The Herb Shriner Show

The Herb Shriner Show was the title of two different American television series shown in prime time by CBS during the late 1940s and 1950s. A similar program, also hosted by Herb Shriner, was Herb Shriner Time, which was aired by ABC as part of its 1951-52 lineup. The first Herb Shriner Show was essentially a continuation of what Shriner had previously done on radio. It was aired by CBS five nights a week from 7:55 to 8:00 P.M. Eastern time and consisted solely of Shriner's folksy monologues, which had already earned him comparisons to Will Rogers. This program was seen only from November 1949 until February 1950. Herb Shriner Time was a half-hour format aired by ABC on Thursday nights at 9 PM Eastern from October 1951 to April 1952. In addition to the comedy monologues, this format provided time for guest stars, and also allowed for Shriner to play his harmonica and act in comedy sketches. In the fall of 1952, he became emcee of Two For The Money, Goodson-Todman's answer to Groucho Marx's You Bet Your Life, in which Herb delivered a brief monologue at the start of the show, then informally interviewed his contestants before a question and answer quiz segment. As a result of the show, Herb's popularity soared during this period, and when Two For the Money ended in the summer of 1956, Herb signed with CBS for another attempt at a variety series.