Grace Ethel Cecile Rosalie Allen was an American vaudevillian, singer, actress, and comedian who became internationally famous as the zany partner and comic foil of husband George Burns, her straight man, appearing with him on radio, television and film as the duo Burns and Allen.
Publicity still of Allen from the Burns and Allen CBS Radio program
Gracie Allen, George Burns and children aboard Matson flagship Lurline just before they sailed for Hawaii, 1938
Burns and Allen on the vaudeville circuit in 1924
Burns and Allen in 1952
A double act is a form of comedy originating in the British music hall tradition, and American vaudeville, in which two comedians perform together as a single act, often highlighting differences in their characters' personalities. Pairings are typically long-term, in some cases for the artists' entire careers. Double acts perform on the stage, television and film.
Lyons and Yosco, vaudeville act and ragtime composers from the 1910s
Martin and Lewis
Franco and Ciccio
Mitchell and Webb