Red Skelton photo from “The Fuller Brush Man” located

This Red Skelton photo by Ned Scott from Columbia Pictures 1948 movie “The Fuller Brush Man” captures some of the zany characteristics for which he became famous as an entertainer. I can remember my father referring to him later on in the 1950’s as someone who was just as wacky as Joe. E Brown. Skelton lived in La Crescenta/Montrose area of Southern California, neighboring suburban communities to La Canada where Ned Scott lived. As young boy, I can distinctly remember driving along Foothill Boulevard with my parents right passed a bar called Red Skelton’s in La Crescenta. Whether Skelton owned the bar or just lent his name to the enterprise, I cannot say. Following his movie career, Skelton became a popular TV host with the Red Skelton Hour from 1951-1971. “The Fuller Brush Man” was directed by S. Sylvan Simon and co-starred Janet Blair. The core of the comedy centered around the ubiquitous existence of the Fuller Brush salesmen who were very active around the country selling their products in the door-to-door business model. They were the Tupperware and Amway people of the 1940’s and 1950’s. The movie is full of hilarious missteps and original one-liners from Skelton. This movie busted box-office records for its genre, and it spawned a sequel called “The Fuller Brush Girl” in 1950.

Red Skelton photo from “The Fuller Brush Man” by Ned Scott