Tom Magliozzi, half of the duo that made National Public Radio’s “Car Talk” popular, died Monday at age 77 of complications from Alzheimer’s.
Magliozzi, along with his brother Ray Magliozzi, were known for their joking humor and their ability to answer car questions easily. They were called the “Click and Clack the Tappet Brothers” and
Magliozzi was “defined” by his laughter, NPR said.
"His laugh is the working definition of infectious laughter," said Doug Berman, longtime producer of "Car Talk," which went national on NPR in 1987. "I'd just hear this laughter. And then there'd be more of it, and people would sort of gather around him. He was just kind of a magnet."
Magliozzi was 12 years older than Ray, and both graduated from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Magliozzi told the story in 199 at an MIT commencement address that he was bored as an engineer and walked in and quit his job.
Then he launched a do-it-yourself auto repair store and was the only person who showed up when a local radio station asked mechanics to come in for a show about car repair, NPR said.
"They called Ray, and Ray thought it was a dumb idea, so he said, 'I'll send my brother' and Tom thought, 'Great, I'll get out of breaking my knuckles for a couple of hours.' And he went over and he was the only one who showed up," Berman told NPR.
The brothers haven’t done the show live in two years; NPR is replaying old episodes, the website said.
Magliozzi was known for his puns and quips, many of which showed up on Twitter in his honor.
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