Ed Gardner

Edward Francis 'Ed' Gardner (June 29, 1901 – August 17, 1963) was an American comic actor, writer and director, best remembered as the creator and star of the radio's popular Duffy's Tavern comedy series.

Born in Astoria, New York, Gardner was a representative for the J. Walter Thompson advertising agency before going into show business. He began producing for the stage in the early 1930s. He produced the drama play Coastwise on Broadway (1931) and wrote and directed the Broadway comedy After Such Pleasures (1934).

Radio

He found fame on radio with Duffy's Tavern, portraying the wisecracking, malaprop-prone barkeep Archie. The successful radio program aired on CBS from 1941 to 1942, on the NBC Blue Network from 1942 to 1944 and NBC from 1944 to 1952. Speaking in a nasal Brooklyn accent, and sounding like just about every working class New Yorker his creator had ever known, Gardner as Archie invariably began each week's show by answering the telephone and saying, "Duffy's Tavern, where the elite meet to eat, Archie the manager speaking, Duffy ain't here—oh, hello, Duffy."