'The Oscar Levant Show' was transmitted weekly by station KCOP in Los Angeles, with a live studio audience. The live audience were a key factor, because Oscar Levant had a reputation for extremely shocking ad-libs that were right at the edge of permissibility ... and sometimes well beyond it. The format of the show allowed Levant to demonstrate his ability as a concert pianist (noted especially for his performances of Chopin and Gershwin) whilst airing his views on any subject, speaking directly to the audience or conversing with an eclectic range of guest stars such as Fred Astaire, Aldous Huxley (almost totally blind at this point), Christopher Isherwood, Linus Pauling and Romain Gary. Levant's attractive wife June (looking young enough to be his daughter) appeared on-camera to pacify him during some of his wilder tirades.
Levant's opinions were highly corrosive. He despised all Republican politicians in general and President Eisenhower in particular. Levant made no secret of his own mental breakdowns and his drug addictions, and he was known to be on several different medications (some of them illegal) all at the same go. Paralysed by stage fright, he was usually doped to the gills while performing live on this TV programme. Sooner or later, something had to go wrong.
The disaster came while Oscar was commenting on current events. Marilyn Monroe (who wasn't Jewish) and playwright Arthur Miller (who was) had originally got married in a civil ceremony, but they had recently renewed their vows in a Jewish wedding performed by a rabbi. On live television, Oscar Levant noted: 'Now that Marilyn Monroe is kosher, Arthur Miller can eat her.' Levant's show was immediately cancelled. He later claimed that he "hadn't meant it THAT way" (which way would that be, Oscar?), and he straight away suffered his nineteenth nervous breakdown. Several months later, KCOP cautiously renewed 'The Oscar Levant Show', this time recording the programmes on tape so that any shocking ad-libs could be deleted before broadcast. Of course, removing the danger also removed much of the appeal of Oscar's show: most of his viewers tuned in specifically to hear Oscar say something shocking. When Oscar ad-libbed some observations about Mae West's sex life, this time his series was cancelled permanently. Some people never learn.
Levant's opinions were highly corrosive. He despised all Republican politicians in general and President Eisenhower in particular. Levant made no secret of his own mental breakdowns and his drug addictions, and he was known to be on several different medications (some of them illegal) all at the same go. Paralysed by stage fright, he was usually doped to the gills while performing live on this TV programme. Sooner or later, something had to go wrong.
The disaster came while Oscar was commenting on current events. Marilyn Monroe (who wasn't Jewish) and playwright Arthur Miller (who was) had originally got married in a civil ceremony, but they had recently renewed their vows in a Jewish wedding performed by a rabbi. On live television, Oscar Levant noted: 'Now that Marilyn Monroe is kosher, Arthur Miller can eat her.' Levant's show was immediately cancelled. He later claimed that he "hadn't meant it THAT way" (which way would that be, Oscar?), and he straight away suffered his nineteenth nervous breakdown. Several months later, KCOP cautiously renewed 'The Oscar Levant Show', this time recording the programmes on tape so that any shocking ad-libs could be deleted before broadcast. Of course, removing the danger also removed much of the appeal of Oscar's show: most of his viewers tuned in specifically to hear Oscar say something shocking. When Oscar ad-libbed some observations about Mae West's sex life, this time his series was cancelled permanently. Some people never learn.
