Sid Caesar dead at 91; ‘Your Show of Shows,’ ‘Caesar’s Hour’ among highlights

For those who have followed the history of film and TV throughout the past 70+ years, this is turning out to be a very sad week as we remember some of the greats.

Earlier this week, the news broke that we lost the legendary Shirley Temple had passed away at the age of 85, and today, we are sad to report that the legendary TV host Sid Caesar, who basically lead the groundwork for almost every variety and talk show out there today, has died, per an announcement that came out today. He was 91 years old.

Caesar began his work on television in the late 1940s, when you really were looking at the early days of the medium. However, his first real notable credit to many was “Your Show of Shows,” which launched on NBC in 1950. Following this, he then was a part of another extremely influential series in “Caesar’s Hour,” and both have helped tor really shape what it means to be a comic and performer in the television medium. He was quick, entertaining, and game to take on a variety of different roles. (You can see at least one career highlight in the video below.)

While Caesar’s death is indeed very sad, one of the things that he can hang his hat on is that he was able to live long enough to truly see just what sort of impact he had on everyone who tuned in to his show when they were kids, and then went on to host some other notable programs later on. Even the legendary Johnny Carson was able to pick up a few tricks from people like Caesar and Jack Parr, and he is considered to this day to be the biggest influence for almost every late-night comic on TV.

Caesar will be missed, but his work will live on.

Photo: NBC