Gracie Allen example), Gracie never used the phrase. The confusion may have been caused by "Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In". Stars Dan Rowan and Dick Martin used a similar sign-off routine wherein Rowan would tell Martin to "Say good night, Dick." Martin's reply was always "Good night, Dick." It seemed like something Gracie Allen would have said. George Burns himself said as much in an interview years later, adding that, surprisingly enough, no one ever thought of having Allen say "Good night, Gracie". However, the former "Burns and Allen" head writer, Paul Henning, did use the "say good night" bit in at least
Variety Bandbox a fixture of the show and honed his catch phrase-driven comedic style in these appearances. Tony Hancock also featured on the show early in his career. March 1950 saw the debut of a fortnightly series within the show called "Blessem Hall" which featured several characters voiced by a young Peter Sellers in one of his earliest performances, alongside Miriam Karlin. Arthur English, who debuted on the show in 1949, also gained prominence through his broadcasts and was for a time 'resident comedian' on the show, despite his tendency to upset the producers by also including visual gags in his act.