Jonathan Winters began his career in radio as a disc jockey on station WING (Dayton, Ohio) and then moved to television at WBNS (Columbus, Ohio), where he hosted a local program for three years. He moved to New York in the 1950s and performed in night clubs on Broadway. But it is TV that has made Winters both famous and familiar to a huge and grateful U.S. audience for more than four decades. Known for his numerous characters and voices, his stream-of­-consciousness humor has influenced countless other performers, a prime example being the contemporary comic actor Robin Williams.

Winters's first network television appearances came during the 1950s, with enormously successful guest spots on talk-variety shows such as The Jack Paar Show, The Steve Allen Show, and The Tonight Show. He went on to appear in many television programs, including Omnibus (where he was the show's first stand­ up comedian), Playhouse 90, Twilight 'Zone, and Here's the Show (a summer replacement for The George Gobel Show). The NBC Comedy Hour, originally designed as a Sunday showcase for new talent. was revamped to feature Gail Storm as the hostess and Winters as the show's comedian. He also hosted his own program. The Jonathan Winters Show, in 1956-57. Aired on NBC from 7:30 to 7:45 P.M. to fill a 15-minute spot following the NBC evening news, the show was structured around Winters’s sketches, blackouts and monologues. The program was revived by CBS in a one-hour format for two seasons beginning in December 1967 and featured the famous Maude Frickert, as well as the Willard “From the Couple up the Street” sketch. In some ways, these shows indicated that Winters’s comedy was almost too unpredictable for conventional network television, and he was allowed more freedom in The Wacky World of Jonathan Winters, a syndicated program that focused on his bravura improvisations.

Younger viewers may remember Winters from Mork and Mindy, where he played the role of Mork and Mindy’s son. Paired with Robin Williams in the role of Mork, Winters was wildly inventive. The comedy in this show was at times truly explosive, with one improvisational genius playing off the other. In the more conventional sitcom, Davis Rules, Winters was confined to a character, yet somehow managed to work many of his other personae into the stories. His performance earned an Emmy for Best Supporting Actor in a Comedy. In addition to on-camera roles, Winters frequently provided the voice for commercials and cartoons. These performances were usually wedded to his distinctive style, allowing audiences the pleasure of recognition for yet another Jonathan Winters moment.