Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In for "Laugh-In" was Ian Bernard. He wrote the opening theme music, "Inquisitive Tango", plus the infamous "What's the news across the nation" number. He wrote all the musical "play-ons" that introduced comedy sketches like Lily Tomlin's character, Edith Ann, the little girl who sat in a giant rocking chair, and Arte Johnson's old man character, Tyrone, who always got hit with a purse. He also appeared in many of the cocktail scenes where he directed the band as they stopped and started between jokes. Composer-lyricist Billy Barnes wrote all of the original musical production numbers in the show, and often
Letters to Laugh-In Letters to Laugh-In Letters to Laugh-In is a daytime game show and spin-off of NBC's nighttime comedy series, "Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In", that aired on the network from September 29 to December 26, 1969. The show was hosted by Gary Owens, the announcer for "Laugh-In". Home viewers mailed their jokes to the program, during which they were read by a panel of four celebrities – two of them "Laugh-In" regulars. Each joke was rated on a scale of minus-100 to plus-100 by a randomly selected audience panel. "Morgul, the friendly Drelb" (who Owens always referred to on "Laugh-In", but who