comedy, radio teamwork, and holiday misadventure, this episode is a classic slice of history, full of good-natured laughs and timeless jokes.