The Life of Riley was also a very popular
radio
show starring
William Bendix as Chester Riley. It ran
from 1943-1951.
In 1949 it became a TV series and starred the
then-unknown Jackie Gleason. This was Gleason's big
break. At that time Gleason was young, slim, and
good-looking.
That series lasted until 1951. Two years later,
Bendix was free to take the TV role, which he did for
the next five years. (By that time, Gleason was starring in
The Honeymooners. I can remember seeing the show,
but not much more than Riley in his hammock on the
front porch and his talks to audience from that same
place (similar to George Burns' asides).
One of Riley's tag lines was, "What a revoltin' development!"
The show sometimes pops up on Nick at Night.