John Leonard "Johnny" Olson (May 22, 1910 – October 12, 1985) was an American radio personality and television announcer. His work spanned 32 game shows produced by Mark Goodson and Bill Todman from the late 1950s through the mid 1980s. He was also the announcer of The Jackie Gleason Show from 1962 to 1970.
Born in Windom, Minnesota, while landing jobs at WIBA and KGDA in and nearby Madison, Wisconsin after 1928, Olson enrolled in pharmacy classe...
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John Leonard "Johnny" Olson (May 22, 1910 – October 12, 1985) was an American radio personality and television announcer. His work spanned 32 game shows produced by Mark Goodson and Bill Todman from the late 1950s through the mid 1980s. He was also the announcer of The Jackie Gleason Show from 1962 to 1970.
Born in Windom, Minnesota, while landing jobs at WIBA and KGDA in and nearby Madison, Wisconsin after 1928, Olson enrolled in pharmacy classes at the University of Minnesota. He also worked a string of odd jobs, from soda jerk to singer. His first network job on radio was in 1944, announcing the musical-game show, Ladies Be Seated, a stunt game like "Truth or Consequences" broadcast on the Blue Network; as late as 1956, Olson had a crack at another radio quiz, the short-lived Second Chance, somewhat similar to the earlier hit Queen for a Day in that this show, too, focused on guest contestants' tribulations, in this case a chance at rectifying a mistake or a loss in life.
Olson's...
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