Henny Youngman
Who Henny Youngman is
London-born American comedian who grew up in Brooklyn and was dubbed 'the King of the One-Liners' by columnist Walter Winchell for rapid-fire short jokes such as 'Take my wife... please', broken up by a few bars on his violin. His break came on Kate Smith's radio show in 1937; he later played as many as 200 shows a year, was a long-running presence on Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In, and in 1974 drew more than three million calls in a month to New York Telephone's Dial-a-Joke. He kept performing until shortly before his death in 1998.
At a glance
- Born
- 1906
- Died
- 1998
- Style
- One-liners, The king of the one-liners
- Albums
- The Primitive Sounds of Henny Youngman
- Podcasts
- Take My Life, Please!
- On screen
- The Henny and Rocky Show, Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In, Goodfellas and 9 more
Specials, shows and podcasts
Albums
- The Primitive Sounds of Henny Youngman 1959
On screen
- The Henny and Rocky Show host, with Rocky Graziano, 1955
- Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In long-running stint
- Goodfellas himself, 1990
- History of the World, Part I Chemist in the Roman Empire, 1981
- Silent Movie Fly-in-Soup Man, 1976
- Won Ton Ton, the Dog Who Saved Hollywood Manny Farber, 1976
- The Gore Gore Girls Marzdone Mobilie, strip-club owner, 1972
- Amazon Women on the Moon himself, 1987
- National Lampoon's Movie Madness Lawyer, 1982
- A Wave, a WAC and a Marine O. Henry Brown, 1944
- You Can't Run Away from It First Driver, 1956
- Eyes Beyond Seeing Mental Patient / Henny Youngman, 1995
Podcasts
- Take My Life, Please! autobiography
Comedians like Henny Youngman
Each linked to them by something on the record — a stage they both came through, a bill, a show, a style or a home town.
- Phyllis Diller also in Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In
- Dick Gregory also in Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In
- Flip Wilson also in Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In
- Sandy Hackett also in Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In
- Shecky Greene also in History of the World, Part I
Career timeline
- 1906Born
- 1944A Wave, a WAC and a Marine (O. Henry Brown, 1944) On screen
- 1955The Henny and Rocky Show (host, with Rocky Graziano, 1955) On screen
- 1956You Can't Run Away from It (First Driver, 1956) On screen
- 1959The Primitive Sounds of Henny Youngman (1959) Album
- 1972The Gore Gore Girls (Marzdone Mobilie, strip-club owner, 1972) On screen
- 1976Silent Movie (Fly-in-Soup Man, 1976) On screen
- 1976Won Ton Ton, the Dog Who Saved Hollywood (Manny Farber, 1976) On screen
- 1981History of the World, Part I (Chemist in the Roman Empire, 1981) On screen
- 1982National Lampoon's Movie Madness (Lawyer, 1982) On screen
- 1987Amazon Women on the Moon (himself, 1987) On screen
- 1990Goodfellas (himself, 1990) On screen
- 1995Eyes Beyond Seeing (Mental Patient / Henny Youngman, 1995) On screen
- 1998Died
Questions about Henny Youngman
What podcast does Henny Youngman host?
Take My Life, Please!
What TV shows and films are they in?
The Henny and Rocky Show, Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In, Goodfellas, History of the World, Part I, Silent Movie and Won Ton Ton, the Dog Who Saved Hollywood, among 12 credits.
Who are some comedians like them?
Phyllis Diller (also in Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In), Dick Gregory (also in Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In), Flip Wilson (also in Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In), Sandy Hackett (also in Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In) and Shecky Greene (also in History of the World, Part I).
The full SUCDb record
The full record — the career in order, the specials and credits, and the sources for each — is on SUCDb, with their place on the Legends ballots.
Sources
- Wikipedia — Henny Youngman ↗ Birth and death years, one-liner style and title from Walter Winchell, violin, 1937 radio break, 1959 album, Dial-a-Joke, TV work, autobiography
Updated 5 October 2026 · the record checked 27 September 2026