Actor

Fred Allen

Acting

Career Snapshot

Explained

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Acting credits

Active

Consistent number of acting credits.

TMDB popularity

0.7

Low visibility

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Movies: 10Series: 4Crew credits: 1

TMDB ID: 566290

IMDb ID: nm0020521

Known for: Acting

Born: May 31, 1894

Died: March 17, 1956

Age: 61

Place of birth: Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA

Gender: Male

Adult content flag: No

Career span: 1931 - 1991

Years active: 61

Average TMDB rating: 6.56

Wikidata: Q967454

Also known as

John Florence Sullivan

Other jobs

Writer (1)

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Biography

John Florence Sullivan (May 31, 1894 – March 17, 1956), known professionally as Fred Allen, was an American comedian whose absurdist, topically pointed radio show (1932–1949) made him one of the most popular and forward-looking humorists in the so-called classic era of American radio. His best-remembered gag was his long-running mock feud with friend and fellow comedian Jack Benny, but it was only part of his appeal; radio historian John Dunning (in On the Air: The Encyclopedia of Old-Time Radio) wrote that Allen was radio's most admired comedian and most frequently censored. A master adlibber, Allen often tangled with his network's executives (and often barbed them on the air over the battles), while developing routines the style and substance of which influenced contemporaries and futures among comic talents, including Groucho Marx, Stan Freberg, Henry Morgan and Johnny Carson, but his fans also included President Franklin D. Roosevelt, and novelists William Faulkner, John Steinbeck and Herman Wouk (who began his career writing for Allen). Ironically, in view of his often barbed observations of the medium, Fred Allen was honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for contributions to television