Willard Scott
| Willard Scott | |
|---|---|
Scott at the 1990 Emmy Awards
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|
| Born |
Willard Herman Scott, Jr. March 7, 1934 Alexandria, Virginia, U.S. |
| Nationality | American |
| Occupation | Weather presenter, author, television personality, actor, clown, comedian, radio personality |
| Years active | 1950–2015 |
| Notable work | Weatherman for the Today show Portrayer of Ronald McDonald in the original McDonald's commercials |
| Spouse(s) |
Mary Dwyer Scott (m. 1959; d. 2002) Paris Keena (m. 2014) |
| Children | 2 |
| Family | John (grandson) |
Willard Herman Scott, Jr. (born March 7, 1934) is an American weather presenter, author, television personality, actor, clown, comedian and radio personality, best known for his TV work on the Today show and as the creator and original portrayer of Ronald McDonald.
Scott was born in Alexandria, Virginia, on March 7, 1934, and attended George Washington High School. He showed an interest in broadcasting as a 16-year-old, working in 1950 as an NBC page at WRC-AM, NBC's owned-and-operated radio station in Washington, D.C. Scott then attended American University, where he worked alongside fellow student Ed Walker at WAMU-AM, the university's radio station (1951–1953). Scott became a member of Alpha Sigma Phi fraternity while at American University and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in philosophy and religion.
From 1955 to 1972, Scott teamed with Ed Walker as co-host of the nightly Joy Boys radio program on WRC-AM. (This was interrupted from 1956 to 1958 when Scott served on active duty with the U.S.Navy.) Scott routinely sketched a list of characters and a few lead lines setting up a situation, which Walker would commit to memory or make notes on with his Braille typewriter (Walker was blind since birth). In a 1999 article recalling the Joy Boys at the height of their popularity in the mid-1960s, The Washington Post said they "dominated Washington, providing entertainment, companionship, and community to a city on the verge of powerful change". The Joy Boys show played on WRC until 1972 when they moved to cross-town station WWDC for another two years. Scott wrote in his book, The Joy of Living, of their close professional and personal bond which continued until Walker's death in October 2015, saying that they are "closer than most brothers".
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