Denny Vaughan Show, The – Nostalgia Central

1 9 5 4 – 1 9 5 7 (Canada)
80 x 30 minute episodes

This popular early music variety television series from CBC was hosted by Toronto-born pianist, singer, and arranger Denny Vaughan and served as a major launchpad for Canadian musical talent during the golden age of live television.

The show was initially a relaxed, intimate production, revolving around the easy-listening piano stylings of Denny Vaughan and the vocals of his English-born Canadian co-star, singer/accordionist Joan Fairfax.

When consumer goods giant Lever Brothers came on board as the primary sponsor, the budget greatly increased, and the show became a major, weekly prime-time variety extravaganza. It featured elaborate production numbers and regularly imported prominent stand-up comedians and guest musicians from the United States.

When critics complained the show had lost its original charm, the comedy acts were dropped and The Denny Vaughan Show focused heavily on homegrown musical talent. The show also committed to featuring an act from French Canada every single week.

The show featured vocal groups including the ten-voice Don Wright Singers, the BoBolinks, and alternating featured quartets The Diamonds and The Add-Fours.

A regular troupe of dancers – including Don Hewitt, Mitch Nutick, and Charles Calmers – performed weekly routines, choreographed by Glenna Jones.

The cancellation of the show in 1957 spawned a summer replacement series named Front Page Challenge, which went on to become one of the longest-running and most successful TV productions in Canadian television history.

Denny Vaughan moved to Hollywood in the late 1960s to work as the choral consultant for American hit shows like The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour and as musical director for Glen Campbell, Sonny and Cher, and Tom Jones.

Vaughan died on 2 October 1972 in Montreal, Quebec, following a battle with cancer. He was just 50 years old.