My morning began with the news of Meat Loaf's passing. By the time I had finished my lunch early this afternoon I learned that actor/comedian Louie Anderson had also passed following his recent diagnosis of non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma. Anderson was 68.
The Minnesota native launched his comedy career in the early 1980's and would become an overnight sensation following his debut on The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson in November 1984. While on the stand up comedy circuit, Anderson had small roles in Ferris Bueller's Day Off and Coming to America.
Anderson would gain critical success with his Saturday morning animated series Life with Louie which aired on FOX from 1995 to 1998 earning him two Daytime Emmy Awards. From 1999 to 2002, Anderson would host Family Feud. In recent years, Anderson would earn another Emmy for playing Christine Baskets on the FX dramedy Baskets starring Zach Galifianakis which aired from 2016 to 2019.
Anderson made a career of poking fun at his weight and his childhood upbringing in Minnesota particularly with his father whom he later revealed to be a violent alcoholic although he would forgive his trespasses.
I leave you with his Tonight Show debut. Anderson's directness combined with an emphatic disposition won him over with Carson, the studio audience and the viewing public and will continue to do so even though he is no longer with us. R.I.P.
No comments:
Post a Comment