Andy Kaufman
Andy Kaufman | |
---|---|
![]() Andy Kaufman as Latka Gravas | |
Born | Andrew Geoffrey Kaufman January 17, 1949 |
Died | May 16, 1984 West Hollywood, California, U.S. | (aged 35)
Resting place | Beth David Cemetery, Elmont, New York[1] 40°41′55″N 73°42′17″W / 40.6986°N 73.7047°W |
Occupation(s) | Actor, performance artist |
Years active | 1974–1984 |
Television | As Latka Gravas in Taxi (1978–1983) |
Andrew Geoffrey "Andy" Kaufman (January 17, 1949 – May 16, 1984) was an American entertainer, actor and performance artist. While often referred to as a comedian, Kaufman did not consider himself to be one.[2] He disdained telling jokes and engaging in comedy as it was traditionally understood, referring to himself instead as a "song-and-dance man." Elaborate ruses and pranks were major elements of his career. His body of work maintains a cult following and he continues to be respected for his original material, performance style, and unflinching commitment to character.
Early life
Kaufman was born in New York City, on January 17, 1949, the first son of Janice (née Bernstein) and Stanley Kaufman. He grew up in a middle-class Jewish family,[3] in Great Neck, Long Island, New York, and began performing at age nine.[4] He attended the now defunct two-year Grahm Junior College,[5] in Boston, graduating in 1971. He then began performing stand-up comedy at various small clubs along the East Coast.
Career
Foreign Man and Mighty Mouse
Kaufman first caught major attention with a character known as Foreign Man, who claimed to be from Caspiar (a fictional island in the Caspian Sea) and would appear on the stage of comedy clubs to play a recording of the theme from the Mighty Mouse cartoon show and lip-sync only the chorus.[6] He would proceed to tell a few jokes and perform a number of impersonations such as television character Archie Bunker or President Richard Nixon. Some variations of this performance were broadcast in the first season of Saturday Night Live; the Mighty Mouse number was featured in the October 11, 1975 premiere, while the joke-telling and Bunker impression were included in the November 8 broadcast that same fall.[7]
Foreign Man would often try to impersonate a whole series of different celebrities, with the comedy arising from Foreign Man's obvious ineptitude at impersonation. For example, in his fake accent Kaufman would say to the audience, "I would like to imitate Meester Carter, de President of de United States", and then in the same voice, "Hello, I am Meester Carter, de President of de United States. T'ank you veddy much." At some point in the performance, usually when the audience were entirely used to Foreign Man's inability to perform a single convincing impression, Foreign Man would announce, "And now I would like to imitate the Elvis Presley," turn around, take off his jacket, slick his hair back, and launch into an unexpectedly credible Elvis Presley impersonation which Presley himself described as his favorite.[8] Like Presley, he would take off his leather jacket and throw it into the audience, but Kaufman would then immediately ask for it back again. After, he would take a simple bow and say in his Foreign Man voice, "T'ank you veddy much."
Latka
Kaufman first used his Foreign Man character in nightclubs in the early 1970s, often to tell jokes incorrectly and do weak imitations of famous people before bursting into his expert Elvis Presley imitation. The character was then changed into Latka Gravas for the American Broadcasting Company (ABC)'s Taxi sitcom, appearing in 79 of 114 episodes from 1978 to 1983.[9] The producers of Taxi had seen Andy's Foreign Man act and, according to producer Ed. Weinberger, "We weren't considering Andy for the show before we saw him. Then we wrote a part for him." Bob Zmuda confirms this: "They basically were buying Andy's Foreign Man character for the Taxi character Latka."[10] Andy's long-time manager George Shapiro encouraged Andy to take the gig. "My feeling was that it would be a nice boost for his career...and he would be playing a character that he knew very well, the Foreign Man—this particular character speaks poor English in Taxi and his name is Latka Gravas."[11] Saturday Night Live creator Lorne Michaels said of the announcement: "When he agreed to a situation comedy, we were stunned. We couldn’t understand why in the world. Because he was Andy Kaufman. Going from being that far out of the mainstream to being ground zero of it. Not that Taxi isn’t a good show. But in the pure world of status, he was regarded as a genius. So for a genius to be the 4th lead in a situation comedy was not, at the time, seen to be an act of genius."
