Born as Herbert Theodore Bergman to Jewish parents Henry Bergman, a merchant/lawyer, and Rae Greenberg at 112th Street and St. Nicholas Ave. New York City on August 20. 1907 and nicknamed "Teddy". His father was born in Austria, his mother in Russia.

Ted inherited the gift of gab from his father, who later became president of a credit exchange in 1935, known to the staff as "Silver-Tongued Henry." His mother Rae Greenberg (a cousin of Harry Green, the comedian), was all for naming her son after her political idol. Theodore Roosevelt. But there was an Uncle Herman who would have been dreadfully offended if the young one had not been partially named for him—so Ted was tagged Herman Theodore and subsequently hailed as "Bull."

As a child he had one ambition: to go to a boys' camp. However, due to the financial circumstances of his family he was unable to do so. One summer, Teddy's mother managed to gather the necessary funds - only to have them stolen from her on the very day Teddy was supposed to depart for camp.

Although reportedly a confirmed pessimist since his grammar school days, Teddy enjoyed a fairly happy youth. Although in one newspaper article he mentioned one of the most dramatic and impressing moments of his life:"... when he was out in a row boat with his father and mother in Bronx Park during a storm".

Ever since Ted saw Lon Chaney's performance as a misformed, brain-twisted cripple in The Penalty (Goldwyn, Jul 30. 1920), the first of Chaney's great impersonations, he was one of his greatest admirers.

When fifteen, his penchant for mimicry began to manifest itself. He constructed a crude stage in the basement of the Bergman home, where other children of the neighborhood would be admitted for two pennies, a top, or anything else of value to the youthful impresario - who was the entire cast of these "Bergman Imitate Shows". Young Ted with his impersonations of the German butcher on the corner, or the Chinese laundryman in the middle of the block, or the Italian ice-man, all with genuine recognizable dialects, won each of these theatrical encounters handily. His next job was to mind his baby brother, which he strangely enough, enjoyed. The baby brother was given to chronic crying spells and Ted was the only family member amble to quiet him. He did so by repeating his afternoon's performance.

As a youth he made vacation wanderings as a deckhand on transatlantic vessels. It was here that Reed supposedly developed his knack for imitating dialects.

Reed attended Washington High School (now George Washington Educational Campus). When he got the role of Shylock in Washington High's dramatization of The Merchant of Venice, Teddy got the footlight urge at the same time.  Young Teddy wasn't much interested in stealing apples, hustling nickels, or evading the truant officer. He was a bookish boy who excelled in school, graduating from high school a year ahead of schedule.

Still under age for Columbia University, his goal, he spent the imposed interim studying drama, as a lark, at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts and then majored in journalism at Columbia University (Bachelor of Arts, Columbia, 1926). At sixteen, he had sold newspapers, gradually accumulating $100 towards the course at the American Academy Arts. The day that he was to start at school Teddy's mother was insulted by a tailor. Teddy decided, at this point, that the suit vendor's face could stand a few changes - and as a result spent three days in the Tombs (1923).

At Columbia University Ted sold subscriptions to magazines to work his way through college. He became the intercollegiate broad-jumping champion and also won the Eastern Intercollegiate Heavyweight wrestling title in his senior year. He also wrote college plays, just to prove that a brawny arm could swing a delicate pen. Performing in the annual varsity show he was spotted by Ralph Rose, an Oklahoma candy tycoon and dropped out of school.

He set out to find jobs on the stage he landed a couple of walk-ons, but was obliged to earn his bread and butter in between polishing brass work on steam ships, instructing in a gymnasium and driving a truck.

So his first job in the show business was with the Ralph A. Rose Stock Company in Oklahoma City, where he portrayed Pierre of the Plains, which lasted one season (3 weeks). Next he headed for the Provincetown Playhouse in Massachusetts where he learned the rudiments of the stage and honed his acting talents in a cycle of sea plays by Eugene O'Neill, the same plays which later were made into a movie The Long Voyage Home (United Artists, Oct 8. 1940).

