Jack Benny was an American comedian, vaudevillian, radio, television, and film actor, and a notable violinist. Recognized as a leading American entertainer of the 20th century, Benny portrayed character roles as a miser, and playing the violin badly. In character, he would be 39 years of age, regardless of his actual age at the time.
Benny was known for comic timing, and ability to create laughter with a pregnant pauses or single expression, such as his signature exasperated "Well!" His radio and television programs, popular from the 1930s to the 1960s, were a major influence on the sitcom genre.