The Definitive Guide to Comedy
Shelley Berman, famed comedian and actor whose career spanned several decades, died early this morning at the age of 92 at his home in Bell Canyon, Calif., his publicist Glenn Schwartz told The Comic’s Comic. Berman, born Feb. 3, 1925, in Chicago, died from complications of Alzheimer’s Disease, which was the only reason …
That the French would love Jerry Lewis should surprise no one who saw him perform at his peak from the mid-1950s through the mid-1960s. That Americans would mock the French for it is perhaps more surprising. For the great physicality, cartoonish faces and slapstick sound effects that Lewis used to …
All of the comedians and comedy fans who claim Richard Pryor was the greatest stand-up comedian ever have Dick Gregory to thank for that. Before Pryor or George Carlin embraced the so-called counterculture, Gregory was out there on the front lines of 1960s activism and breaking the racial barriers for …
Patti Deutsch, who started out performing in an improv group with Fred Willard, became well-known through appearances on Laugh-In, Match Game and Tattletales, and maintained a voiceover career from the 1980s through the 2000s, died last week from cancer. Deutsch was 73. Born Dec. 16, 1943, in Pittsburgh, Deutsch was …
Stevie Ryan, one of the first YouTubers to score her own comedy series on TV, has died. She was 33. Ryan, born June 2, 1984, and raised in Victorville, Calif., moved to Los Angeles at age 19 to pursue a career in show business. After booking various commercial projects, her YouTube …
Bill Dana, the comedian who pretended to be an astronaut and became a fan of America’s original astronauts, has died. Dana was 92. Dana was born William Szathmary on Oct. 5, 1924, into a Hungarian Jewish family in Quincy, Mass., adopting a variation on his mother’s name for his stage …
Voice-over actor and improviser Tino Insana, who got his start in Chicago with a comedy trio with John Belushi, has died. Here is The Second City’s obituary for Insana: Tino Insana, improviser, actor, writer, award-winning voice-over artist, best remembered as Mr. Grouper in “Bubble Guppies,” for which he was nominated …
Singer. Songwriter. Comedian. Rabbi. Cantor. Gary Shapiro touched many lives in and around Los Angeles in ways a typical comedian never did. Shapiro died unexpectedly on Thursday. More details on that as they become available. Shapiro was born July 1, 1964. He was only 52. Memorial services will be held …
Charlie Murphy, a Navy vet and comedian who broke out from his younger brother’s shadow by telling outrageously true stories on Comedy Central’s Chappelle’s Show, died today from leukemia. He was 57. The last time I saw Charlie Murphy performing live was in October 2015, while he toured with The …
Don Rickles, the legendary comedian and actor who could roast President Ronald Reagan, Frank Sinatra and just about everyone else, has died. Rickles was 90. Rickles died Thursday at his home in Los Angeles from kidney failure, his publicist confirmed. He hadn’t stopped performing even in old age. Just a …
