Quarterback Challenge". For his final appearance in December 2014, Thomas was again successful in knocking the meatball off the top of the tree. Thomas missed the 2013 Late Show Christmas episode due to throat surgery; John McEnroe took his place and told the Lone Ranger story, then tried, unsuccessfully, to knock the meatball off the tree by hitting tennis balls at it. Personal life Thomas fathered J. T. Harding in an out-of-wedlock relationship, and the child was adopted by another family in Michigan. Thomas and his son spoke about their reunion on the Dr. Phil Show. Harding was the lead singer of the band JTX and is a country-music songwriter. Thomas married Sally Michelson in 1987. They had two sons, Samuel and Jacob. Death Jay Thomas died of throat cancer on August 24, 2017, surrounded by his family in Santa Barbara, California, at the age of 69. Filmography References External links TV.com entry Ten Questions with Jay Thomas 1948 births 2017 deaths American male television actors American male film actors Primetime Emmy Award winners 20th-century American male actors 21st-century American male actors Male actors from New Orleans Male actors from Texas Jacksonville University alumni Jacksonville Dolphins football players American talk radio hosts Radio personalities from New York City Radio personalities from Los Angeles Radio personalities from New Orleans American people of Italian descent People from Kermit, Texas Deaths from throat cancer Deaths from cancer in California Catholics from Texas