Kaufman disliked sitcoms and was not thrilled with the idea of being in one.[12] In order to allow Kaufman to demonstrate some comedic range, his character was given multiple personality disorder, which allowed Kaufman to randomly portray other characters. In one episode of Taxi, Kaufman's character came down with a condition which made him act like Alex Reiger, the main character played by Judd Hirsch. Another such recurring character played by Kaufman was the womanizing Vic Ferrari. His role led to two Golden Globe nominations, in 1979 and 1981.[13]
Taxi was an award-winning show with a large audience and Kaufman was widely recognized as Latka. On some occasions, audiences would show up to one of Kaufman's stage performances expecting to see him perform as Latka, and heckling him with demands when he did not. Kaufman would punish these audiences with the announcement that he was going to read the novel The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald to them. The audience would laugh at this, not realizing that he was serious, and Kaufman would proceed to read the book to them, continuing despite audience members' departure.[6] At a certain point, he would ask the audience if they wanted him to keep reading, or play a record. When the audience chose to hear the record, the record he cued up was a recording of him continuing to read The Great Gatsby from where he had left off.
Tony Clifton
Another well-known Kaufman character is Tony Clifton, an audience-abusing lounge singer who began opening for Kaufman at comedy clubs and eventually even performed concerts on his own around the country. Sometimes it was Kaufman performing as Clifton, sometimes it was his brother Michael or his friend Bob Zmuda. For a brief time, it was unclear to some that Clifton was not a real person. News programs interviewed Clifton as Kaufman's opening act, with the mood turning ugly whenever Kaufman's name came up. Kaufman, Clifton insisted, was attempting to ruin Clifton's "good name" in order to make money and get famous.
As a requirement for Kaufman accepting the offer to star on Taxi, he insisted that Clifton be hired for a guest role on the show as if he were a real person, not a character. After throwing a tantrum on the set, Clifton was fired and escorted from the studio lot by security guards. Much to Kaufman's delight, this incident was reported in the local newspapers. Paramount Television and producers James L. Brooks and Stan Daniels later released a statement that said that although Clifton was "no longer welcome on the set", his friend Andy Kaufman would continue in his role as Latka, which he did until the show ended its run in 1983.
Carnegie Hall show
At the beginning of an April 1979 performance at New York's Carnegie Hall, Kaufman invited his "grandmother" to watch the show from a chair he had placed at the side of the stage. At the end of the show, she stood up, took her mask off and revealed to the audience that she was actually comedian Robin Williams in disguise. Kaufman also had an elderly woman (named Eleanor Cody Gould) appear to have a heart attack and die on stage, at which point he reappeared on stage wearing a Native American headdress and performed a dance over her body, seeming to revive her.
The performance is most famous for Kaufman ending the show by actually taking the entire audience, in twenty-four buses, out for milk and cookies. He invited anyone interested to meet him on the Staten Island Ferry the next morning, where the show continued. This kind of performance art was a hallmark of Kaufman's career. This was depicted in the biopic Man on the Moon; however, in the movie, it takes place after Kaufman was diagnosed with cancer, when in reality, it took place nearly four years earlier.
Andy's Funhouse
The Taxi deal with ABC included giving Kaufman a television special/pilot. He came up with Andy's Funhouse, based on an old routine he had developed while in junior college. The special was taped in 1977 but did not air until August 1979, on ABC.[14] It featured most of Andy's famous gags, including Foreign Man/Latka and his Elvis Presley impersonation, as well as a host of unique segments (including a special appearance by children's television character Howdy Doody and the "Has-been Corner"). There also was a segment that included fake television screen static as part of the gag, which ABC executives were not comfortable with, fearing that viewers would mistake the static for broadcast problems and would change the channel—which was the comic element Kaufman wanted to present. Andy's Funhouse was written by Kaufman, Zmuda, and Mel Sherer, with music by Kaufman.
In 1983 a very similar looking show to Funhouse would be filmed for Public Broadcasting Service (PBS)'s SoundStage program, called the The Andy Kaufman Show. It would feature a peanut gallery like Funhouse and is often confused with Andy's Funhouse. The show opens right in the middle of an interview Kaufman is doing in which he is laughing hysterically, and then he proceeds to thank the audience for watching and the credits roll. After this, opening credits do come on and the show has its "proper" beginning. This show is easy to confuse with Andy's Funhouse as they both feature "The Has-Been Corner" and Kaufman wears his "I Love Grandma" shirt in both shows among other similarities.
