Marty Allen’s career as comedian and actor spans seven decades and he shows little sign of slowing down.
At 93, Marty Allen still performs with his wife, Karon Kate Blackwell.
When Allen's career as an entertainer started, he performed standup comedy in small clubs in the evenings and sold dance lessons door-to-door during the day.
Allen partnered with Steve Rossi to become the comedy duo Allen and Rossi when musical great Nat 'King' Cole recruited singer Rossi as Allen's "straight man."
The duo performed on many TV programs, including 40 episodes of "The Ed Sullivan Show."
Allen and Rossi were there the first time the Beatles performed on the show.
"I said, 'they are gonna be an international sensation,'" Allen recalled. "I had that feeling just by watching them."
Allen also befriended Elvis Presley after a prank on Presley's bodyguards backfired.
"They handcuffed me and took me backstage!" Allen reminisced with a laugh. "Elvis, half-smiling, said, 'handcuff him to the door.'"
Throughout his years in entertainment, Allen has worked with many other big names, including Shirley Bassey, Sammy Davis, Jr., Lena Horn and Frank Sinatra.
"We'll never have superstars like that [again] as long as we live," Allen said of his history of collaborators. "To have lived in that era was the greatest God's gift I could ever have. I've been very fortunate."
(Editor's Note: This interview originally aired May 2015)
Marty Allen, comedian/actor/author