After that he tried a whirl behind the scenes as manager and production chief of the New Playwright's Theater, a little theater job which included everything from shifting scenery to shifting lines. Reportedly his first play was a play by John Howard Lawson. This was a good experience, but little theater work didn't pay very well, so Reed took to the vaudeville boards.

For several years, Reed toured in vaudeville with both his cousin Harry Green (aka Henry Blitzer, 1892 - 1958) and Bert Gordon. Trouping, he saved a stake of $2,800 and using a small windfall won in a crap game, he went into a business venture with Ralph Rose manufacturing candy praline. However they became granulated when distributed and that put them out of business (1927).

Made his debut over WOR in 1927 in The Singing Jailbirds. Four years to a day after his three day incarceration in the Tombs.

Again he took to the road in stock companies, touring with What Price Glory, Road to Rome, and others. Times became slack and during the lull Ted put his big bulk to work as physical instructor and manager of a Manhattan gym club. There he taught S. L. "Roxy" Rothafel how to play handball.

It was inevitable that he would end up in radio where he became a prime announcer.

He took his first radio audition in 1929, trying for a gangster part. He didn't get the job, so he went home and called up the director, threatening him in the best gangster idiom.  “I’m just gonna tell you somethin’,” he told the shocked producer. “I’m comin’ into your office in a couple of minutes. You’re gonna give me a job, or you’re goin’ for a ride.” Then, he hung up and marched over to the producer’s office. The director was so impressed that when he heard who was calling he gave Teddy the job after all.  So he made his radio debut as Joe the Mug in True Detective Mysteries (CBS, May 16. 1929 - May 8. 1930).

On that show, Teddy inadvertently showcased his versatility. He portrayed a spirited young detective, the pride and joy of his father, an old Irish policeman. The role of the policeman was originally played by a seventy-five-year-old with a strong Irish accent. However, during the show, the elderly actor suffered a heart attack and fainted. Teddy swiftly stepped in to fill both roles, expertly mimicking the voice of the old Irishman to such a degree that listeners couldn't discern the switch. News of this feat spread through radio circles, and from then on, Teddy rarely played straightforward roles. Producers and directors found that Teddy could perform proficiently in over twenty dialects and he was kept busy.

One of Bergman's lovable characteristics was his fondness for children. Born with an innate ability to handle children he sound found an outlet for this in the capacity of director of a boys' summer camp. So his other job was working at the Copake Country Club (1929 - 1930) as "social director, entertainment producer and actor." "That's where I really learned to be versatile," he once declared. "One night a typical emsee, the next an announcer of a symphony program, then a straight dramatic part; maybe a stooge —just about Anything you can think of."

Upon return from camp, health guru Bernarr MacFadden took cognizance of Ted's remarkable physique, and contracted him for air appearances on the Physcial Culture and True Romances Hour (CBS).

As of August 1930 Teddy Bergman co-starred as George with Herbert Polesie in Henry and George, a CBS program that featured minute dramas, popular laugh makers interspersed with dance music selections (picture below left). In 1930 he also appeared on Arabesque ("Love in the Desert").

The Chase and Sanborn Hour (Red, Dec 13. 1931 - Apr 8. 1934, min. 7 episodes) was the umbrella title for a series of American comedy and variety radio shows. With song and dance, they clearly imitated the setup of the (once) popular vaudeville acts. Ted would go on appearing in many similar shows.

The silent-film compilation Chase Me Charlie (Apr 8. 1918) was reissued with sound in 1932, with a new synchronized orchestral score by Elias Breeskin and narration by Teddy Bergman.