The Fridays incidents
In 1981, Kaufman made three appearances on Fridays, a variety show on ABC that was similar to Saturday Night Live.[15] Kaufman's first appearance on the show proved to be memorable. During a sketch about four people out on a dinner date who excuse themselves to the restroom to smoke marijuana, Kaufman broke character and refused to say his lines.
In response, cast member Michael Richards walked off camera and returned with a set of cue cards and dumped them on the table in front of Kaufman. Andy responded by splashing Richards with water. Co-producer Jack Burns stormed onto the stage, leading to a brawl on camera before the show abruptly cut away to commercial.[16] It was later revealed that this incident was a practical joke which was known to Richards, associate producer Burns and Kaufman but no one else on the cast or crew.[17]
In continuation of the joke, Kaufman appeared the following week in a videotaped apology to the home viewers. Later that year, Kaufman returned to host Fridays. At one point in the show, he invited a Lawrence Welk Show gospel and standards singer, Kathie Sullivan, on stage to sing a few gospel songs with him and announced that the two were engaged to be married, then talked to the audience about his newfound faith in Jesus (Kaufman was Jewish). That was also a hoax. Later, following a sketch about a drug-abusing pharmacist, Kaufman was supposed to introduce the band The Pretenders. Instead of introducing the band, he delivered a nervous speech about the harmfulness of drugs while the band stood behind him ready to play. After his speech, he informed the audience that he had talked for too long and had to go to a commercial.
Professional wrestling
Kaufman grew up admiring the world of professional wrestling.[citation needed] Inspired by the theatricality of kayfabe, the staged nature of the sport, and his own tendency to form elaborate hoaxes, Kaufman began wrestling women during his act and was the self-proclaimed "Inter-Gender Wrestling Champion of the World", taking on an aggressive and ridiculous personality based upon the characters invented by professional wrestlers. He offered a $1,000 prize to any woman who could pin him. He employed performance artist Laurie Anderson, a friend of his, as a stooge in this act for a while.
Kaufman initially approached the head of the World Wrestling Federation, Vince McMahon Sr. about bringing his act to the New York wrestling territory. McMahon dismissed Kaufman's idea as the elder McMahon was not about to bring "show business" into his Pro Wrestling society. Kaufman had by then developed a friendship with Wrestling magazine reporter/photographer Bill Apter. After many discussions about Andy wanting to be in the Pro Wrestling business, Apter called Memphis' iconic Jerry "The King" Lawler and introduced him to Kaufman by telephone from Apter's apartment in Queens, New York. The battles between Kaufman and Lawler became legend and was really the first "sports entertainment" angle that became known worldwide and is being seen even today on TV stations such as Comedy Central.[citation needed]
Later, after a challenge from professional wrestler Jerry "The King" Lawler, Kaufman would step into the ring (in the Memphis wrestling circuit) with a man—Lawler himself.[6] Kaufman taunted the whole city of Memphis, sending "videos showing residents how to use soap" and proclaiming it to be "the nation's redneck capital."[6] Their ongoing feud, often featuring Jimmy Hart and other heels in Kaufman's corner, included a broken neck for Kaufman as a result of Lawler's piledriver and a famous on-air fight on a 1982 episode of Late Night with David Letterman. For some time after that, Kaufman appeared wearing a neck brace,[6] insisting that his injuries were worse than they were. Kaufman would continue to defend the Inter-Gender Championship in the Mid-South Coliseum and offered an extra prize, other than the $1,000: that if he were pinned, the woman who pinned him would get to marry him and that Kaufman would also shave his head.[18]
Kaufman and Lawler's famous feud and wrestling matches were later revealed to have been staged, or a "work", as the two were actually friends. The truth about it being a "work" was not disclosed until more than 10 years after Kaufman's death, when the Emmy-nominated documentary, A Comedy Salute to Andy Kaufman, aired on NBC in 1995. Coincidentally, Jim Carrey, the one who revealed the secret, later went on to play Kaufman in the 1999 film Man on the Moon. In a 1997 interview with the Memphis Flyer, Lawler claimed he had improvised during their first match and the Letterman incident. Although officials at St. Francis Hospital[disambiguation needed] stated that Kaufman's neck injuries were real, in his 2002 biography It's Good to Be the King...Sometimes, Lawler detailed how they came up with the angle and kept it quiet. Even though Kaufman's injury was legitimate, the pair pretended that the injury was more severe than it was. He also said that Kaufman's explosion on Letterman was Kaufman's own idea, including when Lawler slapped Kaufman out of his chair. Promoter Jerry Jarrett would later recall that for two years, he would mail pay checks to Kaufman, with payments comparable to what other main event wrestlers were getting at the time, but Kaufman never cashed any of them [19]
Kaufman also appeared in the 1983 film My Breakfast with Blassie with professional wrestling personality "Classy" Freddie Blassie, a parody of the art film My Dinner With Andre. The film was directed by Johnny Legend, who employed his sister Lynne Margulies as one of the women who appears in the film. Margulies met Kaufman for the first time on camera, and they later became a couple, living together until Kaufman's death.
