Earl Wilson (1907-1987)
Harvey Earl Wilson (May 3, 1907–January 16, 1987), born Harvey Earl Wilson, was an American journalist, gossip columnist and author, perhaps best known for his nationally syndicated newspaper column, It Happened Last Night.
Born in Rockford in Mercer County in western Ohio, Wilson attended Heidelberg College and graduated from Ohio State University in 1931 with a B. S. in journalism.
Wilson's column originated from the New York Post and ran from 1942 until 1983. His chronicling of the Broadway scene during the "Golden Age" of show business formed the basis for a book published in 1971, The Show Business Nobody Knows. He signed his columns with the tag line, "That's Earl, brother." His nickname was "Midnight Earl". In later years, the name of his column was changed to Last Night With Earl Wilson. In his final years with the Post, he alternated with the paper's entertainment writer and restaurant critic, Martin Burden, in turning out the column. (Burden, who died in 1993, took over the Last Night column full-time upon Wilson's retirement.)
Wilson is also the author of two controversial books, Show Business Laid Bare, and an unauthorized biography of Frank Sinatra, Sinatra – An Unauthorized Biography. The former book is notable for revealing the extramarital affairs of President John F. Kennedy.
In the early 1950s, Wilson was an occasional panelist on the NBC game show, Who Said That?, in which celebrities tried to determine the speaker of quotations taken from recent news reports.
Wilson appeared in a few films as himself, notably Copacabana (1947) with Groucho Marx and Carmen Miranda, A Face in the Crowd (1957) with Andy Griffith, College Confidential (1960), and Beach Blanket Bingo (1965) with Paul Lynde. Wilson also hosted the DuMont TV show Stage Entrance from May 1951 to March 1952.
Wilson died in Yonkers, New York. His son, Earl Wilson, Jr., became a songwriter for the musical theatre.
Quotes·Quotation by Earl Wilson
Courage
¶ Courage is the art of being the only one who knows you’re scared to death.
Earl Wilson (politician) (1906-1990), U.S. Representative from Indiana
Earl Wilson (columnist) (1907-1987), U.S. journalist
Earl Wilson (baseball) (1934-2005), U.S. baseball pitcher
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