Jack Paar took over as host of The Tonight Show from Steve Allen, turning the late night program into the talk show legend it has become. It is during his time as host that the show became a bona fide obsession with late night talk show fans and with the media, due in part to Paar’s emotional personality and his tendency to stir up controversy.

Jack Paar's early life

Paar was born Jack Harold Paar in Canton, Ohio, on May 1, 1918.

Though he was born in the Buckeye State, he was raised in Jackson, Mich. Paar never finished school, dropping out at age 16. He passed away in January 2004.

He worked in radio in Jackson, transforming his local radio personality status to stations across the Midwest, including Detroit, Indianapolis and Cleveland.

That led to national broadcasting work and national stardom. Paar became well-known as the host of The $64 Question on NBC radio and the TV game shows Up To Paar and Bank on the Stars.

Tonight Show Host

Paar served as host of The Tonight Show from 1957 to 1962. The show was originally called Tonight with Jack Paar and The Jack Paar Show from 1959 to 1962. The show is noted for its regular guests, such as Peter Ustinov, and characters like Charlie Weaver and Miss Monitor.

In 1959, his interview with Cuban leader Fidel Castro was met with controversy and he broadcast one program from Berlin as the Berlin Wall was being built.

Perhaps most famously, Paar abruptly quit The Tonight Show after one of his monologue jokes was censored by NBC.

He left right after delivering his monologue the following evening, leaving his announcer, Hugh Downs, to fill in for the remainder of the program.

He eventually returned, a month later, delivering the famous line, “As I was saying before I was interrupted … I believe the last thing I said was ‘There must be a better way to make a living than this.’ Well, I’ve looked – and there isn’t.”

>>Check out a History of the Tonight Show for more great information<<

Fast facts:

• Famously told Cleveland radio audiences during Orson Welles broadcast of War of the Worlds, “The world is not coming to an end. Trust me. When have I ever lied to you?”
• Served in World War II as a troop entertainer.
• Left The Tonight Show and launched a primetime program called The Jack Paar Show (eerily reminiscent of Jay Leno’s exit and launch of The Jay Leno Show).
• That show lasted three years.
• Was a guest on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson for the first time in November 1986.