Jack Lescoulie

Jack Lescoulie (November 17, 1912, Sacramento, California - July 22, 1987, Memphis, Tennessee) was a radio and television announcer and host, notably on NBC's "Today" during the 1950s and 1960s.

On radio, he was billed as the "Grouchmaster" on "The Grouch Club" (1938-40), a program in which people aired their complaints about anything, created by future TV legend Nat Hiken, creator of "Sgt. Bilko" and "Car 54, Where Are You?". In the 1940s, he was morning-drive partner to Gene Rayburn on WNEW radio (now WBBR) in New York City, before turning over his role in the team to Dee Finch. The Lescoulie and Finch pairings with Rayburn provided what are believed to be radio's first two-man morning teams.

During World War II, Lescoulie served as a war correspondent, flying in Air Force planes on bombing missions over Italy. He also covered the raids over Trieste, Hungary.

In the fall of 1947, Lescoulie became the "all night radio man" on the Mutual Broadcasting System's New York affiliate WOR (AM). On April 12, 1948, he portrayed a mysterious newscaster in "Twelve to Five," a "Quiet Please" fantasy drama which recreated an all-night request radio program so convincingly that some listeners phoned in with requests. He returned to "Quiet Please" June 4, 1949, in the horror drama, "Tanglefoot." [ [http://www.geocities.com/emruf6/44.html "Quiet Please": "Twelve to Five", April 12, 1948] ]

Television

On television, Lescoulie hosted one of the earliest TV game shows, "Fun and Fortune" (1949), and he was an announcer on Jackie Gleason's "Cavalcade of Stars" (1949-52), also announcing for Gleason into the 1960s.

During his long run on "Today" (1952-67), Lescoulie was a versatile cast member, as his duties included announcing the show at the top and bottom of every hour, conducting interviews, reporting on sports, chatting with the crowd outside the studio and acting as a foil for Dave Garroway's pranks. He once joked that, despite his war correspondent credentials, he was picked for "Today" because he thought "they were looking for a man who doesn't sleep well in the mornings." Lescoulie left the show in 1967, and the role he originated was filled by Joe Garagiola, Willard Scott and Al Roker.

Lescoulie was also host of "The Tonight Show" when it was known as "Tonight! America After Dark". After Steve Allen and Ernie Kovacs retired from "Tonight" in January 1957, NBC changed the format, renaming the show and transforming it into an interview and news program, hosted first by Lescoulie and then by Al "Jazzbo" Collins. It began January 28, 1957. In 1961-62 Lescoulie hosted the NBC educational children's series "1, 2, 3 Go!".

Films

Between 1938 and 1950, Lescoulie had a number of roles as a film actor, mostly uncredited, but he used the name Joe Hartman when he acted in the aviation drama "Emergency Landing" (1941). His star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame is at 6500 Hollywood Boulevard.

References

External links

* [http://www.msnbc.com/onair/nbc/today/yesterday/logbook.asp?cp1=1 Logbook: January 14, 1952]
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