Art Linkletter

Famed for his amusing interactions with the general public, genial radio and TV personality Art Linkletter became a national treasure as the host of hugely popular shows "House Party" (CBS, 1952-69) and "People Are Funny" (NBC, 1954-1960). Born in Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan, Linkletter was abandoned by his biological parents on the steps of a Baptist church as a baby before being adopted by evangelical preacher Fulton John and wife Mary, later moving with his new family to San Diego aged five. Linkletter traveled the country taking odd jobs on graduating from high school, and later returned to education to study at San Diego State Teachers College, but eventually settled on a career in broadcasting. Linkletter served as a radio announcer for KGB in San Diego and program director for various fairs and expositions in the 1930s, where he honed the ad-libbing and audience participation skills that would later become his trademark. He first began reaching a much wider audience in 1943 when he took over from Art Baker as the host of comedy stunt show, "People Are Funny" (CBS, 1942-1960). Debuting two years later, "House Party" (CBS Radio, 1945-67), a daytime variety/talk show which spawned the much-loved segment, "Kids Say the Darndest Things," proved to be just as popular, with both making the successful transfer to television in the 1950s. Linkletter also played himself in the film adaptation of "People Are Funny" (1946) and starred as flamboyant host Happy Hogan in the comedy "Champagne for Caesar" (1950), enjoyed two separate two-week stints as the host of "The Tonight Show" (NBC, 1954-) and fronted short-lived variety shows "Hollywood Talent Scouts" (ABC, 1965-66) and "Life with Linkletter" (ABC, 1969-1970), the latter with eldest son Jack. Linkletter also enjoyed success as a businessman, founding an eponymous jazz, tap and ballet school, investing in the Hula Hoop and overseeing various oil wells and real estate holdings as the President of Linkletter Enterprises. He was also a notable activist, becoming an anti-drug crusader and adviser to President Nixon in the wake of his daughter Diane's suicide in 1969, a tragedy which Linkletter claimed was related to her use of LSD. He later campaigned for friend Ronald Reagan for President, advocated for stricter restrictions on elderly motorists as the spokesman of the United Seniors Association and wrote several self-help books including 1978 bestseller Release Your Brakes. Linkletter returned to screens in 1998 when he co-hosted a special edition of "Kids Say the Darndest Things" (CBS, 1998-2000) with Bill Cosby, won a Lifetime Achievement Award at the 2003 Daytime Emmys and in 2005 opened Disneyland's 50th anniversary celebrations having commentated on its grand opening way back in 1955. Art Linkletter died from natural causes at his Bel Air home in 2010 aged 97.