A SALUTE TO STAN LAUREL (CBS 11/23/1965)

After Stan Laurel (of Laurel & Hardy fame) died on February 23, 1965, a photographer named Gene Lester (whose photos of Laurel in his last days appeared in the credits of the show) approached CBS with the idea of producing a tribute to him. Since Gene wasn't a producer, the network picked a crew experienced in variety shows to make this one-hour special that was hosted by Dick Van Dyke as a tribute to the late comedian.

The show starts off with a production number featuring several dancers dressed as Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy.  Lucille Ball and Buster Keaton do an amusing sketch featuring Harvey Korman as a cop who keeps breaking up the fun, Van Dyke in a hilarious bit about how unsophisticated slapstick is as he keeps falling over, and Bob Newhart performed a very funny monologue about a patronizing kids show host that shows classic Laurel & Hardy shorts. A number of Hollywood legends showed up to pay tribute including Gregory Peck, Bob Newhart, Cesar Romero, Audrey Meadows, Phil Silvers, Fred Gwynne in a cameo as Herman Munster, Tina Louise and Danny Kaye.