Actress, radio singer Finette Walker (1909 - 2005), appeared on stage in the early 1930s and was a chorus member in the original 1934 Broadway production of Anything Goes with Ethel Merman.  He had met her at television station W2XAB (later WCBS-TV) in New York City. Funny thing, a few days before he met her, a buddy of his showed him a picture of Finette Walker and said to him :"See that girl? Is she a knockout? I have a date with her on Wednesday!" (This with evidences of pride). In the meantime Teddy met her and "it was one of those first sight things, I guess," to use his own phrase. He didn't realize it was the same girl whose picture he'd so casually glanced at, however, and he cut his buddy out of that Wednesday night date too. After just six weeks, he married her on April 5. 1932, a week before the opening of his new series Joe Palooka (CBS, Apr 12. - Aug 16. 1932).  One of their three sons followed in his parents' footsteps as an actor and took the professional name Alan Reed, Jr.

Teddy got his biggest break on The Eddie Cantor Show in 1932. Cantor had spent the past year razzing his orchestra leader, David Rubinoff, who resolutely refused to take a speaking role in the program. Undaunted, Cantor and writer Dave Freedman hired Teddy Bergman to impersonate the Russian-born violinist, giving him a ripe So-we-et accent straight from the steppes. The "Rubinoff" characterization was one of the big hits of the season, and made Teddy Bergman a big name around the studios. (7)

Looking for his own recurring character, he created in 1932 the stuttering "Blubber," just one of his many comedic roles, which he debuted in 1933 on the Musical Grocery Store with the Three X Sisters. He tried his best to push Blubber with Blubber Bergman (WGN, Chicago) & The Blubber Bergman Revue (WNEW, New York). Blubber was featured on WOR and WEAF but failed to attract the attention of one of the big chains.

In April 1934 he appeared (together with Fred Allen) in The Hour Of Smiles (NBC, Apr 4 - 18. 1934, min. 3 episodes) and in The Fleischmann's Yeast Hour (Red, Jun 28. 1934 - Aug 20. 1936, min. 3 episodes) with Fanny Brice as "Baby Snooks" ...

In Circus Night in Silvertown (NBC, Mar - Aug. 1935), a simulated circus show, Teddy Bergman together with Lew Hearn provided the comedy routines.

"Bull" as he was known around the Columbia studios, had played more than 800 different character-dialect roles in his eight years in radio. But he's never had such an opportunity to leap agilely from dialect to dialect as he has on Harv and Esther (CBS, Sep 12. 1935 - Mar 5. 1936) sponsored by Harvester Cigars, Ted played 12 different characters in three minutes!

Town Hall Tonight (Red, Nov 6. 1935 - Apr 5. 1939, min. 22 episodes) which became The Fred Allen Show in its last season before they moved to CBS as The Texaco Star Theater.

After eight years of stardom in radio, Ted set out to embark on a new development in his career. He was going to sing! He had been secretly taking lessons for three years, believing that a song was an excellent way to close a comedy sequence. "What's your voice like?" Teddy was asked. "It's sort of a cross between a dachshund and a whisky sour baritone," he replied.

Teddy made three musical "shorts" Rambling 'Round Radio Row (Vitaphone-Warner, production reel #1632, as "Blubber" Bergman, Apr 21. 1934), Teddy Bergman's International Broadcast (Mentone/Universal, Jun 3. 1936) and Teddy Bergman's Bar-B-Q  (Universal, Sep 1. 1937).

Alan Reed played Daddy in the earliest appearances of Fanny Brice's "Baby Snooks" on The Ziegfeld Follies of the Air broadcasts of 1936 (CBS, Feb 26. - Jun 6. 1936).

He made his debut on the Broadway stage with Double Dummy (John Golden Theatre, Nov 11. - 28. 1936) nine years after he started on radio, through which he had been hear over both major networks, in coast-to-coast hookups, impersonating several hundred characters in 22 dialects. He had a definite flair for comedy and worked under his given name Teddy Bergman.

A House in the Country (Vanderbilt Theatre, Jan 11. - 31. 1937),
The Shadow (Syndicated, Jul 10. 1938 - Nov 1. 1942, min. 30 episodes).

