- Johnny Carson
John William "Johnny" Carson (October 23, 1925 - January 23,2005) was an American actor, comedian and writer best known for his iconic status as the host of "The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson". - Doc Severinsen
Doc Severinsen has been the principal pops conductor for The Phoenix Symphony since 1983. - Tommy Newsom
Thomas Penn "Tommy" Newsom was a saxophone player in the NBC Orchestra on "The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson", an orchestra he later became assistant director of. Newsom was frequently the band's substitute director, whenever Doc Severinsen was away from the show or filling in for announcer Ed McMahon. Nicknamed "Mr. Excitement" as a sarcastic take on his low-keyed, often dull persona, Newsom was often a foil for Carson's humor. - Joey Bishop
Joey Bishop - Ed McMahon
Edward "Ed" Peter Leo McMahon, Jr. (born March 6, 1923) is a popular American comedian, game show host, announcer and television personality most famous for his work on television as Johnny Carson's announcer on the "Tonight Show", from 1962 to 1992, and as the host of the talent show "Star Search", from 1983 to 1995. - Conte Candoli
Secondo "Conte" Candoli (July 12, 1927-December 14, 2001) was an American jazz trumpeter based on the West Coast of the US. He played in the big bands of Woody Herman, Stan Kenton, Benny Goodman, and Dizzy Gillespie, and in Doc Severinsen's NBC Orchestra on "The Tonight Show". He played with Gerry Mulligan, and on Frank Sinatra's TV specials. He also led his own band. Conte was the younger brother of trumpeter Pete Candoli. - Paul Anka
Paul Albert Anka, OC (born July 30, 1941, in Ottawa, Ontario) is a Canadian singer, songwriter and actor. He became a naturalized U.S. citizen in 1990. Anka first became famous as a teen idol in the late 1950s and 1960s, with hits songs like "Diana," "Lonely Boy," and "Put Your Head on my Shoulder." He went on to write such well-known music as the theme for "The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson", Tom Jones' biggest hit, "She's A Lady", … - Teresa Ganzel
Teresa Ganzel (also Terese Ganzel, Terry Ganzel; born March 23, 1957 in Toledo, Ohio) is an actress, comedienne, and cartoon voice-over actress. She was most known as a regular on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson. She often plays ditzy blonde bimbo roles. Her eyes are crossed, a feature that set her apart from others and adds to her comedy. She is the sister of Producer Mark Ganzel. - David Steinberg
David Steinberg, born into a Jewish family August 9, 1940, in Winnipeg, Manitoba, is a Canadian comedian, actor, director, writer and author. He was one of the best-known stand-up comics in the USA during the late 1960s and appeared on Johnny Carson's "Tonight Show" 140 times. Steinberg also directed episodes of many the most successful television comedies of the last fifteen years, including" Seinfeld", "Curb Your Enthusiasm", "Mad About You", … - Suzanne Pleshette
Suzanne Pleshette (born January 31 1937 in New York City) is an American actress, best known as "Emily Hartley" on "The Bob Newhart Show" in the '70s. Born to Eugene Pleshette, manager of the Paramount Theater in Brooklyn, New York and dancer Geraldine Kaplan, she is a cousin of "Knots Landing" actor John Pleshette. Pleshette graduated from Manhattan's School of Performing Arts. She then attended Syracuse University. - Jim McCawley
Jim McCawley (May 31, 1942 - May 3, 1997) was a screenwriter and former television producer of "The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson". McCawley began his showbiz career as a production assistant for the Broadway productions of "Bye Bye Birdie" and "All American", and joined "The Tonight Show" in 1977. - Paul Block
Paul Block is an American executive producer most recently known for his work on the now defunct San Francisco, California based TechTV (now known as G4) television network. He was executive producer and show runner of such shows as "The Screen Savers", "Call for Help", and "Unscrewed with Martin Sargent". He produced at the network from early 2001 until late 2004 when, as a result of the merger between G4 and TechTV, … - Peter Lassally
Peter Lassally is a former Carson Productions executive who served as the executive producer of The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson, Late Night with David Letterman, and the Late Show with David Letterman. He is currently the executive producer of the Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson. - James Randi
