In a 1978 appearance on Tomorrow with Tom Snyder, Wilson claimed he was fired from KHJ because he had bought a Packard from Earle C. Anthony, the business arch-rival of Cadillac dealer Don Lee and owner of KFI and KECA.

[3] Though best known for his comedy work with Benny, Wilson had a background as a sportscaster, covering the opening of the 1932 Summer Olympics as well as college football games for NBC Radio.

At 6 feet (1.83 m) and 300 pounds (140 kg), Wilson possessed a resonant voice, a deep belly laugh, and a plump figure, all of which would become important parts of his character with Benny.

Though Wilson's primary function as announcer was to read the opening and the commercial pitches – notably for Jell-O, Grape-Nuts, and Lucky Strike – his importance to the program was serving as both feed and foil to Jack and other cast members.

On radio in particular, Wilson's girth could be exploited, both in jokes by Benny and in audio gags, such as the amount of time it took a railroad porter to brush the soot off of Don following a train trip, or to measure charging him by the pound.

These appearances also often involved the fictional character of Don's equally hefty, aspiring announcer son, Harlow (played by Dale White).

[4] In 1959, Wilson appeared as a flim-flam preacher in the episode, "Gates Ajar Morgan", on the syndicated anthology series, Death Valley Days, hosted by Stanley Andrews.

His role in the film Village Barn Dance was acclaimed by a review that said, "Surprise performance was that of Don Wilson ... who steals the show with his portrayal of a good-humored, grinning radio announcer.

Wilson would continue to appear on talk-shows throughout his life whenever a program would salute Jack Benny or talk about old-time radio.