Soupy Sales biography

Synopsis

Early Career

Comedian, television host. Born Milton Supman on January 8, 1926, in Franklinton, North Carolina. The youngest of three sons born to dry-goods store owners, Soupy grew up in Huntington, West Virginia, and received his B.A. in Journalism from Marshall University. He landed a local job as a radio scriptwriter after college, moonlighting as a comedian. The radio station eventually moved him on air and he became the top-rated DJ in the area.

The name Soupy Sales was derived from two things: "Soupy" was a childhood nickname and "Sales" was the suggestion of an Ohio television manager who knew of a comic named Chick Sale. In 1950, Soupy moved to Cincinnati to pursue a television career, starting with America's first teen dance show, Soupy's Soda Shop. He followed with a variety show featuring his own zany antics called Club Nothing.

Commercial Success

After moving to Detroit in 1953, Soupy quickly became a popular television personality, especially among young audiences with such children's shows as Lunch With Soupy Sales. The comedian spent seven years on air in Detroit, eventually producing 11 hours of TV time each week.

Soupy moved to the West Coast in 1960, and the Soupy Sales Show became Los Angeles' number one show by the following year. Luring such guest stars as Frank Sinatra and Sammy Davis, Jr., Soupy was beloved by viewers as much for his wild personality as his signature pie-throwing antics. He moved the show to New York in 1964, and it was syndicated throughout the United States, Canada, Australia and New Zealand during the next two years.

One of Soupy's most notorious stunts occurred in 1964, when he jokingly told his young audience to "take some of those green pieces of paper with pictures of George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, Lincoln and Jefferson on them" from their parents' wallets and send them to him. Several viewers did send Sales some money, but all were returned. Though he was suspended from television for a week, the stunt actually boosted his ratings.

Off-Screen Ventures

Soupy's talents were not confined to television, however. He recorded a number of chart-topping albums, including The Mouse and Spy with a Pie. He also gave live performances on Broadway, in dinner theaters and at comedy clubs. In the late 1960s, he became a regular on the improvisational program What's My Line?, staying for seven years. Throughout the 1970s, Soupy lent his wacky sense of humor to numerous game and variety shows, including Jr.