Skip E. Lowe

Skip E. Lowe was host of Skip E. Lowe Looks at Hollywood, a talk show that ran on public-access television for more than 35 years. He is said to have been the inspiration for Jiminy Glick, the kooky talk-show host created by actor-comedian Martin Short. 

Born Sammy Labella in Greenville, Mississippi, he grew up in Rockford, Illinois, before moving to Los Angeles with his mother at age nine.

In California, he pursued an acting career, and in his youth he had small parts in the 1940s' films Best Foot Forward and Song of the Open Road. He later performed a song-and-dance act in clubs. He also participated in USO tours led by Bob Hope and Martha Raye, and he later found a niche as a master of ceremonies, announcing acts at various small venues in New York and Los Angeles.

In the 1970s he appeared in other films, including Black Shampoo, Cameron's Closet and The World's Greatest Lover.

Lowe launched his modest talk show in 1978. Although the production was spartan and his preparation for interviews scanty at times, he  was able to book a wide range of guests, from unknowns to well-knowns — including Bette Davis, Orson Welles, Tony Curtis, Shelley Winters and Mickey Rooney.

His enthusiasm, guileless manner and occasional gaffes endeared him to viewers, some of them celebrities. Short drew on Lowe when he created Glick, a character he performed on stage, on television and the feature film Jiminy Glick in Lalawood.

Lowe died September 22, 2014, in Los Angeles. He was 85.