A master ad libber, Allen often tangled with his network's executives ( and often barbed them on the air over the battles ), while developing routines the style and substance of which influenced contemporaries and futures among comic talents, including Groucho Marx, Stan Freberg, Henry Morgan and Johnny Carson, but his fans also included President Franklin D. Roosevelt, and novelists William Faulkner, John Steinbeck and Herman Wouk ( who began his career writing for Allen ).

Stanley Victor " Stan " Freberg ( born August 7, 1926 ) is an American author, recording artist, animation voice actor, comedian, radio personality, puppeteer and advertising creative director, whose career began in 1944.

Freberg made his movie debut as an on-screen actor in the comedy Callaway Went Thataway ( 1951 ), a satirical spoof on the marketing of Western stars ( apparently inspired by the TV success of Hopalong Cassidy ).

* He is referenced at the very end of Stan Freberg Presents The United States of America Volume One The Early Years, a satirical album from 1961, where his name is rhymed with military and revolutionary.

There were also some notable comedy recordings, including several by Stan Freberg and the Yiddish-dialect parodies of Mickey Katz.

Both recordings eventually surfaced on a box-set Freberg retrospective issued by Rhino Records.

The Jud Conlon Singers, who had also appeared on Freberg recordings, were regulars, as was singer Peggy Taylor, who had participated in his " Wun ' erful, Wun ' erful!

In 1960, Stan Freberg did a parody on the Payola Scandal, by calling it " Old Payola Roll Blues ", a two sided single, where the promoter gets an ordinary teenager, named Clyde Ankle, to record a song, for Obscurity Records, entitled " High School OO OO ", and then tries to offer the song to a Jazz radio station with phony deals that the Disc Jockey just won't buy it.

** Stan Freberg for The Best of the Stan Freberg Shows

** John Kraus ( engineer ) for " The Old Payola Roll Blues " performed by Stan Freberg

** John Kraus ( engineer ) for Stan Freberg Presents the United States of America performed by Stan Freberg

* In the 1950s, Stan Freberg and Daws Butler wrote and performed St. George and the Dragon-Net ( a spoof of the tale and of Dragnet ) for Freberg's radio show.

Burton performed another Frees imitation for comedian Stan Freberg's album Stan Freberg Presents the United States of America, Volume Two.

Freberg was cast to sing the part of the Jabberwock in the song " Beware the Jabberwock " for Disney's Alice in Wonderland, with the Rhythmaires and Daws Butler.

Contrary to popular belief George Lucas called upon Freberg, not Mel Blanc, to audition for the voice of the character C-3PO for the 1977 film Star Wars.

After he and many others auditioned for the part Freberg suggested that Lucas use mime actor Anthony Daniels ' own voice.

Freberg describes being called in for a chat about this and being asked whether he ever belonged to any " disloyal " group.

Stan Freberg Presents The United States of America, Volume Two was planned for release during America's Bicentennial in 1976, but did not emerge until 1996.

Theater for the ear: Freberg strikes a pose, 1962

Freberg portrayed bumbling but cynical Richard E. Wilk, a resident of Hope Springs, where he worked for B. B.

Freberg suggested the addition of dream sequences, which made it possible for him to perform his more popular Capitol Records satires before a live studio audience.

The Stan Freberg Show was a 1957 replacement for Jack Benny on CBS radio.

In lieu of actual commercials, Freberg mocked advertising by touting such products as " Puffed Grass " (" It's good for Bossie, it's good for me and you!

"); for a combined satire of the Batman television series and the 1966 California Governor's race between Edmund G. " Pat " Brown and Ronald Reagan ; and probably most famous for a bit in which, through the magic of sound effects, Freberg drained Lake Michigan and refilled it with hot chocolate and a mountain of whipped cream while a giant maraschino cherry was dropped like a bomb by the Royal Canadian Air Force to the cheers of 25, 000 extras viewing from the shoreline.

Also in the 1950s, Stan Freberg asked Butler to help him write comedy skits for his Capitol Records albums.

In 1952, their innovative sound was satirized by Stan Freberg in his recording of " The World Is Waiting for the Sunrise " ( Capitol, F 2279 ).

Tetley also worked for Capitol Records in the 1950s, providing an array of juvenile voices for the label's spoken-word and comedy albums, including Stan Freberg Presents the United States of America Volume One: The Early Years ( 1961 ).

" St. George and the Dragonet " is a short audio satire recorded August 26, 1953 by Stan Freberg for Capitol Records.

It was later made available in a 1991 CD set, Dr. Demento 20th Anniversary Collection ( Rhino R2 70743, May 21, 1991 ); a 1998 CD The Very Best Of Stan Freberg ( Collectables COL-CD-2733 ; reissue of 1990 CD The Capitol Collector's Series ); and a 1999 CD set Tip of the Freberg: The Stan Freberg Collection 1951-1998 ( Rhino R2 75645, August 3, 1999 ).

Satirist Stan Freberg included a sketch on the conversion to all-number calling on his 1966 album " Freberg Underground Show # 1 " ( Capitol Records T / ST-2551 ), with the song " They Took Away Our Murray Hills.

*" Banana Boat ( Day-O )" by Stan Freberg, produced in the 1950s by Capitol Records, features ongoing disagreement between an enthusiastic lead singer and a bongo-playing beatnik ( Peter Leeds ) who " don't dig loud noises " and had the catchphrase " You're too loud, man ".

In 1996, Music's voice could be heard on Stan Freberg's Stan Freberg Presents the United States of America Volume Two album, released as a CD by Rhino Records.

Stan Freberg recorded a satire in 1956, with June Foray, titled The Quest For Bridey Hammerschlaugen, wherein Freberg hypnotizes Goldie Smith to regress to different eras with humorous interruption by Foray.

Freberg is often credited with voicing the character of Junyer Bear in Bugs Bunny and the Three Bears ( 1944 ), but that was actor Kent Rogers.

Freberg also provided the voice of Sam, the orange cat paired with Sylvester in the Academy Award-winning Mouse and Garden ( 1960 ).

Freberg costarred with Mala Powers in Geraldine ( 1953 ) as sobbing singer Billy Weber, enabling him to reprise his satire on vocalist Johnnie Ray ( see below ).

Freberg had poked fun at McCarthyism in passing in " Little Blue Riding Hood " with the line, " Only the color has been changed to prevent an investigation.

Freberg also revisited the " Dragnet " theme, with " Christmas Dragnet ," in which the strait-laced detective convinces a character named " Grudge " that Santa Claus really exists ( and Columbus, Cleveland, Cincinnati, and the Easter Bunny, but Grudge still hadn't made up his mind yet about Toledo ).

Side one featured two versions of an introduction by Freberg ( billed as " Stan Freberg, Matinee Idol "), with the second version including a few words from the president of Blitz-Weinhard Co.

2009 with Freberg.

The terribly hip fife player (" Bix ", performed by Freberg ) and the younger drummer ( played by Walter Tetley ) argue with the older, impossibly square drummer (" Doodle ", also voiced by Freberg ) over how Yankee Doodle should be performed.

The show failed to attract a sponsor after Freberg decided he did not want to be associated with the tobacco companies that had sponsored Benny.

Daws Butler plays " Mr. Tweedly ," a representative of a fictional citizens ' radio review board, who constantly interrupts Freberg with a loud buzzer as Freberg attempts to sing " Old Man River.

Freberg concluded with, " Let's see them do that on television!