In 2002 Kaufman became an unlockable character in the video game Legends of Wrestling II and a standard character in 2004's Showdown: Legends of Wrestling.[20]
Appearances
Although Kaufman made a name for himself as a guest on NBC's Saturday Night Live, his first prime time appearances were several guest spots as the 'Foreign Man' on Dick Van Dyke's variety show in 1976. He also appeared four times on The Tonight Show[21] from 1976–1978, three times on The Midnight Special in 1972, 1977 and 1981.[22] In the 1977 episode, Kaufman performed a song called "I Trusted You" (which features only those three words, repeated over and over, as lyrics), while in 1981 he is shown sitting in the audience during Tony Clifton's act (although it was obvious Kaufman was not in the audience during the sketch).
His SNL appearances started with the inaugural October 11, 1975 show; he made 16 SNL appearances in all,[23] although his last two appearances were pre-taped.[citation needed] He would do routines from his comedy act, such as the Mighty Mouse sing-along, Foreign Man character, the Elvis impersonation, etc. After he angered the audience with his female wrestling routine, in January 1983 Kaufman made a pre-taped appearance (his 16th) on the show, where he asked the audience if he should ever appear on the show again, saying that he would honor the audience's decision and stay off the show if the vote was negative. SNL ran a phone vote, and close to 195,544 people voted to "Dump Andy" and approximately 169,186 people voted to "Keep Andy",[24] so Kaufman did not appear "live" but Saturday Night Live did air a tape of him thanking the 169,186 people who had voted "yes" for him to appear again.
Though it was never made clear whether this was a gag, Kaufman did not appear on the show again. During the SNL episode with the Keep Andy/Dump Andy phone poll, many of the cast stated their admiration for Andy's work and read the "Keep Andy" number more clearly than the "Dump Andy" number.[25] After Eddie Murphy read both numbers, he said, "Now Andy Kaufman is a friend of mine. Keep that in mind when you call. I don't want to have to punch nobody in America in the face." Mary Gross read the "Dump Andy" number at a rate so fast that audiences were unable to catch it.[25] The final tally was read by Gary Kroeger to a cheering audience. As the credits rolled, announcer Don Pardo said, "This is Don Pardo saying, 'I voted for Andy Kaufman.'"
Kaufman made a number of appearances on the daytime The David Letterman Show in 1980, and eleven appearances on Late Night with David Letterman in 1982-1983,[26] including one where he claimed to be homeless and begged the audience for money and one where he talked about his adopted children, who turned out to be three fully-grown black men.[citation needed]
He appeared twice on The Merv Griffin Show (1979–1980),[27] and once, in 1978 as a participant, on The Dating Game[28] under an assumed name as a supposedly real contestant. He also made numerous guest spots on other television programs hosted by or starring celebrities like Johnny Cash (1979 Christmas special), Dick Van Dyke, Dinah Shore, Rodney Dangerfield, Cher, Dean Martin, Redd Foxx, Mike Douglas, Dick Clark, and Joe Franklin.[29]
He appeared in his first theatrical film God Told Me To in 1976, where he portrayed a murderous policeman. He also appeared in several others, including as a televangelist in the 1980 film In God We Tru$t.
Laurie Anderson worked alongside Andy Kaufman for a time in the 1970s, acting as a sort of straight man in a number of his Manhattan and Coney Island performances. One of these performances included getting on a ride that people stand in and get spun around. After everyone was strapped in Kaufman would start saying how he did not want to be on the ride in a panicked tone and eventually cry. Anderson later described these performances in her 1995 album The Ugly One with the Jewels.
