At a time when comics often traded in tired jokes about their mothers-in-law, Sahl demonstrated that he had read the paper.
Mort Sahl, one of the most successful and influential comedians of the 1950s and 1960s, died Tuesday at age 94. On top of many other things, Sahl owns a little piece of Grammy history. On May 4, 1959, Sahl emceed the presentation of the first Grammy Awards in the Grand Ballroom of the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Beverly Hills, Calif.
The black-tie dinner and awards presentation, which was not televised, drew such guests as Henry Mancini (whose Music From Peter Gunn won album of the year), Frank Sinatra (who was the night’s leading nominee with six nods but won only for best album cover), Sammy Davis Jr., Dean Martin, Gene Autry, Johnny Mercer and Andre Previn.
Sahl was also a Grammy nominee that night. His comedy album The Future Lies Ahead was nominated for best comedy performance but lost to Ross Bagdasarian for The Chipmunks’ novelty hit “The Chipmunk Song,” which topped the Billboard Hot 100 for four weeks.
