Though "The Danny Thomas Show" marked Tony Bennett's screen debut, in 1963, Bennett turned up in the ABC hit "77 Sunset Strip." If you're unfamiliar with the series, it found stars Efram Zimbalist Jr. and Roger Smith portraying crack Los Angeles detectives with an office setup at the titular location. The series eventually served as inspiration for the popular hit "Kookie, Kookie (Lend Me Your Comb)." Bennett didn't play a part in recording that hit, but he did make a pair of appearances on the show as Maximillian, a man wrapped up with the detectives as they traverse Europe in search of objects stolen by Nazi forces.
A couple of years later, Paramount Pictures bosses came knocking to offer Bennett a meaty role in their Hollywood insider drama, "The Oscar." The film tells of a boastful actor (played by Stephen Boyd) whose ego is pushed over the edge when he's nominated for a best actor Academy Award. The film is largely seen through the eyes of his longtime pal Hymie Kelly, portrayed by Bennett. Though "The Oscar" didn't earn much love from critics or audiences, Bennett still got to share the screen with legends like Milton Berle, Jill St. John, and Joseph Cotten, among others.
Three decades would pass before Bennett played another purely fictional character, portraying Tony Lombardi on a lone episode of the Burt Reynolds-starrer "Evening Shade."
