Guest: Phyllis Diller Main Comedy Sketch: Slow-draw Sheriff Deadeye (Skelton) is terrorized by a female fugitive killer (Phyllis Diller). "The Silent Spot" A satire on computer dating (still a relatively new concept in 1971!)
Guest: George Gobel Main Comedy Sketch: Professor Ludwick Von Humperdoo (Skelton) invents a cement tire, much to the dismay of millionaire tire manufacturer Tom Treadwell (George Gobel). "The Silent Spot" A sailor (Skelton) tries to pick up a cute blonde (series regular Chanin Hale).
Guest: Martha Raye Main Comedy Sketch: "The Garage Sale." There's heck to pay when George Appleby (Skelton) sells the old guitar in which his wife Clara (Martha Raye) has hidden their live savings. "The Silent Spot" Skelton plays a stockboy in a teddy-bear factory.
Guests: Eva Gabor (Green Acres); Wally Cox Main Comedy Sketch: A philanthropist (Eva Gabor) wants to bestow one million dollars upon bums Freddie the Freeloader (Skelton) and Muggsy (Wally Cox). "The Silent Spot" Skelton plays a rotten chef at a greasy-spoon diner.
Guests: Chad Everett, Cass Elliot Main Comedy Sketch: A crooked marriage broker San Fernando Red (Skelton) matches a bachelor (Chad Everett) with a bachelorette (Mama Cass). "The Silent Spot" Skelton's trained-flea act is undermined by a passing dog.
Guests: Jill St. John Main Comedy Sketch: A sexy spy (Jill St. John) tries to steal a new secret formula concocted by Ludwick Von Humperdoo (Red Skelton). Series regular Billy Barty appears as the "shrunken" Ludwick. "The Silent Spot" A man (Skelton) nurses a whopper of a hangover after his bachelor party.
Guest: Audrey Meadows Main Comedy Sketch: Mean Widdle Kid, Junior Cavendish (Skelton) drives his mom (Audrey Meadows) crazy during an otherwise peaceful Sunday morning. "The Silent Spot" An old man (Skelton) recalls a youthful romance.
Guest: Leslie Nielsen Main Comedy Sketch: written by Red Skelton A duty-bound cop (Leslie Nielsen) arrests hobo Freddie the Freeloader (Skelton) for selling chestnuts without a license. But when the cop finds out that Freddie is trying to raise money for a homeless orphan, he has a change of heart. "The Silent Spot" (no details)
Guest: Telly Savalas Main Comedy Sketch: "The Stagecoach Hijack". Sheriff Deadeye (Skelton) suspects that a bald-headed stranger (Telly Savalas) is the leader of an outlaw gang. The Silent Spot: "The Gift of Giving" A shabby old man (Skelton) finds a wallet.
Guest: Godfrey Cambridge * Main Comedy Sketch: San Fernando Red (Skelton) appoints himself manager of flamboyant football star Joe Broadway (Godfrey Cambridge). "The Silent Spot" Diamond Jim Grady (Skelton) goes dining in a plush New York restaurant.
Guest: Van Johnson Main Comedy Sketch: An Executive (Van Johnson) decides that hobo Freddie the Freeloader (Red) is the ideal person to locate a responsible secretary. Red delivers a monologue about trick-or-treating "The Silent Spot" Red plays a man pestered by ghoulies and ghosties.
Guest: Gene Barry (one of the three rotating stars on NBC's The Name of the Game) Main Comedy Sketch: Census taker Clem Kadiddlehopper (Red) finds himself in the middle of a domestic quarrel. "The Silent Spot" Red plays a taxidermist saddled with a contentious mother-in-law.
Guest: Walter Brennan Main Comedy Sketch: In a takeoff of High Noon, Sheriff Deadeye (Red Skelton) faces a showdown with Sheriff Hawkeye (Walter Brennan). On a more serious note, Red reads his own poem about being a grandparent (his daughter Valentina had presented him with a granddaughter some three months before this program aired). "The Silent Spot" Two outdoorsmen (Red, Jan Arvan) duke it out at a campsite.
Introduced by Jack Benny Guest: Robert Wagner Main Comedy Sketch: Super-hero Colossal Man (Red) insists that his wimpy son (Robert Wagner) take over the family business. Emmaline Henry also appears as "Mr. Man." "The Silent Spot" George Appleby (Red) has a run-in with a tough guy.
Introduced by Dean Martin Guests: Raymond Burr (Ironside) Barbara Anderson (Officer Eve Whitfield in Ironside) Main Comedy Sketch: "Freddie's Desperate Hour" An escaped convict (Raymond) and his moll (Barbara) hide out in the City Dump shack inhabited by Freddie the Freeloader (Red). "The Silent Spot" (no details)
The Red Skelton Show is an American variety show that was a television staple for two decades, from 1951 to 1971. It was second to Gunsmoke and third to The Ed Sullivan Show in the ratings during that time. Skelton, who had previously been a radio star, had appeared in several motion pictures as well. Although his television series is largely associated with CBS, where it appeared for more than fifteen years, it actually began and ended on NBC. During its run, the program received three Emmy Awards, for Skelton as best comedian and the program as best comedy show during its initial season, and an award for comedy writing in 1961.