Don Wilson (September 1, 1900 - April 25, 1982) was an American announcer and occasional actor in radio and television, with a Falstaffian vocal presence, remembered best as the rotund announcer and comic foil to the star of The Jack Benny Program.
Wilson began his radio career as a singer over Denver radio station KFEL in 1923. By 1929, he was working at KFI, and shortly afterwards for Don Lee at KHJ, in Los Angeles. In a 1978 appearance on Tomorrow with Tom Snyder, Wilson claimed he was fired from KHJ because he had bought a Packard from Earle C. Anthony, the business arch-rival of Cadillac dealer Don Lee and owner of KFI and KECA.
Though best known for his comedy work with Benny, Wilson had a background as a sportscaster, covering the opening of the 1932 Summer Olympics. Don appeared in two Broadway shows in the 1930s, "The Passionate Pilgrim", which opened October 19, 1932, and "The First Legion", which opened October 1, 1934. Wilson first worked with Benny on the broadcast of April 6, 1934, concurrent with a short stint as announcer on George Gershwin's series, Music by Gershwin. At 6 feet (1.83 m) and 300 pounds (140 kg), Wilson possessed a resonant voice, a deep belly laugh, and a plump figure, all of which would become important parts of his character with Benny. Though Wilson's primary function as announcer was to read the opening and the commercial pitches — notably for Jell-O, Grape-Nuts, and Lucky Strike — his importance to the program was as both feed and foil to Jack and other cast members. A recurring goal was his effort to get the Sportsmen Quartet singing commercials approved by Benny.
Donald Wilson or Don Wilson may refer to:
Donald Wilson (born 1949, Alta Vista, Kansas) is the founder and senior pastor of Christ's Church of the Valley in Peoria, Arizona, one of the largest churches in the United States, with an average attendance of 21,000 a week. Wilson also helped begin four other Valley-wide churches: Christ's Church of the Crossroads, The Refinery Christian Church, Journey Christian Church, and Praxis Church of Scottsdale.
Wilson attended Manhattan Christian College, Kansas State University, and earned his Ph.D. from the California Graduate School of Theology.
Don is the founder of Christ’s Church of the Valley, which has been in existence since 1982; he began services in a rented movie theatre. Since that time, Christ’s Church of the Valley has held services in an elementary school, a strip mall, and a building known as ‘The Castle’. In 1996, Christ’s Church of the Valley raised over $1 million in one day, purchased 50 acres (200,000 m2) of land in the northwest area of Phoenix for a permanent home. In 2006, CCV raised over $8 million on one weekend for the Ripple Effect campaign. This campaign is built two new buildings for Children and Youth ministries. These buildings opened fall 2008.
Donald Edward "Don" Wilson, (February 12, 1945 – January 5, 1975) was a professional baseball pitcher. He played all or part of nine seasons in Major League Baseball with the Houston Astros.
Wilson's professional career began after he graduated from Compton Community College in Compton, California and was recruited by the Astros in 1966, where he played until 1974. Especially early in his career when he was prone to wildness, Wilson was known as one of the hardest throwers in the National League.
