The George Burns Show

Following Gracie Allen's retirement from show business, George Burns tried to carry on by himself with his "Burns and Allen" cast and crew -- but fell far short of the mark. Now Mr. Burns, playing himself as usual, was ostensibly a theatrical producer (in a way, almost mirroring his real-life sliding into producing which he would later do with "Mister Ed") tackling the usual problems such producers face (i.e. casting, booking, temperamental stars and the like). Towards the end of this show's one-year run, they attempted to shore it up by adding a live variety show within each episode with guest stars, but in the end it added up to nothing. It wasn't until "The Sunshine Boys" in 1975 that Mr. Burns finally made it from out of Ms. Allen's shadow, as it were.