At Park West Theatre in Chicago on March 26, 1982, Kaufman performed stage hypnosis where he induced local DJ Steve Dahl to urinate while sitting in a large box. Other staged inductions included Bob Zmuda's childhood friend Joe Troiani mimicking the behavior of a pig and long-time friend Bill Karmia dressed as a police officer arresting Kaufman for inducing public nudity with a woman he had hypnotized.
Personal life
Kaufman never married. He was survived by his father[30] and daughter, Maria Bellu-Colonna, who was born in 1969 out of wedlock to a high-school girlfriend of Kaufman's, but later placed for adoption. Bellu-Colonna learned in 1992 that she was the daughter of Andy Kaufman when she traced her biological roots by winning a petition of the state of New York for her biological mother's surname. She soon had a reunion with her mother, grandfather, uncle and aunt, and married New York insurance salesman Joe Colonna.[31][32]
On December 5, 1969, while in college, Kaufman learned Transcendental Meditation.[33] According to a BBC article, Kaufman used Transcendental Meditation "to build confidence and take his act to comedy clubs. For the rest of his life" Kaufman meditated and performed" yoga three hours a day."[34] He trained as a teacher of Transcendental Meditation in Majorca, Spain from February to June, 1971.[33]
Illness and death
At Thanksgiving dinner with his family on Long Island, New York in November 1983, several family members grew concerned over Kaufman's persistent coughing during the dinner and openly expressed worry about it. Kaufman claimed to them that he had the cough for nearly a month and that an initial visit to his doctor had told him that nothing was wrong. After returning to Los Angeles, Kaufman consulted a physician, after which he checked himself into Cedars-Sinai Hospital for a series of medical tests. A few days later, he was diagnosed with a rare type of lung cancer.
After audiences were shocked by his gaunt appearance during his performances in January 1984, Kaufman acknowledged having an unspecified illness, which he hoped to cure with "natural medicine" including a diet of all fruits and vegetables, among other measures. Kaufman received palliative radiotherapy, but by then the cancer had rapidly spread from his lungs to his brain. His last resort was "psychic surgery", a new age procedure performed in Baguio, Philippines, in March 1984. Kaufman died in a hospital in West Hollywood on May 16, 1984[35] of kidney failure, caused by metastasized large-cell lung carcinoma, and his body was interred in the Beth David Cemetery in Elmont, New York (Long Island). He was 35 years old.
Kaufman allegedly told many people—including Bob Zmuda—that he wished to fake his own death. This had caused some fans to believe Kaufman was still alive.[36] Kaufman himself purportedly claimed that if he were to fake his death, he would return 20 years later, which would have been in 2004.[37]
The 1999 Miloš Forman film Man on the Moon leaves the question open ended. "Tony Clifton" performed a year after Kaufman's death at The Comedy Store benefit in Kaufman's honor, with members of his entourage in attendance. Bob Zmuda has acknowledged "death hoax" rumors over the years quite tongue in cheek, admitting that Kaufman and he had discussed faking his death at times and that he seemed "obsessed with the idea", but he maintains the opinion that Kaufman truly did die and his death was not faked. Bob Zmuda claims he does not think Kaufman would be cruel enough to go this long without making contact with his family if he were still alive. His official web site states that his death was not a hoax.[38]
During the 1990s, "Tony Clifton" made several appearances at L.A. nightclubs, prompting speculation that perhaps Kaufman was still alive and working under the makeup. Jim Carrey stated on the NBC special Comedy Salute to Andy Kaufman that the person doing the Clifton character was in fact Bob Zmuda and that the character had been passed on to him by Kaufman while he was still alive. Kaufman's death certificate is on file with the Los Angeles County Department of Health Services and is also available on the web site The Smoking Gun.[30]
