Gilbert Gottfried , who died on Tuesday at age 67 after a long battle with a genetic muscle disease, was a true comic's comic. A throwback to setup-and-punchline humor in an era dominated by storytellers and observational comedians , he relied on impeccable timing and a peculiar style β part whiny voice, part squinted eyes β to pummel his audiences with joke after joke.
HIs delivery made him unique and unforgettable, and his mastery of an audience left his fellow comedians in awe. Shydner often had the unenviable task of following Gottfried at New York comedy clubs.
/0/61816/coverorgin.jpg?v=70e6b441d09d6eb455bcd0f88e49db7a&imageMogr2/format/webp "Girls Gilbert")
He relied on impeccable timing and a peculiar style. Born in Coney Island, Gottfried grew up in a small apartment above the hardware store his father and uncle ran. He was an awkward child who earned his fellow students' acceptance by becoming the class clown. Whenever he could, he played hooky, spending his days in the library reading books.
At home, he lived in front of the television. Gottfried decided early on that show business was his calling. I couldn't dance. I wasn't particularly good-looking," he wrote in his autobiography, "Rubber Balls and Liquor. When he was still in high school, Gottfried developed a string of impressions that amused his family so much his sister decided he was ready for a real audience. His first gig went well enough that Gottfried continued to perform there weekly, building his act and eventually performing anywhere he could in the nascent s Manhattan comedy scene.
In the early days of cable, MTV gave Gottfried his big break, hiring him to record ad-libbed bits to be aired between music videos. After appearing as an accountant in "Beverly Hills Cop II" alongside his former "SNL" castmate Eddie Murphy , Gottfried became a regular performer, often creating memorable characters with his unmistakable voice. His most notable role: Iago the parrot in "Aladdin. Throughout his career, Gottfried's acerbic joke-telling remained his calling card.
