Monday, April 15, 2002 | 8:29 a.m.
Singer Frank Sinatra Jr. is an unabashed fan of comedian Marty Allen.
"I saw Marty for the first time over 40 years ago, in '58 or '59," Sinatra, 58, said during a visit to Las Vegas last week to promote his May concert at MGM Grand.
"He's a nice man, a talented guy. Everytime I see him I say, 'Lookout, here comes Don King.' He hates that."
Allen's trademarks include his "Hello dere" greeting, eyes that appear about to jump out of their sockets and a head of hair that looks as though he stuck his finger in an electrical outlet.
Sinatra recited a classic comedy routine Allen and Allen's former partner, Steve Rossi, performed years ago.
"'Hello dere,' Marty would say," Sinatra recalled. " 'What is your name sir?' Rossi would ask. 'My name is Christopher Columbus.' 'When were you born?' 'On Columbus Day.' 'What did you do for a living?' 'I was a great lover. Didn't you ever hear of the Knights of Columbus?' 'Who did you make love to?' 'Nina, Pinta and Santa Maria.' 'Wait a minute. Weren't those ships?' 'It wasn't easy.'"
Allen, a native of Pittsburgh, turned 80 in March. Age hasn't diminished his popularity among fans who are attracted by his off-the-wall, whimsical, inoffensive humor and ebullient personality.
"One thing they like," Allen, who lives in Las Vegas, said, "is that I'm one of the few comedians left that does a clean show."
For almost 20 years Allen has performed his family friendly act with his vivacious wife, Karon Kate Blackwell, a singer, pianist and composer whom Allen adores.
"She's a bombastic performer," the impish comedian said of his wife of 17 years.
Allen and Blackwell (born and raised in Ellisville, Miss.) spend a lot of time performing on cruise ships. Last year they were at sea a total of six months. Last week they booked a performance aboard the Regal Princess on a six-day cruise that begins May 24, from Hawaii to San Francisco.
Most of the passengers on the May cruise will be World War II veterans. Allen says he was a natural choice to perform on the ship, since he is a also veteran.
Not only is the frazzle-haired comedian a vet, he's a decorated war hero.
"I get embarrassed talking about it," Allen said.
He was in the Army Air Corps, stationed with the 15th Air Force in the province of Foggia, Italy. The 15th was a legendary unit whose B-17 bombers flew raids from bases in Southern Italy into Southern France, Germany, Poland, Czechoslovakia and the Balkans. It is best known for destroying German oil fields at Ploesti, Rumania, in the summer of 1944.
"I had a perforated eardrum when I enlisted in the service, so I couldn't fly," Allen said. "I was on the ground crew."
In early 1945 a fuel truck, containing 4,000 gallons of gasoline, was refueling a B-17 filled with bombs when a motor on the back of the truck ignited gas fumes and started a fire on the nose turret of the aircraft.
"There were two guys on the wing who jumped off and were on their way to Rome," Allen recalled. "I got in the truck and pulled it out away from the plane, then I ran back and put the fire out with my jacket.
"The next thing I know, they're giving me a parade."
A parade and a Medal of Valor.
Odd jobs
After the war Allen settled in Los Angeles and started college with the intention of being a journalist.
"I always say I thought I looked good in a trench coat," he said.
To earn extra money he sold dancing lessons door to door.
"I was like a Fuller Brush guy, only I took a phonograph door to door and sold dance lessons for $20 or so," Allen said. "I had lots of customers."
He was a qualified instructor. "I was a (Pennsylvania) state jitterbug champion," Allen said. "I took advantage of the fact that I won all kinds of dance contests."
After giving up his dance route and his plans to be a journalist, Allen began performing comedy routines in small nightclubs around Los Angeles. He said it was natural for him to seek a career in comedy.
"I was the high school cutup," Allen said, "the class clown."
Allen said he enjoyed such comedians as Laurel and Hardy, but he wasn't influenced by anyone in particular.
"I didn't try to act like anybody," he said. "I would get up and do some jokes and pantomime and act crazy.
"I played a lot of little joints. I was not like an overnight success. There were no comedy clubs back then, just a lot of little bars, little places to play."
In the early '50s he returned to Pittsburgh, where his first job paid $12.50.
"And the agent took 10 percent," Allen said. "When I went back there, this agent said to me, 'Things aren't too hot. You go out and find a place and I'll put you in there.' I thought that was the way you did it."
After a few club dates his agent booked him to appear with singer Sarah Vaughan, which launched his career.
"She took a liking to me and called Nat 'King' Cole, and that's how I got with Nat," Allen said.
Allen performed in top nightclubs around the country, opening for such entertainers as Vaughan, Cole and Eydie Gorme.
"I'd go out and do 15 minutes of jokes and parodies, and I would always end it with a dance," Allen said. "I moved pretty good."
Allen & Rossi
In 1954, when Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis were in their heyday, Allen joined forces with Steve Rossi, also a Las Vegas resident.
"Steve was a production singer at the Sands when he mentioned something to Nat about doing an act," Allen said. "Nat told me about it and and then Rossi called me in Chicago and asked me if I was interested in doing a team. Nat Cole got us together."
Allen had always worked alone and wasn't sure if he wanted a partner, but he decided to give it a shot.
"Steve was a handsome guy who sang great," Allen recalled. "We developed an act, and I saw we had rapport and people were reacting to us."
They were favorites of Ed Sullivan, appearing on his variety show 40 times. Allen & Rossi were one of the top comedy acts in the country for 15 years before finally parting company in 1969.
"It was a friendly split," Allen said. "We're still great friends."
Allen went on his own again, doing his comedy routine and even performing dramatic roles on television. He was also a popular guest on such game shows as "Hollywood Squares," "Password" and "Beat the Clock."
"I was the darling of daytime television," Allen said. "I was up and down the dial. I did everything but the prayer."
In 1984 Allen dropped by Cyrano's, a popular restaurant in Los Angeles, where he met his future wife.
"Karon had been on the road as a singer for years and she got tired of being by herself," Allen said. "A friend of hers owned the restaurant and he asked her to manage it for him. She's very capable.
"I came in for lunch one day and spotted her and I never stopped eating there. My accountant said, 'Look, what kind of food do they have in that restaurant? Look at the bills.' "
Allen finally asked Blackwell out, and when he went to her house to pick her up he saw she had a piano.
"I said, 'Do you play?' and she sat down and played the piano and sang the most wonderful songs. I couldn't believe it," Allen said.
It wasn't long before they teamed onstage and, about a year later, at the altar.
In 1990 Allen and Rossi reunited at Bob Stupak's Vegas World (which became Stratosphere), with Blackwell performing back-up duties.
The trio performed for four years of what was to be a lifetime contract before reaching a confidential settlement when their contract was terminated.
Since then Rossi has been performing in nightclubs around the country, and Allen and Blackwell have been performing primarily on cruise ships.
"We've been dubbed the king and queen of the high seas," Allen said.
Entertainment on cruise ships has changed in recent years.
"They have upgraded the talent -- the reviews are a lot like those on Broadway," Allen said. "They spend a lot of money on entertainment now, and all the ships are packed."
When Allen isn't performing, he reads about four or five books a week.
One of his closest friends is author Sidney Sheldon, a former producer of Broadway plays, motion pictures and television series, who has written 18 novels, including "Bloodline" and "Tell Me Your Dreams."
Allen also stays in shape by working out daily.
"I do three miles (jogging) a day," he said. "I don't miss a day."
And he never misses a chance to perform.
"I have not lost my zest for entertaining," he said. "I love performing."
archive