Some fans believe that Kaufman faked his death. There is a website related to this claim, and, recently, "a grainy video has surfaced that purports to show Kaufman living under an assumed name in Albuquerque, N.M."[39] The website is registered to a Stephen Maddox of Greenwood, Indiana.[40] Maddox claims to be Kaufman's son and that Kaufman and his stepfather exchanged identities, so Kaufman could be relieved of his fame.[40][41]
Filmography
Acting
- Van Dyke and Company (1975) (TV)
- Van Dyke and Company (1976) TV Series... Regular
- God Told Me To (1976) .... Police Officer
- Stick Around (1977) (TV) .... Andy, the Robot
- Taxi (1978) TV Series .... Latka Gravas/Vic Ferrari
- The Andy Kaufman Special (a.k.a. Andy's Funhouse) (1979) (TV) (also as Tony Clifton)...Latka Gravas/Tony Clifton
- Cher... and Other Fantasies (1979) (TV)
- Andy Kaufman Plays Carnegie Hall (1980) (TV)...Tony Clifton
- In God We Tru$t (1980) .... Armageddon T. Thunderbird
- The Midnight Special (1981) TV Series... Host
- Heartbeeps (1981) .... Val
- Catch a Rising Star's 10th Anniversary (1982) (TV)
- The Fantastic Miss Piggy Show (1982) (TV) .... Tony Clifton
- The Andy Kaufman Show (1980) (TV) ... Host/Elvis
- My Breakfast with Blassie (1983)
- Elayne Boosler: Party of One (1985) (TV) (voice)
- I'm From Hollywood (1989)
Writing
- The Andy Kaufman Special aka Andy's Funhouse (Filmed 1977 as Pilot, Aired on ABC in 1979) (TV)
- The Andy Kaufman Show (filmed in 1980 for PBS's Soundstage) (TV)
- Andy Kaufman Plays Carnegie Hall (1980) (V)
- I'm From Hollywood (1989) (uncredited)
- GOD...and other plays (1999)
- The Huey Williams Story (1999)
- Poetry and Stories (2000)
Composing
- Man on the Moon (1999) (song "Oh, The Cow Goes Moo")
Producing
- The Andy Kaufman Special (1979) (TV) (producer)
Notable TV guest appearances
- The Dean Martin Comedy World 6 June 1974
- The Joe Franklin Show 20 June 1974
- Saturday Night Live (episode # 1.1) 11 October 1975 .... miming Mighty Mouse theme
- Saturday Night Live (episode # 1.3) 25 October 1975 .... miming Pop Goes The Weasel
- Saturday Night Live (episode # 1.4) 8 November 1975 .... as Foreign Man
- Saturday Night Live (episode # 1.15) 28 February 1976 .... miming Old MacDonald Had a Farm with audience members
- The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson 23 June 1976
- Saturday Night Live (episode # 2.11) 15 January 1977 .... as Foreign Man/Elvis
- Dinah! 17 January 1977 .... Foreign Man
- The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson 21 January 1977
- The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson 3 March 1977
- The Hollywood Squares 15 August 1977
- Redd Foxx 15 September 1977
- Saturday Night Live (episode # 3.3) 15 October 1977 .... sings Oklahoma, "Oh, The Cow Goes Moo", Elvis
- Saturday Night Live (episode # 3.7) 10 December 1977
- The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson 20 February 1978
- Saturday Night Live (episode # 3.13) 11 March 1978 ... reads The Great Gatsby
- The Mike Douglas Show 11 April 1978
- The Dating Game (as Baji Kimran) 21 November 1978 .... - Participant
- Live Wednesday 29 November 1978
- Saturday Night Live (episode # 4.13) 24 February 1979 .... sings "Yodelling Mad"
- The Tomorrow Show 20 August 1979
- Saturday Night Live (episode # 5.2) 20 October 1979
- Saturday Night Live (uncredited) (episode # 5.5) 17 November 1979
- The Johnny Cash Christmas Special 1979 6 December 1979
- The Merv Griffin Show 13 December 1979
- Saturday Night Live (episode # 5.8) 22 December 1979
- The Merv Griffin Show 25 January 1980
- The Morning show With David Letterman 24 June 1980
- The Midnight Special 23 January 1981
- Fridays (episode # 2.20) 20 February 1981 .... Guest Host
- Fridays playing "Himself – Recorded Apology" (episode # 2.21) 27 February 1981
- Fridays playing "Guest Host" (episode # 3.1) 18 September 1981 .... Guest Host
- Good Morning America 28 October 1981
- Saturday Night Live (episode # 7.10) 30 January 1982 .... as Elvis
- Late Night with David Letterman 17 February 1982
- Late Night with David Letterman 18 February 1982
