The Definitive Guide to Comedy
The “World’s Foremost Authority” and oldest living stand-up comedian, Professor Irwin Corey, has died. Corey was 102. Praised by Lenny Bruce as one of the brightest voices in comedy, Corey was born July 29, 1914, in Brooklyn. Eight decades before the “World Champion” Judah Friedlander took on any audience member’s …
Ricky Harris, a comedian, actor and childhood friend of Snoop Dogg who provided background vocals on the seminal debut rap albums of both Snoop and Ice Cube, died on Monday. Harris was 54. Harris died of a heart attack, his manager reported. Harris had suffered another heart attack two years …
Alan Thicke was never known as a comedian, but his playful sense of humor allowed him to impact our collective comedy psyche for more than a generation — as a writer/producer of a cult classic talk-show parody, songwriter for classic 1980s sitcoms, host of an infamous late-night talk show challenge …
Adrianne Tolsch, a Brooklyn native who influenced the New York City comedy scene in the 1970s as the first female MC at Catch A Rising Star and later the club’s booker and manager for years, has died from esophageal cancer. Tolsch was 78. Her husband, longtime David Letterman writer Bill …
One of the brightest lights in any comedy club over four separate decades, Kevin Meaney has died suddenly and tragically. Meaney was 60. It’s at once both flippant and altogether appropriate to respond to the news with one of Meaney’s classic bits: “That’s not right.” Meaney’s agent confirmed that the …
Gene Wilder, the wonderfully witty actor who shined in several Mel Brooks films and captivated children of all ages as Willy Wonka, has died from complications with Alzheimer’s. Wilder was 83. Born Jerome Silberman in Milwaukee, Wilder took his stage name as a young adult, although he showed interest in …
Garry Marshall, the writer/director responsible for creating a slew of classic TV sitcoms in the 1970s-1980s, then followed that up by helming several hit comedy movies over a generation, died Tuesday following complications from a series of strokes. Marshall was 81. Among his TV creations: The Odd Couple, Happy Days, Laverne …
Anyone who came through Hyenas, and later Laffs, came to know and love “Hoodie.” Gary Hood, a comedy mentor and the booker at Laffs Comedy Caffe in Tucson, has died. He was 66. Born Aug. 18, 1949, Hood’s old comedy club bios for him say that he was a former …
Dan Mer wanted nothing to do with me at first. What’s in a name, anyhow? I moved to Tempe, Ariz., at the end of June 2001, into an apartment only a few blocks from the Tempe Improv and all of Arizona State University. Found out the day I moved in that …
He was the first comedian ever to perform at Just For Laughs and mentored a teen-age Jim Carrey into stardom. He was Wayne Flemming. Friend to many comedians in Toronto and across Canada. Flemming died earlier this week from lung disease. Flemming’s promotional materials described himself as “the Canadian father of …
