John Byner

On The Ed Sullivan Show, where he made his first early TV appearances, he mimicked Ed Sullivan among many others. Other impressions included John Wayne and singing like Dean Martin and Johnny Mathis. His ability to mimic "Toastmaster General" George Jessel came in handy during his appearances on panel programs such as celebrity roasts and other tributes.{{cite web| url=http://www.povonline.com/cols/COL124.htm| title=A Party for Wences| first=Mark| last=Evanier| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060909074951/http://www.povonline.com/cols/COL124.htm| archive-date=September 9, 2006| website=povonline.com| access-date=February 8, 2022}}

In 1966, Byner released "Everybody Do The," a musical spoof of dance crazes, as a single on the Pop-Side label. Byner wrote the song with his manager Harry Colomby. The B side of the record was a cover of the blues/R&B/rock standard "Baby, Please Don't Go."[https://www.discogs.com/release/5893942-John-Byner-Everybody-Do-The-Baby-Please-Dont-Go "John Byner – Everybody Do The/Baby, Please Don't Go."] Discogs. Retrieved December 4, 2022.

On a 1967 episode of Get Smart, he played a KAOS agent who made a phone call to the Chief of CONTROL (played by Edward Platt), performed a perfect impression of President Lyndon B. Johnson, and told the Chief he was fired and replaced with agent Maxwell Smart (Don Adams).

In 1970-1971, he hosted 22 episodes of Something Else, a syndicated half-hour musical variety series. He then hosted his own show in 1972 called the John Byner Comedy Hour, where the character Super Dave Osborne, portrayed by Bob Einstein, was first introduced. The same year, he had a cameo in What's Up, Doc? In the mid-1970s, he guest-starred in two episodes of The Odd Couple.{{cite web |title=The Odd Couple Season 5 Episodes |url=https://www.tvguide.com/tvshows/the-odd-couple/episodes-season-5/1000138064/ |website=TVGuide.com |access-date=3 October 2024}}

Byner played a comedian/impersonator aboard a cruise ship in season 6 of Hawaii Five-O. His character did impersonations of John Wayne and then got hit on the back of his head as a diversionary tactic by the bad guy.(Season 6, Disc 6 Hawaii Five-O complete series) He had a recurring role in the sitcom The Practice during its first season in 1976.

In the late 1970s, he had a featured role as Detective Donahue on the TV series Soap. Byner also appeared several times on The Carol Burnett Show, where in one comedy sketch he wore a Donald Duck costume and mimicked the cartoon character's distinctive voice. He appeared several times on talk shows hosted by David Letterman.[http://johnbyner.com/jb-on-letterman "Entertainer Actor Comedian: John Byner"]. JohnByner.com. Retrieved November 3, 2017.

In the 1980s, he hosted Bizarre (produced and filmed in Canada), which re-introduced many people to hapless daredevil Super Dave Osborne played by Bob Einstein. In 1983, he had a role as Doc, who was Burt Reynolds's longtime childhood friend in the film Stroker Ace. In 1985, The Walt Disney Company's animated feature The Black Cauldron was released, featuring Byner's voice as the characters Gurgi and Doli. He was a regular celebrity guest on Hollywood Squares during the John Davidson years and later hosted the 1988-1989 syndicated game show Relatively Speaking.{{Citation needed |date=July 2020}} He appeared in an episode of Friday the 13th: The Series as a ventriloquist.

On the February 13th, 1997 episode of Judge Judy, Byner appeared as a plaintiff against the agent Dan Jordon and won a judgement of $3,500 as a kill fee for the cancellation of a stand up comedy performance. {{cite web |url=https://trakt.tv/shows/judge-judy/seasons/1/episodes/109|title=Judge Judy Season 1 Episode 109: John Byner sues a theater}}

On May 26, 2017, it was reported that Byner had been cast in a supporting role in the horror anthology series Lore, based on the podcast of the same name. Byner portrays Patrick Boland, the father of Bridget Cleary (played by Holland Roden).{{cite news| first=Katie| last=McNeice| url=http://www.iftn.ie/news/?act1=record&aid=73&rid=4290695&tpl=archnews| title='Ray Donovan' Actor Cathal Pendred to take leading role in 'Lore' Adaption for Amazon| date=May 26, 2017| website=Irish Film and Television Network| access-date=February 8, 2022}} Lore premiered on October 13, 2017.{{cite news| first=Eric| last=McAdams| url=https://www.pastemagazine.com/tv/lore/watch-the-trailer-for-lore-amazons-creepy-new-show/| title=Watch the Trailer for Lore, Amazon's Creepy New Show| date=August 29, 2017| magazine=Paste| access-date=February 8, 2022}}

In 2020, Byner released his autobiography Five Minutes, Mr. Byner!, co-written with Douglas Wellman.{{cite web |title=Book Review – Five Minutes, Mr. Byner! |url=https://mtltimes.ca/books/book-review-five-minutes-mr-byner-by-john-byner-with-douglas-wellman/ |website=Montreal Times |date=October 29, 2020 |access-date=April 24, 2022}}

In 2022, Byner played an affable gangster named Majak in Kurt St. Thomas' D.O.A., a loose remake of the 1950 film noir of the same title. His performance earned him the Best Supporting Actor award at the 2023 Flagler Film Festival.{{cite news |title='D.O.A.' and Its Local Cast Come Alive as Top Winners at Resurrected Flagler Film Festival |url=https://flaglerlive.com/flagler-film-festival-2023/ |access-date=23 May 2024 |work=FlaglerLive |date=23 January 2023}}

Byner was born John Biener in New York City on June 28, 1938, the son of Christina, a mental hospital attendant, and Michael Biener, a truck mechanic.Wallace, Jeff (August 31, 2015). [https://www.axs.com/5-things-you-didn-t-know-about-john-byner-65053 "5 things you didn't know about John Byner"]. AXS. Retrieved November 3, 2017. {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171107055316/https://www.axs.com/5-things-you-didn-t-know-about-john-byner-65053 |date=November 7, 2017 }}{{cite web |title=June 28: On This Day In History |url=https://brooklyneagle.com/articles/2021/06/28/june-28-on-this-day-in-history/ |website=Brooklyn Eagle|date=June 28, 2021 }}

Byner has been married four times, and he has four children with his first wife Eleanor Belcher. One of his children, Don (Donny) Byner, appeared for the first time on television dressed as him in a 1969 episode of Something Else on ABC.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XEK0YdKGp0I. [http://people.com/archive/rude-crude-and-outrageous-john-byners-bizarre-behavior-makes-him-cables-king-of-comedy-vol-20-no-24/ "Rude, Crude and Outrageous, John Byner's Bizarre Behavior Makes Him Cable's King of Comedy"]. People. Retrieved November 3, 2017. He has been married to Anne Gaybis since 1992.{{Citation needed |date=June 2023}}

{{Reflist}}

• [http://johnbyner.com/ Official website]
• {{IMDb name|0125956}}
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Category:1938 births

Category:Living people

Category:20th-century American comedians

Category:21st-century American comedians

Category:20th-century American male actors

Category:21st-century American male actors

Category:American game show hosts

Category:American impressionists (entertainers)

Category:American male comedians

Category:American male film actors

Category:American male television actors

Category:American male voice actors

Category:American sketch comedians

Category:Comedians from New York City

Category:Male actors from New York City