About Henny Youngman
Henry "Henny" Youngman (March 16, 1906 – February 24, 1998) was an American comedian and musician famous for his mastery of the "one-liner", his best known being "Take my wife... please". Youngman's routine consisted of telling simple one-liner jokes in an age when many comedians told elaborate anecdotes; he also would occasionally perform an interlude of violin playing. His jokes depicted simple, cartoon-like situations, eliminating lengthy build-ups and going straight to the punch line. Youngman was known as "the King of the One-Liners", a title conferred by columnist Walter Winchell. His typical stage performance lasted only 15 to 20 minutes but contained dozens of jokes in rapid succession. == Early life == Henry Youngman was born to Russian Jews Yonkel Yungman and Olga Chetkin in Whitechapel, in the East End of London, England. His family moved to Bay Ridge, Brooklyn, New York, when he was a child. He grew up in New York City, took violin lessons and began as a comedian after he had worked for years at a print shop, where he wrote "comedy cards" containing one-line gags. The comedy cards were discovered by up-and-coming comedian Milton Berle, who encouraged Youngman and formed a close friendship with him.
Biography source: Wikipedia. The profile adds birthday-specific historical context from the Celebs Birthday Today editorial database.