Liberace’s Sunday Night TV Concerts
Listen While You Read
The First TV Show To Feature A Concert Musician
The video you are watching is a segment from “The Liberace Show” filmed in the 1950’s.
Liberace's earliest television shows were "The Liberace Show," which aired weekly on local Los Angeles TV stations starting in 1949, and "The Liberace Program," which aired nationally on CBS in 1952. These shows were some of the first television programs to feature a solo musician as the star attraction.
The “Swoon” Factor
Almost immediately Liberace’s TV shows created a sensation with young girls and women. According to Wikipedia, the show was so popular with the female audience that he drew over 30 million viewers at any one time, and received 10,000 fan letters per week.
At the end of every show he would wink at the TV audience, which so excited his fans that a song was written about it called “When Liberace Winks At Me”. The video below captures the mood of the time.
Making Classical Music Accessible To Americans Through TV
He was known for his popularization of classical music in America. He believed that classical music should be accessible to everyone, not just the elite few who were already familiar with it. Through his television shows and live performances, Liberace educated Americans on classical music and helped to make it more accessible and enjoyable to a wider audience.
Liberace often included classical music in his performances, but he also made a point of explaining the music to his audience in a way that was easy to understand. He would often talk about the history of the music, the composer's life, and the meaning behind the piece.
Below is an example of a story about Chopin’s “nocturnes” which were compositions inspired by the night. In this segment, the audience is literally transported back to the 1830’s by the change in Liberace’s clothes and the style of piano.
“Such a tender, sentimental interpretation. I can just picture Chopin in his study, gazing out the window into the night, playing this. Thank you, Lee.”
Overall, Liberace's efforts to educate Americans on classical music helped to break down the barriers that had previously kept many people from enjoying this genre of music.
By making classical music more accessible and understandable, Liberace helped to inspire a new generation of music lovers and performers.
Introduction of A New Type of Variety Show
Liberace's early television shows helped to pioneer the format of the musical variety program, which would go on to become a staple of American television in the decades that followed.
The program featured Liberace playing his piano and engaging in comedic sketches and banter with guest stars. The show was a major hit with audiences and helped to establish Liberace as one of the most popular entertainers of the 1950s.
Here’s an example of a show with Sammy Davis Junior.
“No one can take away the fact that Liberace was a master pianist....what a great entertainer. Thank you Sir Liberace..... our world was a better place with you. I bow to your great heart and soul. ”
