Variety Shows: The Glen Campbell Goodtime Hour

A format that has not been seen on prime-time television since the 1970’s is the variety show. Again I think that economics plays a big part. The cost to produce a show is so huge now with just one star that to pay big name acts to appear on the show every week could bankrupt any production. Still there was a time when the variety show was king.
Now I can understand why an actor or a comedian would be asked to host a show. It has often puzzled me why get a singer to host. While Perry Como and Nat King Cole hosted shows in the 50’s the singer as host really boomed in the late 60’s and early 70’s. On January 29, 1969 CBS aired the Glen Campbell Goodtime Hour. Glen Campbell had a string of hits on the pop and country charts. His two biggest at that time were Gentle On My Mind and Wichita Lineman. He was a frequent guest on the Smothers Brothers Show. He is a first rate guitarist and made a living as a studio musician. He has played on many other artist hit songs. Like the Beach Boys and the Monkees. He also had filled in for Brian Wilson when Brian didn’t want to tour with the Beach Boys anymore. I believe I even remember them introducing the first episode of the Glen Campbell Goodtime Hour. The show became an instant hit. It was due to Mr. Campbell’s laid back southern charm. He set the tone of the show. The music was very good as you would expect. Having been taken under the wings of the Smothers Brothers he learned how to deliver a joke very well. I am too young to have seen the Perry Como show but I have heard that the show was a lot like an updated country version of Mr. Como’s show. What I have seen of Mr. Como is that he must have been the most laidback entertainer ever and still remain entertaining.
The theme song of the show was his hit Gentle On My Mind. Many of the guests were first rate country musicians and comedians. Many of his friends were like John Hartford, who wrote Gentle On My Mind, Jerry Reed and Dom DeLuise was on the show so often that even though they were not regular cast members they might as well have been.
In 1970 the Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour was canceled from CBS. Their show was always testing the networks patience with comedy monologues, songs and sketches based around religion and politics. Usually an on air apology smoothed everything out. This time the network had enough and cancelled the show.
Now what did this have to do with the Glen Campbell Goodtime Hour? Well it is a bit ironic. You see the reason Glen Campbell was on the Smothers Brothers Show was because he was under contract to them. CBS may have canceled the Smothers Brothers in 1970 but until Glen Campbell’s show left the air with it’s last broadcast on June 13, 1972 CBS still had to pay the Smothers Brothers to air Glen’s family friendly show. Meanwhile CBS replaced the Smothers Brothers Show with Hee Haw. CBS at that time was starting to look like it stood for the Country Broadcasting System.
Glen Campbell still continued as a musical force with #1 hits Rhinestone Cowboy and Southern Nights a few years later. In 1982 he tried a half hour syndicated music show with guest ranging from Willie Nelson to Chuck Mangione. It only lasted 24 episodes.