James Randi (born August 7, 1928), stage name The Amazing Randi, is a stage magician and scientific skeptic best known as a challenger of paranormal claims and pseudoscience. Born Randall James Hamilton Zwinge, in Toronto, Canada, Randi is the founder of the James Randi Educational Foundation (JREF). - McLean Stevenson
McLean Stevenson (full name Edgar McLean Stevenson, Jr.), born in Normal, Illinois, was an American actor most recognized for his role as Lt. Colonel Henry Blake on the TV series "M*A*S*H". - Rita Rudner
Rita Rudner (born on 17 September 1956 in Miami, Florida) is an American comedienne and writer. - John Byner
John Byner (born John Biener on June 28, 1938 in New York City) is an actor, comedian, and impressionist who has had a lengthy television and movie career. His voice work includes the long-running cartoon series "The Ant and the Aardvark", in which the title characters are voiced by Byner's dead-on impressions of Dean Martin, and Jackie Mason, respectively. On "The Ed Sullivan Show", where he made his first early TV appearances, … - Jim Fowler
Jim Fowler (born April 9 1930 in Albany, Georgia) is a professional zoologist and was host of the Emmy Award-winning television show "Mutual of Omaha's Wild Kingdom". Fowler first served as the co-host of Wild Kingdom with Marlin Perkins, and then later became the main host. While Fowler was serving as host of "Wild Kingdom", he received four separate Emmy awards and an endorsement by the National PTA for family viewing. - Victoria Jackson
Victoria Jackson (b. August 2, 1959, in Miami, Florida) is an American comedian and actress best known as a cast member of the NBC television sketch comedy series "Saturday Night Live" from 1986 to 1992. Raised by devoted Christians in home without a TV, she was trained in gymnastics by her gym-coach father from ages 5 to 18. Jackson attended a private Christian high school, Dade Christian School, where she was a cheerleader and the Homecoming Queen. - George Kirby
George Kirby (June 8, 1923 - September 30, 1995) was an American comedian, singer, and actor from Chicago, Illinois. He was one of the first African-American comedians to begin to appeal to white as well as black audiences during the height of the Civil Rights era, appearing between 1966 and 1972 on The Ed Sullivan Show, The Dean Martin Show, The Jackie Gleason Show, "Rowan and Martin's Laugh-In", and "The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson". - Joan Embery
Joan Embery (born c. 1952 in San Diego, California) is an animal and environmental advocate. A Trustee of the Morris Animal Foundation, a professional Fellow of the Association of Zoos and Aquariums, and a member of the Advisory Board of the UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine's Wildlife Health Center, she founded the American Association of Zoo Keepers. The goodwill ambassador to the San Diego Zoo's Zoological Society of San Diego for 32 years, … - Orson Bean
Orson Bean (born July 22, 1928) is an American film, television, and stage actor, as well as an author. In addition to his acting career, which began in 1952, he is also known for his numerous appearances on a variety of game shows in the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s. Born Dallas Frederick Burroughs in Burlington, Vermont), he is a second cousin to Calvin Coolidge, who was President of the United States at the time of his birth. - Carol Leifer
Carol Leifer (born July 27, 1956 in Long Island, New York) is an American comedian best known as Jerry Seinfeld's ex-girlfriend, as well as the basis for the character Elaine Benes on the television show, "Seinfeld". Leifer is an accomplished stand-up comedian, writer, producer and actor and has been involved in such television shows as "Seinfeld", "It's Like, You Know...", "Alright Already", and "The Larry Sanders Show". - Charlie Callas
Charlie Callas (born December 20, 1924) is an American comedian and actor most commonly known for his work with Mel Brooks, Jerry Lewis, and Dean Martin. Familiar from his many appearances on The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson, he is known for his rubbery face, trademark nervous chattering and dark comedy. He appeared on Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In at various times as "Captain Weird", a parody of superheroes. - Marilyn Horne
The American opera singer Marilyn Horne (b. January 16 1934, Bradford, Pennsylvania) is a mezzo-soprano who is particularly associated with the music of Rossini and Handel. Horne was born in Bradford, Pennsylvania, but moved with her parents to Long Beach, California when she was 11. She studied voice at the University of Southern California and participated in Lotte Lehmann's vocal classes. Horne's first major professional engagement was in 1954, … - George Maharis
