John Twomey

John Twomey was a manualist who most famously appeared on NBC's The Tonight Show starring Johnny Carson in 1972. He is credited with bringing manualism to the public stage, as his performance of "Stars and Stripes Forever" was seen by millions of people and was included in the "Best of Johnny Carson" collection. Twomey also coined the term "manualism," as he introduced himself as a "manualist" in the show.

He appeared on several other programs including "The Mike Douglas Show" where he performed the "Colonel Bogey March," made famous in the film "The Bridge Over the River Kwai", and "The Merv Griffin Show" where he performed "When the Saints Go Marching In." Twomey's name appeared in the credits of a 1970s "Barney Miller" episode in which he provided off-camera manualism for a scene in which a man was arrested for disturbing the peace by "playing" his hands.

John Twomey's last public performance was on November 21, 1998 on the radio show "A Prairie Home Companion" with Garrison Keillor, where he performed "Stardust."