Steve Allen

Steve Allen is the Leonardo Da Vinci of twentieth century popular culture. A true renaissance man, Allen's a fair jazz pianist, a crack songwriter, the first host of the Tonight Show, and a cutting edge comedian whose oddball antics greatly influenced David Letterman. When not dropping his trousers, smearing himself with dog food, and playing a chorus of "Impossible," Allen is busy writing. He has more than fifty books to his credit, and has penned everything from autobiographies and murder mysteries to cultural critiques of our increasingly undereducated society. Add theatrical and film work and a PBS interview show to that list and it looks like the tireless Allen has done everything but work on a cure for the common cold. Many of his jazz and Lounge albums are starting to come back into print after years of neglect.