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B«£(j Bea. GRACIE ALLEN’S ’NEIGHBOR' BUZZES BETWEEN TV AND RADIO Among radio’s many gifts to televi¬ sion is one Bea Benaderet—whose name and face were wholly unknown to the general public until she first appeared, three years ago, as Blanche Morton, the neighbor, on the George Bums and Grade Allen Show. So far as the audience was concerned, she was a newcomer, albeit a pretty good one. Girl could act. Remarkable how fast they learn in this television business. Miss Benaderet smiles wanly at this oft-repeated but highly inaccurate appraisal of her career. Anonymity has long been the lot of radio per¬ formers, however gifted. Only by their voices do most people know them. Miss Benaderet is a dialectician. She was known by radio listeners only as Gertrude Gearshift of the “Jack Benny Show” or Amber Lipscott on “My Friend Irma” or Eve Goodwin on “The Great Gildersleeve” or Mrs. Atterbury on “My Favorite Husband” (with Lucille Ball and Richard Den¬ ning—remember?) or Mrs. Carstairs on “Fibber McGee and Molly”—and even as Dennis Day’s aunt. But as Bea Benaderet? Never. Today’s radio-only audience, in fact, is probably still quite unaware that the actress playing Mama on “Meet Millie” is Bea Benaderet. For that matter, even Burns and Allen TV fans who listen to “Meet Millie” on radio probably don’t suspect they’re listening to their own Blanche Morton. Living proof of the generally ac¬ cepted fact that radio veterans make first-rate TV actors, Bea got her start in San Francisco when she was spotted singing a minor role in a chil¬ dren’s production of “The Beggar’s Opera.” Coming to Hollywood in 1936, she soon became a working regular, getting her first breaks with Orson Welles and Jack Benny. Prior to her entry into TV, she was considered one of those. rare actresses without whom a really good radio show wasn’t really considered good. Divorced, Bea lives in Encino with her two children, Jack, 14, and Mag¬ gie, 7. Her closest friend, both on and off camera: Gracie Allen. 22