Tommy Hanlon Jr

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Tommy Hanlon Jr

Born	Tommy Gene Thomason 1923 Parkersburg, West Virginia, United States
Died	October 9, 2003 (aged 80) Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
Occupation	Television actor, Circus ringmaster
Years active	1927 - 2001
Spouse(s)	Jean Gregory, Muriel

Tommy Hanlon Jr (1923 - 9 October 2003) was an American-born Australian media personality, notable for his early television appearances as host of It Could Be You.

Born Tommy Gene Thomason in Parkersburg, West Virginia in 1923 to vaudeville performers, he appeared in his mother and father's act at age 4. He later took the stage name Tommy Hanlon Jr since his father's stage name was Tommy Hanlon. He first appeared on his own as a magician as a teenager and was an entertainer in show business for the rest of his life. After two years with Orson Welles' Mercury Theatre in Los Angeles in the 1940s, and appearing on stage alongside W.C. Fields, he came to Australia in the early days of television in the late 1950s. Hanlon became a major TV celebrity in Australia in the 1950s and 1960s.

Hanlon quit television in 1978 and toured Australia as ringmaster of Silvers Circus until 2001.

Hanlon died from a stroke in Melbourne on October 9, 2003. He was predeceased by his wife, Muriel (whom he always called Murphy), and survived by his daughter April Bell from that marriage and her son Jeff Almond. He was also survived by his first wife, Jean Gregory; his son by that marriage, Tommy Hanlon Thomason; three grandchildren by and two great-grandchildren.

Despite his love for Australia, he never relinquished his United States citizenship.