George Maharis (born September 1, 1928 in Astoria, New York) is an American actor. - Dick Shawn
Richard Schulefand, an American actor and comedian known professionally as Dick Shawn, was born in Buffalo, New York. - Victor Garber
Victor Joseph Garber (born on March 16, 1949 in London, Ontario, Canada) is a six-time Emmy Award-nominated Canadian film, stage and television actor and singer. Garber began acting at the age of nine, joining the University of Toronto's Hart House at age 15. In 1967 he formed a folk band called The Sugar Shoppe with Peter Mann, Laurie Hood and Lee Harris. - Larry Kert
Larry Kert (December 5, 1930 - June 5, 1991) was an American actor, singer, and dancer. - Ray Combs
Raymond Neil Combs, Jr. (April 3, 1956 - June 2, 1996), was an American comedian and host of the game show "Family Feud" from 1988 to 1994. The Hamilton, Ohio-born Combs ascended into the world of comedy after moving to Los Angeles in 1983 and doing audience warmups for sitcoms. Johnny Carson noticed this and invited him to perform on "The Tonight Show" in 1986; the audience gave him a standing ovation his first time on stage, … - Jud Strunk
Jud Strunk (11 June 1936 - 5 October 1981) was an American singer, songwriter, and comedian. Born Justin Strunk, Jr. in Jamestown, New York, he was raised in Buffalo, New York where as a small boy his showmanship became evident. - Johnny Yune
Johnny Yune is a Korean-American actor and comedian, known for his leading roles in the 1980s films "They Call Me Bruce?" and "They Still Call Me Bruce". Yune became a US citizen in 1978. - David Horowitz
David Horowitz is a well-known American consumer advocate and former reporter/anchor for KNBC-TV in Los Angeles, whose Emmy-winning TV program "Fight Back!" would warn viewers about defective products, test advertised claims to see if they were true, and confront corporations about customer complaints. Horowitz was also a regular guest on "The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson". - Julius Sumner Miller
Professor Julius Sumner Miller (May 17, 1909 - April 14, 1987), was an American science populariser. He is best known for his work on children's television programs. From 1962 to 1964, he was Disney's "Professor Wonderful" on new introductions, filmed at Disneyland, to the syndicated reruns of "The Mickey Mouse Club". He is best known in Canada for his "mad professor" work on the 1971 TV series "The Hilarious House of Frightenstein". - Mike Altman
Mike Altman (born 1955) is the son of film director Robert Altman. He is best known for writing the lyrics to "Suicide Is Painless", the theme song for his father's 1970 movie, "M*A*S*H". He wrote the song at the age of only 14 and got his own guitar as exchange. Speaking on "The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson" in the 1980s, the elder Altman said that Mike made over a million dollars from the song, … - Peggy King
Peggy King (born February 16, 1930 in Greensburg, Pennsylvania) is a former pop singer and TV personality. She is best remembered as the female vocalist on "The George Gobel Show". She also appeared in "American Bandstand", "Maverick", "The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson" and "The Jack Benny Show". She portrayed the stewardess Janet Turner in the film Zero Hour!, which became the basis for the disaster spoof, Airplane! - John Twomey
John Twomey was a manualist who most famously appeared on NBC's The Tonight Show starring Johnny Carson in 1974. He is credited with bringing manualism to the public stage, as his performance of "Stars and Stripes Forever" was seen by millions of people and was included in the "Best of Johnny Carson" collection. Twomey also coined the term "manualism," as he introduced himself as a "manualist" in the show. - John Gary
John Gary (1932-1998) was a popular and technically accomplished vocalist. - André-Philippe Gagnon
André-Philippe Gagnon is a Canadian comedian and impressionist. His impressionist act is unique for his specialized talent in impersonating the "singing" voices of celebrities as opposed to his contemporaries who typically can do only the speaking voices. He is best known for duplicating We Are the World. - Grady Tate
Grady Tate, (born January 14, 1932 in Durham, North Carolina), is a hard bop and soul-jazz drummer. He has played with Lena Horne, Astrud Gilberto, Ella Fitzgerald, Blossom Dearie, Chris Connor, Sarah Vaughan, Ray Charles, Cal Tjader, Peggy Lee, Duke Ellington, Count Basie, Rahsaan Roland Kirk, Stanley Turrentine, Charles Earland, Quincy Jones, Wes Montgomery, Jimmy Smith, as well as many other famous jazz artists.
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