Johnny Wayne (born Louis Weingarten; May 28, 1918 – July 18, 1990) was a Canadian comedian and comedy writer best known for his work as part of the comedy duo

Wayne and Shuster Wayne and Shuster were a Canadian comedy duo formed by Johnny Wayne and Frank Shuster. They were active professionally from the early 1940s until the late 1980s, first as a live act, then on radio, then as part of ''The Army Show'' that ente ...

alongside

Frank Shuster Frank Shuster, (September 5, 1916 – January 13, 2002) was a Canadian comedian best known as a member of the comedy duo Wayne and Shuster, alongside Johnny Wayne. Life and career Shuster was born to a Jewish immigrant family in Toronto, O ...

. The son of a successful clothing manufacturer who spoke several languages and the eldest of seven children, Johnny Wayne was born in downtown

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most pop ...

and attended Harbord Collegiate Institute, where he met his future comedy partner, and later attended the

University of Toronto The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institu ...

. Wayne and Shuster began working together in the 1930s and continued their successful collaboration on stage, radio, and television until Wayne's death from

brain cancer A brain tumor occurs when abnormal cells form within the brain. There are two main types of tumors: malignant tumors and benign (non-cancerous) tumors. These can be further classified as primary tumors, which start within the brain, and secon ...

in 1990. He is buried at Holy Blossom Cemetery, in his home town of Toronto. Wayne was a

curling Curling is a sport in which players slide stones on a sheet of ice toward a target area which is segmented into four concentric circles. It is related to bowls, boules, and shuffleboard. Two teams, each with four players, take turns sliding ...

enthusiast and was a commentator alongside

Alex Trebek George Alexander Trebek (; July 22, 1940 – November 8, 2020) was a Canadian-American game show host and television personality. He is best known for hosting the syndicated general knowledge quiz game show '' Jeopardy!'' for 37 seaso ...

and Doug Maxwell during the 1968 CBC Curling Championship. He also had musical talents and was a successful songwriter in the 1950s, including co-writing Bobby Gimby's 1958 hit "Jimbo". In 1964 he recorded the song "Charlottetown", which he wrote and sang for the

Canadian Confederation Canadian Confederation (french: Confédération canadienne, link=no) was the process by which three British North American provinces, the Province of Canada, Nova Scotia, and New Brunswick, were united into one federation called the Dominion ...

Centennial. He married Beatrice Lokash, in 1946. They were married until her death from cancer in 1980. Their children are historian Michael Wayne, columnist and songwriter Jamie Wayne, and television sports producer Brian Wayne.

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* * 1918 births 1990 deaths Canadian television personalities Canadian male television actors Canadian male radio actors Canadian male stage actors Jewish Canadian comedians Jewish Canadian male actors University of Toronto alumni Male actors from Toronto Curling broadcasters Deaths from brain cancer in Canada Curlers from Toronto Comedians from Toronto 20th-century Canadian male actors Canadian sketch comedians 20th-century Canadian comedians {{Canada-actor-stub

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