John Twomey is a
manualist who appeared on
NBC's ''
The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson'' in 1972 and 1974. He is credited with bringing manualism to the public stage, as his performance of "
Stars and Stripes Forever" was seen by millions of people and was included in the ''Best of
Johnny Carson
John William Carson (October 23, 1925 – January 23, 2005) was an American television host, comedian, writer and producer. He is best known as the host of ''The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson'' (1962–1992). Carson received six Pr ...
'' collection. Twomey also coined the term "manualism," as he introduced himself as a "manualist" in the show. Twomey was a regular guest of Johnny's after that first appearance all the way until Johnny retired from ''The Tonight Show''.
John Twomey, also a professional attorney and father of 7, appeared on several other programs including ''
The Mike Douglas Show'' where he performed the "
Colonel Bogey March," made famous in the film ''
The Bridge Over the River Kwai'', and ''
The Merv Griffin Show'' where he performed "
When the Saints Go Marching In." Twomey's name appeared in the credits of a 1970s ''
Barney Miller
''Barney Miller'' is an American sitcom television series set in a New York City Police Department police station on East 6th St in Greenwich Village. The series was broadcast on ABC Network from January 23, 1975, to May 20, 1982. It was created ...
'' episode in which he provided off-camera manualism for a scene in which a man was arrested for disturbing the peace by "playing" his hands.
John Twomey's last public performance was on November 21, 1998, on the radio show ''
A Prairie Home Companion
''A Prairie Home Companion'' is a weekly radio variety show created and hosted by Garrison Keillor that aired live from 1974 to 2016. In 2016, musician Chris Thile took over as host, and the successor show was eventually renamed ''Live from He ...
'' with
Garrison Keillor
Gary Edward "Garrison" Keillor (; born August 7, 1942) is an American author, singer, humorist, voice actor, and radio personality. He created the Minnesota Public Radio (MPR) show ''A Prairie Home Companion'' (called ''Garrison Keillor's Radio ...
, where he performed "
Stardust."
Although John suffered a heart attack that forced him to stop practicing law and performing his unique style of music, after ten years he recovered and was back to performing.
References
External links
Chicago TribuneSchenectady GazetteAnchorage Daily News
Living people
Year of birth uncertain
{{US-musician-stub