Inspirational Quotes by Sid Caesar (American Comedian)

Sid Caesar (1922–2014,) byname of Isaac Sidney Caesar, was an American comedian who pioneered the television variety show format with the programs Your Show of Shows (1950–54) and Caesar’s Hour (1954–57.)

Born in Yonkers, New York, Caesar was drafted into the U.S. Coast Guard in 1942 and was stationed in Brooklyn. He created the musical revue Six On, Twelve Off with songwriter Vernon Duke. Caesar’s second revue, Tars and Spars made into a film in 1946, with Caesar re-creating his comic routines for the cameras.

Caesar starred in the stage production Make Mine Manhattan on Broadway in 1947 and created The Admiral Broadway Revue (1949,) a 90-minute live television variety show emphasizing Caesar’s comedy routines. This program evolved into Your Show of Shows, which aired on Saturday nights. The show soon became an enormous hit and won the Emmy Award for best variety program in 1952 and 1953.

Caesar also won the Emmy for best actor in 1952 for his work on the show. Your Show of Shows was restructured as Caesar’s Hour in 1954, which garnered Caesar another performing Emmy in 1957. Over the years, such comedy icons as Neil Simon, Woody Allen, Carl Reiner, Larry Gelbart, and Mel Brooks cut their teeth writing for Caesar.

Caesar wrote about it in his autobiography Where Have I Been? (1982) and continued to perform in films, on television, and onstage. His notable film appearances include comic turns in Stanley Kramer’s epic slapstick comedy It’s a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World (1963) and Brooks’s films Silent Movie (1976) and History of the World: Part I (1981.)

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