Born in Detroit in 1923, Ed McMahon's publicist confirmed that the world's most famous "sidekick" died early this morning at age 86 at the Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center. Ed McMahon was survived by his wife, Pam, and their five children - all of whom were with him at the time of his death.
McMahon faced several health issues, and had been in and out of the hospital several times in the last few years. A fall in 2007 left him with a broken neck and McMahon's inability to work led to a very public foreclosure battle over his Beverly Hills home, as well as a civil suit against LA's Cedars-Sinai Medical Center (McMahon claimed the hospital botched operations and was negligent in caring for him) which was settled out of court earlier this year. In February, he co-starred alongside famous financial fumbler, MC Hammer, in a Cash4Gold ad which aired during the Superbowl. In March, he was hospitalized in intensive care and treated for pneumonia and other, unspecified, health problems. This fired speculation that McMahon was suffering from bone cancer. His publicist made no response concerning McMahon's health issues.
McMahon's big break came in 1958, when he served as announcer on a daytime game show called Who Do You Trust? There, he worked with a man by the name of Johnny Carson. In 1962, the pair moved to late night TV when that Carson guy replaced host, Jack Paar, on The Tonight Show. McMahon played second-fiddle to Carson for 30 years, until the latter retired in 1992. Carson died of Emphysema in 2005 at age 79. McMahon said he was "quite happy being the second banana" and later wrote, "For 46 years, Johnny and I were as close as two non-married people can be."
The gig landed McMahon several jobs in a storied career. He was the host of the 1980's pre-reality TV talent show, Star Search, which featured such (then) unknowns as Justin Timberlake, Adam Sandler, and Rosie O'Donnell. He also co-hosted the popular TV's Bloopers and Practical Jokes with Dick Clark, and Jerry Lewis' Labor Day MDA Telethon. When he wasn't busy with all that, you could find his smiling face in your mailbox, as he served as the Publishers' Clearing House spokesman for years.
McMahon studied electrical engineering in college and served as a Marine Corps fighter pilot in both WWII and the Korean War, though he mainly worked as an instructor. After college, McMahon went on to become a TV producer in Philadelphia and worked onscreen as a TV clown, as well as in movies such as the original Fun with Dick and Jane. Having worked as a bingo caller and carnival hawker, McMahon's skills culminated in his trademarked Tonight Show opening, He-ee-ere's Johnny!" Ed McMahon also wrote several books, including two autobiographies.
His publicist said funeral arrangements had yet to be made.
© C Harris Lynn, 2009
A rambling melange of pop-culture.
No comments:
Post a Comment