Acting
Community Rating
6.8
TMDB estimate
Born
December 26, 1921
Died
October 30, 2000 (age 78)
Born in
New York City, New York, USA
Stephen Valentine Patrick William Allen was an American television personality, radio personality, musician, composer, actor, comedian, writer, and advocate of scientific skepticism. In 1954, he achieved national fame as the co-creator and first host of The Tonight Show, which was the first late night television talk show. Though he got his start in radio, Allen is best known for his extensive network television career. He gained national attention as a guest host on Arthur Godfrey's Talent Scouts. After he hosted The Tonight Show, he went on to host numerous game and variety shows, including his own The Steve Allen Show, I've Got a Secret, and The New Steve Allen Show. He was a regular panel member on CBS's What's My Line?, and from 1977 until 1981 wrote, produced, and hosted the award-winning public broadcasting show Meeting of Minds, a series of historical dramas presented in a talk format. Allen was a pianist and a prolific composer. By his own estimate, he wrote more than 8,500 songs, some of which were recorded by numerous leading singers. Working as a lyricist, Allen won the 1964 Grammy Award for Best Original Jazz Composition. He also wrote more than 50 books, including novels, children's books, and books of opinions, including his final book, Vulgarians at the Gate: Trash TV and Raunch Radio. In 1996 Allen was presented with the Martin Gardner Lifetime Achievement Award from the Committee for Skeptical Inquiry (CSICOP). He has two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame and a Hollywood theater named in his honor.

Louis Armstrong's Black & Blues
as Self (voice) (archive sound)
2022

Boulevard! A Hollywood Story
as Self (archive footage)
2021

Eat That Question: Frank Zappa in His Own Words
as Self (archive footage)
2016

Erroll Garner: No One Can Hear You Read
as Self (archive footage)
2013

2Everything2Terrible2: Tokyo Drift
as Self (archive footage)
2010

Elvis: #1 Hit Performances
as Self (archive footage)
2007

Elvis: The King of Rock 'n' Roll
as Self (archive footage)
2007

Tasmanian Devil: The Fast and Furious Life of Errol Flynn
as Self (archive footage)
2007

The Adventures of Errol Flynn
as Self (archive footage)
2005

Elvis: Rare Moments with the King
as Self (archive footage)
2003

The Definitive Elvis: The Television Years
as Self (archive footage)
2002

Nobody's Perfect: The Making of Some Like It Hot
as Self (archive footage)
2001

On and Off the Res' with Charlie Hill
as Himself
2000

Let Me In, I Hear Laughter: A Salute to the Friars Club
as Self
1999

Lenny Bruce: Swear to Tell the Truth
as Self
1998

No More to Say & Nothing to Weep For: An Elegy for Allen Ginsberg
as Self (archive footage)
1997
On the Road to Desolation
as Self
1997

Behind the Music
as Self
1997

Rodney Dangerfield's 75th Birthday Toast
as Self
1997

Sabrina, the Teenage Witch
as Fear
1996