When Television Was Young

Ed McMahon was born in Detroit, Michigan on March 6, 1923. He received a bachelor's degree in speech and drama from Catholic University of America in 1949. He served as a fighter pilot in the United States Marine Corps in World War II and the Korean War.

He got his start on television playing a circus clown on the 1950-51 variety series Big Top. In 1958, he joined Who Do You Trust?, where he met Johnny Carson. When Carson was asked to replace Jack Paar on the Tonight Show, McMahon became his announcer and they worked together until Carson retired in 1992. He also hosted Star Search, the Jerry Lewis Muscular Dystrophy Association Telethon with Jerry Lewis, and TV's Bloopers and Practical Jokes with Dick Clark. He also appeared in several movies including The Incident (1967), Fun with Dick and Jane (1977), Full Moon High (1981), Butterfly (1982), Just Write (1997), and Bewitched (2005). In 1998, he wrote his autobiography, For Laughing Out Loud: My Life and Good Times. He died on June 23, 2009 at the age of 86.

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