Early Life, Education, and Business Career
Thompson was born in Elroy, Wisconsin. A graduate of Royall High School (1963), he was active in the drama department and competed in football, basketball, and track. After high school, Ed briefly attended the University of Wisconsin–Madison before enlisting in the U.S. Navy during the Vietnam War. After being honorably discharged from the Navy, he married Kathy Nelson; the couple settled in Elroy and had four children: Ann Marie, Kristin Beth, Allan Edward “Chip” Thompson, and Joshua Thompson.
Thompson was the owner of the Tee-Pee supper club, a restaurant in Tomah, and was the subject of the documentary A Remarkable Man. His older brother, Tommy Thompson, a Republican, was formerly Governor of Wisconsin and United States Secretary of Health and Human Services.
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