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
S. Carlisle Martin having the Weatherbird comment on current events, and set the standards of six words maximum for the "birdline" (the Weatherbird's comments). Assisted by reporter Carlos Hurd (who helped write the birdlines), Martin drew the Weatherbird until his death. He was succeeded by Amadee Wohlschlaeger (then just out of his teens), who went on to draw the strip for a half century. Martin married Lynn Shackleford on October 30, 1897. They had a son, Samuel Jr., and a daughter. Martin died on August 17, 1932, in St. Louis. S. Carlisle Martin Samuel Carlisle Martin (1867–1932) was an American newspaper cartoonist and