RIP Jay Thomas

[silverscreenselect]

Actor who appeared on numerous TV shows, best known as Carla's husband on Cheers and an obnoxious talk show host on Murphy Brown.

Age 69

[Ritterskoop]

This article includes a video link to a story he tells on Letterman about his time in Charlotte as a DJ - it's hilarious.

http://www.charlotteobserver.com/entert ... 48042.html

[Estonut]

This article includes a video link to a story he tells on Letterman about his time in Charlotte as a DJ - it's hilarious.

http://www.charlotteobserver.com/entert ... 48042.html

They short-change Jay a bit by saying he "he told this story on Letterman’s show multiple times over the years, because the host loved it so much." He told it the first time in 1998 and every year since, only missing one Christmas (due to surgery). They also skipped the meatball atop the tree. With Darlene Love's annual performance of "Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)," these 3 segments became Letterman's annual Christmas triumvirate.

Strangely, the entirety of Jay Thomas' Wiki page's "Entertainment career" section is devoted to that original appearance:

Entertainment career

Thomas made his annual Christmastime appearance with David Letterman for the first time in December 1998. Letterman and one of his other guests that evening, then-New York Jets quarterback Vinny Testaverde, took turns tossing footballs at the Christmas tree across the stage, atop which sat a large meatball. As the two tried to knock off the meatball and failed repeatedly, Thomas came out and decided to join in the festivities and knocked the meatball off of the tree.

When Letterman talked with Thomas later on, he told a story about when he was a young disc jockey at WAYS 610AM in Charlotte, North Carolina. Thomas had been making a promotional appearance at a local car dealership. This dealership had also booked Clayton Moore to make an appearance, dressed in his Lone Ranger costume.

As the story goes, after the appearance Thomas, who at the time sported what he referred to as a "white man's Afro", and his friend, who was wearing high heeled shoes, tight pants, and a tie-dyed shirt, went off to get "herbed up" (smoke marijuana) behind a dumpster, after the broadcast ended. When they returned to pack up their equipment, they discovered that Moore was still there, as the car that was supposed to drive him to the Red Roof Inn never arrived. Thomas offered Moore a ride in his old Volvo and he accepted. As they were sitting in traffic, an impatient middle-aged man driving a Buick, backed into the front end of Thomas' car, broke a headlight and drove away.

Thomas gave chase to the Buick through heavy traffic, finally caught up to the man and confronted him about the damage. The indignant driver denied breaking the headlight and Thomas threatened to call the police. The man said nobody would believe their story because Thomas and his friend looked like "two hippy freaks". At that moment, Thomas said that Moore, who was still in costume as the Lone Ranger, got out of the car and said to the man, "They'll believe me, citizen!"

For every year thereafter, with the exception of 2013, Thomas appeared to re-tell the Lone Ranger story and once again attempt what Letterman calls the "Late Show Quarterback Challenge". For the final appearance of the story in 2014, Thomas was again successful in knocking the meatball off the top of the tree. Thomas missed the 2013 Late Show Christmas episode due to surgery on his throat; John McEnroe took his place and told the Lone Ranger story, then tried to knock the meatball off the tree by hitting tennis balls at it but failed.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jay_Thomas

RIP, Jay.