Coleman Jacoby

{{Infobox person

| name = Coleman Jacoby

| image =

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| birth_name = Coleman Jacobs

| birth_date = {{birth date|1915|4|16}}

| birth_place = Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, U.S.

| death_date = {{Death date and age|2010|10|20|1915|4|16}}

| death_place = East Meadow, New York, U.S.

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| occupation = Radio and television comedy writer

| spouse = {{•}}Violeta Velero (married 1940; divorced)
{{•}}Gaby Monet (her death)

| children = One daughter

| parents =

}}

Coleman Jacoby (April 16, 1915{{spaced ndash}} October 20, 2010) was an American comedy writer for radio and television.{{Cite news |last=Grimes |first=William |date=2010-11-13 |title=Coleman Jacoby, TV Comedy Writer, Dies at 95 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2010/11/13/arts/television/13jacoby.html |access-date=2025-02-12 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331|url-access=subscription }}

Early life

Born Coleman Jacobs in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, his mother died when he was young and his father abandoned the family. Because of this, he was raised at the Jewish Home for Babies and Children from age 7.

Career

After studying art, he moved to New York City, New York, where he worked in a parking lot, was a doorman at a cafe{{cite news |last1=Wilson |first1=Earl |title=It Happened Last Night |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-st-louis-star-and-times-coleman-jac/169456015/ |access-date=April 2, 2025 |work=The St. Louis Star and Times |date=June 20, 1949 |page=21|via = Newspapers.com }} and painted murals for nightclubs. He also started writing jokes for comedians. Joke writing for Bob Hope and Fred Allen paved the way for steady work in radio. He changed his name to Jacoby on the recommendation of columnist Earl Wilson.

He wrote for Sid Caesar and Imogene Coca on Your Show of Shows. Later, after teaming up with his longtime partner Arnie Rosen, he wrote extensively for Jackie Gleason and Art Carney. The team also wrote for Phil Silvers's character Sergeant Ernie Bilko for You'll Never Get Rich (later renamed The Phil Silvers Show).