Editing Mel Blanc (section)

===Radio work===
Blanc began his radio career at the age of 19 in 1927, when he made his acting debut on the [[KPOJ-AM|KGW]] program ''The Hoot Owls'', where his ability to provide voices for multiple characters first attracted attention. He moved to Los Angeles in 1932, where he met Estelle Rosenbaum (1909–2003), whom he married a year later, before returning to Portland. He moved to [[KEX (AM)|KEX]] in 1933 to produce and co-host his ''Cobweb and Nuts'' show with his wife Estelle, which debuted on June 15. The program played Monday through Saturday from 11:00 pm to midnight, and by the time the show ended two years later, it appeared from 10:30 pm to 11:00 pm.<gallery>
File:Private Snafu - Booby Traps.ogv|[[Private Snafu|Private SNAFU]]
File:Wabbitwhocametosupper.jpg|''[[The Wabbit Who Came to Supper|The Wabbit Who Came To Supper]]''
</gallery>With his wife's encouragement, Blanc returned to Los Angeles and joined Warner Bros.–owned [[KFWB]] in [[Hollywood, Los Angeles, California|Hollywood]] in 1935. He joined ''The Johnny Murray Show'', but the following year switched to [[CBS]] Radio and ''The [[Joe Penner]] Show''.

[[File:Jack Benny group photo.jpg|thumb|left|300px|The cast of ''[[The Jack Benny Program]]'', from left to right: [[Eddie "Rochester" Anderson]], [[Dennis Day]], [[Phil Harris]], [[Mary Livingstone]], [[Jack Benny]], [[Don Wilson (announcer)|Don Wilson]], and Mel Blanc]]
Blanc was a regular on the [[NBC]] Red Network show ''[[The Jack Benny Program]]'' in various roles, including voicing Benny's [[Maxwell automobile]] (in desperate need of a tune-up), violin teacher Professor LeBlanc, Polly the Parrot, Benny's pet polar bear Carmichael and the train announcer. The first role came from a mishap when the recording of the automobile's sounds failed to play on cue, prompting Blanc to take the microphone and improvise the sounds himself. The audience reacted so positively that Benny decided to dispense with the recording altogether and have Blanc continue in that role. One of Blanc's characters from Benny's radio (and later TV) programs was "Sy, the Little Mexican", who spoke one word at a time.<ref name="Blanc"/> He continued to work with Benny on radio until the series ended in 1955 and followed the program into television from Benny's 1950 debut episode through guest spots on NBC specials in the 1970s.

''Radio Daily'' magazine wrote in 1942 that Blanc "specialize[d] in over fifty-seven voices, dialects, and intricate sound effects",<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.americanradiohistory.com/Archive-Radio-Daily/RD-1942/RD-1942-08.pdf|title=57 Variety Blanc|first=Betty|last=Mills|work=Radio Daily|page=27|date=August 7, 1942|access-date=January 26, 2020}}</ref> and by 1946, he was appearing on over fifteen programs in various supporting roles. His success on ''The Jack Benny Program'' led to his own radio show on the [[CBS Radio Network]], ''[[The Mel Blanc Show]]'', which ran from September 3, 1946, to June 24, 1947. Blanc played himself as the hapless owner of a fix-it shop, as well as his young cousin Zookie. Blanc also appeared on such other national radio programs as ''The [[Abbott and Costello]] Show'', the Happy Postman on ''[[Burns and Allen]]'', and as August Moon on ''Point Sublime''. During World War II, he appeared as Private Sad Sack on various radio shows, including ''G.I. Journal''. Blanc recorded a song titled "Big Bear Lake".