Vaudeville - brief stage performances for family audiences - flourished in big cities and small towns across America from the 1880s through the 1920s. This American Masters program looks at dancing, juggling and joking vaudeville acts, including Eddie Ca ntor, Burns and Allen, Buster Keaton, Al Jolson, Houdini, Bessie Smith, the Marx Brothers and more. The business behind the shows is also explained. Narrator Ben Vereen. Thirteen/WNET, KCTS9 Television, Palmer/Fenster.