A long-running, top-rated show, first in radio (NBC, sponsored by Jell-O, IIRC), then television (CBS). Jack Benny (that tightwad) , Mary Livingstone (the real-life Missus), his "girl", "Irish tenor" Dennis Day, announcer/sidekick Don Wilson, and Benny's "valet", Eddie "Rochester" Anderson (one of the most empowered black characters in pop culture). And celebrity guests. In many ways, a prototype for the ensemble comedy strain of sitcom. Origin of the "Kids in the Hall" phrase.

The Jack Benny program actually had quite a number of sponsors. Jello was only a sponsor for a very short time. The show's longest running sponsor was Lucky Strike. It was on this program that the tag-line L.S.M.F.T. (Lucy Strike Means Fine Tobacco) was made famous. Another long-time sponsor of the show was Grape-Nuts, specifically Grape-Nuts flakes.