Allan Sherman

Allan Sherman
Sherman as a sheriff on The Loner, 1965.
Born	(1924-11-30)November 30, 1924 Chicago, Illinois, United States
Died	November 20, 1973(1973-11-20) (aged 48) Los Angeles, California, United States
Cause of death	Emphysema
Resting place	Hillside Memorial Park Cemetery
Occupation	Comedy writer, television producer, singer, actor
Years active	1951–1973
Spouse(s)	Dee Chackes (15 June 1945 – 1966) (divorced) 2 children

Allan Sherman (born Allan Copelon; November 30, 1924 – November 20, 1973) was an American comedy writer and television producer who became famous as a song parodist in the early 1960s. His first album, My Son, the Folk Singer (1962), became the fastest-selling record album up to that time. His biggest hit single was "Hello Muddah, Hello Fadduh", a comic novelty in which a boy describes his summer camp experiences to the tune of Ponchielli's Dance of the Hours. He is not to be confused with the songwriter Al Sherman who, coincidentally, also died in the fall of 1973.

Sherman was born in Chicago to Jewish American parents Percy Copelon and Rose Sherman. Percy was an auto mechanic and race car driver who, like his son, suffered from obesity (he weighed over 350 pounds), and died while attempting a 100-day diet. Sherman's parents divorced when he was in grade school, and Allan adopted his mother's maiden name. Due to his parents constantly moving to new residences, Allan attended over a dozen public schools in Chicago, New York, Los Angeles, and Miami. He attended the University of Illinois, where he earned mostly "C" grades and contributed a humor column to The Daily Illini, the college newspaper, but never received a degree because he was expelled for breaking into a campus sorority house with his then-girlfriend.

Sherman devised a game show he intended to call I Know a Secret. Television producer Mark Goodson used Sherman's idea and turned it into I've Got a Secret, which ran on CBS from 1952 to 1967. Rather than paying him for the concept, Mark Goodson-Bill Todman Productions made Sherman the show's producer. Sherman was reported to be warm and kindhearted to all who worked for him. However, differences occurred between Sherman and anyone who was in a position to try to restrain his creativity. As producer of I've Got a Secret, which was broadcast live, he showed a fondness for large-scale stunts that had the potential to teeter on the brink of disaster. He once released 100 rabbits onstage as an Easter surprise for the Madison Square Boys Club, whose members were seated in the studio. The boys were invited to come up onstage to collect their prize. Although the resultant melee made a good story, it did not necessarily make for good TV.