- Late Night with David Letterman 30 March 1982
- Late Night with David Letterman 1 April 1982
- Good Morning America 14 April 1982
- The John Davidson Show 15 April 1982
- Hour Magazine 7 May 1982
- Saturday Night Live (episode # 7.19) 15 May 1982 .... as Himself
- Late Night with David Letterman 17 May 1982
- Late Night with David Letterman 28 July 1982
- Saturday Night Live (episode # 8.5) 30 October 1982
- Late Night with David Letterman 17 November 1982
- Late Night with David Letterman 7 January 1983
- Late Night with David Letterman 23 February 1983
- Late Night with David Letterman 22 September 1983
- Late Night with David Letterman 17 November 1983
- Rodney Dangerfield: I Can't Take It No More (As Dr. Vinnie Boombatz) 29 November 1983 .... Guest Appearance
- The Top January 26, 1984 .... Kaufman's last television appearance[citation needed]
Legacy
Jim Carrey portrayed Kaufman in the 1999 biopic film Man on the Moon, directed by Miloš Forman. The film took its title from the band R.E.M.'s song of the same name, which also mentions Kaufman's name. Comedian Richard Lewis in A Comedy Salute to Andy Kaufman said of him: "No one has ever done what Andy did, and did it as well, and no one will ever. Because he did it first. So did Buster Keaton, so did Andy."[42] Carl Reiner recalled his distinction in the comedy world: "Did Andy influence comedy? No. Because nobody's doing what he did. Jim Carrey was influenced—not to do what Andy did, but to follow his own drummer. I think Andy did that for a lot of people. Follow your own drumbeat. You didn't have to go up there and say 'take my wife, please.' You could do anything that struck you as entertaining. It gave people freedom to be themselves."
Zmuda and comedian Vernon Chatman collaborated to release Kaufman's first album—Andy and His Grandmother—via Drag City in 2013.
References
![]() |
- ^ Andy Kaufman at Find a Grave
- ^ Brennan, Sandra. "Full Biography". All Media Guide. The New York Times. Retrieved 2012-04-09.
I am not a comic, I have never told a joke...The comedian's promise is that he will go out there and make you laugh with him...My only promise is that I will try to entertain you as best I can....They say, 'Oh wow, Andy Kaufman, he's a really funny guy.' But I'm not trying to be funny. I just want to play with their heads.
- ^ Bill Zehme, Lost in the Funhouse: The Life and Mind of Andy Kaufman (New York 2001)
- ^ ""The Real Man on the Moon Talks" by Kaufman's father". Andykaufman.jvlnet.com. Archived from the original on 11 January 2010. Retrieved 2010-02-10.
{{cite web}}
: Unknown parameter|deadurl=
ignored (|url-status=
suggested) (help) - ^ List of Alumni at college web page
- ^ a b c d e Drash, Wayne (April 7, 2012). "The Great Ruse: The comedic genius who rocked wrestling". CNN. Retrieved 2012-04-09.
- ^ SNL: The complete first season, 1975-1976. DVD recording.
- ^ Andy Kaufman at Yahoo! Movies
- ^ Taxi from IMDb
- ^ "Andy Kaufman Oral History", interviews with Don Steinberg, originally published in short form in GQ Magazine, December 1999.
- ^ Quoted in Lost in the Funhouse: The Life and Mind of Andy Kaufman by Bill Zehme (2001), p. 6.
- ^ Lost in the Funhouse: The Life and Mind of Andy Kaufman, Bill Zehme (ISBN 0385333722)
- ^ Andy Kaufman awards from IMDb
- ^ Andy's Funhouse from IMDb
- ^ Kaufman on Fridays from IMDb
- ^ "Andy Kaufman on Fridays from FridaysFan". Funnyordie.com. Retrieved 2010-02-10.
- ^ "Michael Richards 'Speaking Freely' transcript", Recorded Feb. 28, 2002, in Aspen, Colorado
- ^ "The Kaufman Lawler Feud: Chapter 2 - The Fourth One". January 13, 2009.
- ^ http://www.f4wonline.com/component/content/article/27559-sept-24-2012-observer-newsletter-huge-story-on-history-of-jerry-lawler-in-memphis-biggest-matches-and-angles-plus-all-the-news-from-the-past-week-night-of-champions-and-more
- ^ Any Kaufman the Action Figure Collectors Quest
- ^ Tonight Show from IMDb
- ^ Midnight Special from IMDb
- ^ Kaufman on SNL from IMDb
- ^ Alan Graham (producer) (2008-02-21). The Passion of Andy Kaufman (SWF) (Archive footage). Subterranean Cinema. Event occurs at 2:20:00. Retrieved 2008-03-20.
