He appeared in the final scene of Jackass: The Movie (2002), wielding a pistol that, when fired, released a sign that read "The End." He did the same thing at the ending of Jackass Number Two (2006) and Jackass 3D (2010). Taylor was an accomplice of the Jackass crew. Taylor made occasional appearances in movies, usually in broad comedies like The Happy Hooker Goes to Washington (1977) and Cheech and Chong's Things Are Tough All Over (1982). He also hosted a short-lived send-up of beauty pageants, The $1.98 Beauty Show. He became a regular on Sid and Marty Krofft's Sigmund and the Sea Monsters, playing Sheldon, a sea-genie who lived in a conch shell. Throughout the 1970s, Taylor was a frequent celebrity guest panelist on TV game shows such as Hollywood Squares. Taylor appeared on The Jackie Gleason Show in several guest appearances during the 1963–1964 season as "the crying comedian." He worked as a voice performer in the 1970s cartoon series Here Comes the Grump (as the title character) and in the second The Addams Family cartoon series (as Uncle Fester). He got his big break when he landed a spot on The Ed Sullivan Show, making close to 20 appearances. Army, where he started performing stand-up in clubs and restaurants abroad. Taylor's career in show business began after he joined the U.S. As a young man, Taylor worked as a congressional page before serving in the Korean War while in the U.S. As described in his 2010 one-man show It Ain't All Confetti, Taylor had a tough childhood, which included being molested while in foster care and having to deal with bullies in school. Taylor was the son of a waitress and a musician. In lieu of flowers, they ask that donations be made to the Thalians, a charitable organization that Taylor supported that is dedicated to mental health issues.Photo: Angela George at, license cc-by-sa-3.0 BiographyĪmerican actor and comedian, mostly seen in outrageous roles, known for his exuberance and flamboyant personality, including his wild walrus moustache, toupee, and his habit of showering himself (and others) with confetti. He is survived by his longtime partner Robert Fortney. “That’s what I am bringing into play as a straight actor.” Every night on stage, he’s cornered and put-upon,” Taylor said. Taylor reflected in that same 1992 interview that he always considered himself an actor. He played himself in movies like “Wayne’s World 2” and the “Jackass” movies, appeared on stage in “Anything Goes,” ”A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum,” ”Sugar Babies,” where he took over for Mickey Rooney, as Fagin in “Oliver!” and Captain Hook in “Peter Pan.” Taylor also wrote and performed an autobiographical one-man play called “It Ain’t All Confetti.” Taylor also did a fair share of voice work for animated films and television like “The Jetsons” and “The Addams Family,” as Uncle Fester, which earned him an Emmy nomination. He was apparently so proud of his star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame that he’d regularly schedule trips to buff and clean the square at 6625 Hollywood Boulevard. With his bushy blonde toupee, exaggerated eyebrows and walrus-like mustache, Taylor was a striking presence. In his over five decades in entertainment, Taylor would make over 2,000 guest star appearances on shows like “The Monkees,” ”The Merv Griffin Show,” ”The Tonight Show,” ”Late Night with David Letterman,” ”Hollywood Squares” and “The Gong Show.” He also hosted the beauty pageant spoof “The $1.98 Beauty Show.” Success begat more success, and Taylor ended up on tour with Judy Garland and Eleanor Powell in Las Vegas in 1966. It’s where he said the character “Rip” came from.Īlthough he readily admitted stealing jokes from USO shows, the crying comedian bit got him to Ed Sullivan, where the host - forgetting Taylor’s name - would say “get me the crying comedian.” “In desperation, I pretended to cry as I begged them to laugh. “I sat on a stool telling jokes, and nobody was laughing,” he told UPI in 1992. His ascent began with spots on “The Ed Sullivan Show,” where he was known as the “crying comedian.” The moniker pre-dated his television stints, however, and went back to his time in the Catskills. in Washington, D.C., to a waitress and a musician and first worked as a congressional page before serving in the Army during the Korean War, where he started performing standup. The man who would become known worldwide as Rip did not have a direct line into show business. Taylor died Sunday in Beverly Hills, California, publicist Harlan Boll said. LOS ANGELES - Rip Taylor, the madcap mustached comedian with a fondness for confetti-throwing who became a television game show mainstay in the 1970s, has died. Rip Taylor arrives to the ENCORE Original premiere of "Method to the Madness of Jerry Lewis" in Los Angeles on Wednesday, Dec.
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