Failing Better: "In recent entries of Roger Ebert's Answer Man column—on December 9 and December 23—he tackled the rumor that Jack Benny had an uncredited cameo in Casablanca. While addressing various claims, such as the fact that one Benny fan-site stated that the Casablanca press kit verifies the fact, Ebert responded, 'I think you're right.'
I'd never heard this before, and didn't dig out my old VHS tape to check, but based on a few minutes searching online, I found a newspaper ad placed by a Florida theater that confirms this appearance—because it gave away a free pass to any theater patron who could spot Benny."
Link via News from Me.
Update: The guy in the screen grabs now posted at News from Me don't look much like Benny. Maybe this is another urban legend, though a good one.
5 comments:
Holy something or other, Rochester.
That's incredible.
I'll have to check it out.
Jeff
Amazing how long these things can remain undiscovered. Last year there was a flurry of excitement about the "discovery" of Raymond Chandler's cameo appearance in Double Indemnity. As it happened, Don Herron had made that discovery some 30 years ago, so I Bruce Taylor and various friends of Don had known of it all along. But lacking an internet back then, the fact never got properly disseminated, so a couple of film buffs get credit for the discovery in 2009.
Art Scott
One of our members found a mention of Jack's appearance in Casablanca in the movie's press kit, saying that Jack visited the set and ended up making a cameo. I suppose it could be just Hollywood hype, but the question comes around fairly regularly.
The shots Mark Evanier posted are the only ones that our members have found where there was some consensus about it being Jack. But if you find him somewhere else, let me know!
--Laura Leff
President, IJBFC
www.jackbenny.org
Thanks, Laura. I'm a big Jack Benny fan, and I hope it's a true story.
Doesn't look all that much like Jack to me either, Bill.
I loved GEORGE WASHINGTON SLEPT HERE, by the way.
Jeff
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