In 1938 he landed one of radio's plumiest engagements for a dialectician, becoming a permanent member of Fred Allen's legendary Mighty Allen Art Players. Here was the greatest assortment of dialect talent ever assembled on a single program: diminutive Bridgeportian Minerva Pious offered every sort of nationality imaginable in her feisty, shrill-voiced characterizations. Teddy Bergman replaced the masterful Jack Smart as everything from hyperactive movie executives to flouncing interior decorators. It was the highest-profile job of his career so far, and it began a collaboration with Allen that would last nearly a decade. (7)

Now part owner of Camp Copake, a summer spot near Craryville, New York, where he had his first job after leaving college. It's where he spends all his vacations (1938).

When directors said "Funny guy, but we need someone more serious here" once to often Bergman got around that roadblock by coming up with a whole new identity for himself, naming himself after his son, Alan Reed* Bergman. "Alan Reed" began to get more dramatic work -- soap operas, nighttime melodramas -- while Teddy Bergman continued to get the comedy work. This bifurcated identity took its toll, however, and to make the bookkeeping easier, the performer finally adopted his pseudonym as his legal name on August 17. 1939.

One of the Finest (NBC-Blue, Oct 1939) was the old story of "cops and robbers" with the additional twist of putting a college education into law enforcement. Alan Reed played along with Carleton Young. One episode in November had Reed playing 2 parts. In one role he's cast as a gangster, the other role has him as the cop who's out to get the gangster. So Reed chased himself all the way to Eighth Street.

On to New York. Teddy joined up with the Theatre Guild and worked steadily on Broadway. Teddy appeared on Broadway in the William Saroyan play, Love's Old Sweet Song (Plymouth Theatre, May 2. - Jun 8. 1940), his part called for him to have a completely shaven head.

The Texaco Star Theatre (CBS, Oct 2. 1940 - Apr 20. 1949, min. 113 episodes) generic variety show with Fred Allen, Milton Berle,... in the lead. The Fred Allen Show (NBC, Jan. 31. 1940 - Mar 14. 1948, min. 36 episodes).
The Lux Radio Theatre (CBS, Dec 30. 1940 - Mar 26. 1951, min. 28 episodes).

Resident poet "Falstaff Openshaw" always had an appropriate poem for the moment. World War II was blasting in Europe and Openshaw came up with these immortal opening lines of verse: "My little niece is saving grease to help to beat the Japs. To help to beat the Nazis she's collecting bacon scraps...."It goes on and ends with: "When the Axis time at last has come, and the world's restored to peace. The day that Hitler's goose is cooked my little niece will save the grease." (6)

In the fall of 1941 Alan sacrificed many well-paying radio job to take a role in the stage play Hope for a Harvest (Guild Theatre, Nov 26. - Dec 27. 1941), with Fredric March. He did this because he hoped movie scouts might see him in it and offer him what he wanted more than anything in the world - a Hollywood contract.
They did, but then the war started and Alan refused the contract because he was afraid to move his family out to the West Coast. To make things worse, the play, although Alan got good critical notices (nominated for best performance in Hope for a Harvest, New York Critics Drama Circle), wasn't very successful. It closed a few weeks after it opened.

Back to radio where he was heard as Sol Levy (picture below left) in Abie's Irish Rose (NBC, Jan 24. 1942 - Sep 2. 1944).

The Pirate (Martin Beck Theatre, Nov 25. 1942 - Apr 27. 1943) had slightly more success than his previous attempts on Broadway but his talent did not really seem to fit the theater.

At one time Alan was doing thirty-five shows a week, which he cut down to fifteen when he started to do character roles in the movies.

For years, Reed had been getting offers from Hollywood. Regular as clockwork. Each time Reed had turned them down. "I wanted to make a movie like crazy," he admitted, "but every offer was for a long-term contract. I was too busy to make more than one picture at a time." Then he got his own radio show, and his booming voice rounded up many listeners. The Hollywood offers started pouring in each week. "When RKO came up with a one-picture deal," he said, "I snapped 'em up fast before they could change their minds."

In 1943 Alan & his family did move to Beverly Hills. His first picture was Days of Glory (RKO-Radio Pictures, Jun 8 1944) where he played opposite Gregory Peck (picture below right).