- ^ a b Alan Graham (producer) (2008-02-21). The Passion of Andy Kaufman (SWF) (Archive footage). Subterranean Cinema. Event occurs at 2:10:55–2:20:33. Retrieved 2008-03-20.
- ^ Late Night with David Letterman from IMDb
- ^ Merv Griffin Show from IMDb
- ^ The Dating Game from IMDb
- ^ guest appearances from IMDb
- ^ a b "Kaufman death certificate on". The Smoking Gun. 1984-05-16. Archived from the original on 7 February 2010. Retrieved 2010-02-10.
{{cite web}}
: Unknown parameter|deadurl=
ignored (|url-status=
suggested) (help) - ^ "Waking Andy Kaufman". The Village Voice. 9 November 1999.
- ^ "Latka's Legacy". People. 3 April 1995.
- ^ a b "The Life and Mind of Andy Kaufman". Andykaufman.jvlnet.com. Archived from the original on 10 January 2010. Retrieved 2010-02-10.
{{cite web}}
: Unknown parameter|deadurl=
ignored (|url-status=
suggested) (help) - ^ "BBC online, June 25, 2003". Bbc.co.uk. Archived from the original on 26 January 2010. Retrieved 2010-02-10.
{{cite web}}
: Unknown parameter|deadurl=
ignored (|url-status=
suggested) (help) - ^ "California Death Index". Vitals.rootsweb.com. Archived from the original on 15 January 2010. Retrieved 2010-02-10.
{{cite web}}
: Unknown parameter|deadurl=
ignored (|url-status=
suggested) (help) - ^ Andy Kaufman Revealed! by Bob Zmuda
- ^ "Andy Kaufman Revealed!". New York Times Online:book review. 26 September 1999.
- ^ "The Last(?) Days of Andy Kaufman". Andykaufman.jvlnet.com. Retrieved 2011-09-22.
- ^ Sacks, Ethan (2013-05-23). "Andy Kaufman alive and well in Albuquerque, N.M., and video proves it, zealous fans claim 'Taxi' star died of cancer in 1984, but 'disciples' believe faking death was prankster's greatest joke". Daily News (New York). Retrieved 2013-05-23.
- ^ a b Rao, Mallika (2013-05-16). "Andy Kaufman's Death -- And The Faithful Who Say He Faked It". Huffington Post. Retrieved 2013-05-23.
- ^ "Did Andy Kaufman fake his death? Fans insist video shows comedian alive and well in New Mexico". News Limited. 2013-05-24. Retrieved 2013-05-23.
{{cite web}}
:|first=
missing|last=
(help) - ^ "A Comedy Salute to Andy Kaufman". 29 March 1995. NBC.
{{cite episode}}
: Missing or empty|series=
(help)
Further reading
- Zehme, Bill (1999), Lost in the Funhouse: The Life and Mind of Andy Kaufman, Delta Books. ISBN 0-385-33372-2
- Zmuda, Bob (2001), Andy Kaufman Revealed!: Best Friend Tells All, Back Bay Books. ISBN 0-316-61098-4
- Hecht, Julie (2001), Was This Man a Genius? Talks with Andy Kaufman, Vintage Books. ISBN 0-375-50457-5
- Keller, Florian (2005), Andy Kaufman: Wrestling with the American Dream, University Of Minnesota Press. ISBN 0816646031
- Margulies, Lynne; Zmuda, Bob (2009), Dear Andy Kaufman, I Hate Your Guts!, Process. ISBN 1934170089
External links
- Articles with links needing disambiguation from January 2012
- Articles sourced by IMDb from April 2012
- 1949 births
- 1984 deaths
- 20th-century American actors
- Actors from New York City
- American Jews
- American male comedians
- American male film actors
- American male television actors
- American performance artists
- American male professional wrestlers
- American stand-up comedians
- Cancer deaths in California
- Deaths from lung cancer
- Elvis impersonators
- Jewish American actors
- Jewish comedians
- People from Long Island
- Pranksters
- The First Family (professional wrestling) members
- Transcendental Meditation practitioners