Bob hope: A Sense of Duty.

 Here he is: Another giant of comedy. One of many comedic giants who braved the vaudeville circuits, made movies and carried the fledgling television on his shoulders. A member of the Mount Rushmore of comedy alongside Jack Benny, Milton Berle, George Burns, etc. 

Bob Hope with a few legends to speak of:
George Burns, Milton Berle and Ed Wynn.

Bob Hope was born in 1903 in London, but moved to the US shortly after. Like many entertainers born in the early 1900s, Hope got his start in Vaudeville. Vaudeville just seems like this mythical era of entertainment, where giants started off as bottom of the bill small-time acts. Bob Hope was one such act, and like many of these young stowaways, they leapt from its sinking ship and joined radio. This is Hope really took off, and got noticed enough to start making motion pictures, including the Road To series of movies with Bing Crosby.

Bob and Bing weren't close friends socially, but they had an unrivaled professional relationship. Their banter on stage in both the Road movies and any live performance was legendary. They talked like people who knew each other for years, even though when the cameras were off the two shook hands and went in mostly different directions. If the concept seems familiar, Seth McFarlane would borrow this idea and make his own series of Road To specials with his own characters of Brian and Stewie Griffin. 

Bob was a living cartoon. From his trademark nose to his sort of sly, mischevious smile, the man was the master of facial comedy, like most vaudeville-era comedians. He had a face which anyone could recognize in a crowd. I also strongly admire his style of joke telling. In his television monologue as he told a joke, his face would grow completely blank, punctuated by that signature smirk. Combine that with a unique, rapid-fire delivery and you have one of the most influential and long-lasting acts in television.

Bob giving his signature deadpan look to the master of that expression,
Jack Benny.

But what made Bob Hope so special, and perhaps what he might have wanted to be remembered for, was his service to the USO for over 50 years. Too young for the first war and too old for the second, Hope cut his teeth on wartime life through his tours. In world war 2, he was almost the face of Hollywood's support of the troops. Though many celebrities visited troops and flew to military bases and such, Bob Hope made it a point to be there with the troops in person, walking with them with very little special treatment. That, along with his frequent appearances as MC on the wartime radio show, "Command Performance" made Bob Hope the face of the war, and how fitting with a last name like..."Hope"

It didn't stop there. Since the Vietnam war was not the crippling event as the second world war, many celebrities steered clear. Not Hope, however, as he did multiple tours for Vietnam, and ignored the criticism against the moral implications. In his mind, he was entertaining the men and women who chose to fight for this country, little more. Ann-Margaret described Hope as a fountain of Youth, even in his 60s, during those tours. 

That's the thing with Bob Hope, his longevity. He retired at about 90, but still made appearances until about 95. He died at 100, and his wife, Dolores, lived to 102. A centenarian, who may have brightened the grey-tinted days of countless thousands of soldiers in his time. A centenarian, who though times changed, he was a constant, through TV, through movies, through radio, there was Hope. A centenarian, who though he never won an Oscar, hosted the event more times than anyone in history. He hosted the first televised, as well as the first color televised ceremony. His opening monologue in his final appearance was met with a tepid response. Times had changed and this old vaudevillian failed to reach the younger audience that time, but still he went on, and trudged with the best of them for over a quarter of a century. 

This may be a bit corny, but Bob...Thanks for the memories. The shows and the tours, which helped them win the war, and though you're gone, I wish that you'd come back to do some more. How lovely it was. Thanks for the memories, his funny monologues, his unforgettable theme song, his smile, his smirk, the way he'd work, his writers like dogs. How lovely it was. Many were the time they stopped laughing, but many were the times you kept smiling. I wonder if he's up there...Pining. Maybe he still performs, maybe he's in top form. Thanks for the memories, of one liners and jokes, that inimitable nose, that joyous gift of laughter that you gave so many folks...(If you don't read this to the tune of the song, it won't make sense)

How lovely it was. Thank you, Bob Hope.

I Hope (heh.) to see you Back There