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Remembering Ed McMahon as more than a sidekick
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Ed McMahon
The world of famous announcers lost its king today. Ed McMahon passed away at the age of 86.
Although he is commonly remembered for being number two to Johnny Carson for 30 years of The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson, he also had a very prolific television career that spanned six decades.
McMahon's illustrious career began when he found himself taking out the trash with TV legend Dick Clark. Clark asked him to be an announcer on Bandstand, where he stayed for six years. In 1957, McMahon became the announcer for a game show called Who do you Trust? The show's host was Johnny Carson. Together they became very close, and left together in 1962 to begin their 30 year stint on The Tonight Show.
In 1984, McMahon teamed with Dick Clark again for the hit comedy series TV's Bloopers and Practical Jokes. This series was a staple of NBC programming until 1998 when Clark moved the show over to ABC, and didn't take McMahon with him.
From 1983 until 1995, he was the host of the original Star Search. This highly-successful precursor to American Idol exposed audiences to fresh singers such as Christina Aguilera, Britney Spears, and Justin Timberlake, as well as comedians Kevin James, Dave Chappelle, among many others.
McMahon also wasn't a stranger to many TV sitcoms, guesting on shows such as Newhart, Burke's Law, and Just Shoot Me, as well as recent shows like Celebrity Family Feud and Scrubs. In 1997, he played the role of Charlie Dickerson on the short-lived series The Tom Show. He also has appeared at every Jerry Lewis MDA Labor Day Telethon since 1990.
McMahon is also remembered for his commercial work. He is most famously remembered for being a spokesman for American Family Publishers, informing you by mail that you may have already won $10 million! For many years, he was also the spokesman for Colonial Penn life insurance. He has also represented Anheuser-Busch, DirecTV, and Cash4Gold.com. Before his death, McMahon also starred in many locally based commercials.
