Party Set for Andy Kaufman, Just in Case

AP via Yahoo ^ | 5.8.2004

[NYC GOP Chick]

NEW YORK - Andy Kaufman died of lung cancer on May 16, 1984, but according to legend, the eccentric comedian said if he were faking, he'd resurface 20 years later to the day.

So, just in case, a party is being planned by Bob Zmuda, Kaufman's best friend and partner, at the House of Blues in Los Angeles on May 16.

"Over 100 personal ads will be taken out across the country and abroad, reminding him of his words. Will he show?" Zmuda asked on the Web site for Comic Relief, a series of shows that raise money for health care for the homeless. Zmuda founded Comic Relief after Kaufman's death.

VIP tickets to the Andy Kaufman — Dead or Alive? tribute offer "select seating and celebrity reception (hopefully with Andy)."

The tribute also promises a performance by Las Vegas lounge lizard Tony Clifton, one of Kaufman's characters.

Kaufman was best known as the lovable foreign-car mechanic Latka Gravas on the '70s TV sitcom "Taxi."

[NYC GOP Chick]

Andy Kaufman - Dead or Alive?

[Flashlight]

you've got to be kidding. if he shows up, he wins the prize for practical joke of the century.

[Always Right]

Kaufman was either brilliant or an ass. Or perhaps both.

[NYC GOP Chick]

Both! ;)

[Wolfie]

Both. Only a genius of fooldom could keep people hanging on 20 years later.

[em2vn]

He was the best Elvis impersonator of all times.

[sgtbono2002]

Acclaimed as a comedic genius, I couldnt stand him or Woody Allen.

[Vinnie]

Other than 'Latka', probably scripted for him, he was by far the worst comedian I have ever seen.
Even worse than.....Al Franken. IMHO of course.
I wasn't alone. The few times I saw him in front of an audience (on TV) they responded the same as me. HUH?

[The Scourge of Yazid]

As far as I can tell, Woody Allen has made exactly one funny movie (Small Time Crooks) in the past two decades or so, and even the premise for that film was lifted from another, funnier motion picture.

[FreedomPoster]

Exactly, to both of you.

[Recovering_Democrat]

He's dead, Jim.

[capt. norm]

He was the best Elvis impersonator of all times.

I wholeheartedly agree. The first time I saw him perform his Elvis impersonation he went from his wierd character that talks funny (accent and all) right into the Elvis bit. My wife and I were telling each other what a stupid thing it was for him to take on such a tall order.

But when he turned back around in "Elvis Mode" he knocked our socks off.

I still have a VHS tape of it and it still has the same effect when I replay it.

His publicity stunts and strange things he has done aside, I stll think he's the greatest Elvis impersonator, ever.

[fourdeuce82d]

Woody Allen has made exactly one funny movie

Zelig?

[fourdeuce82d]

Woody Allen has made exactly one funny movie

Zelig?

[The Scourge of Yazid]

Sounds familiar, though I can't exactly place it. Woody Allen was funny ages ago-I'm thinking of the 70s-and came out with some great stuff back then. I'm thinking specifically of "Bananas" and "Sleeper." There are so many gags in those films that still hold up today.

[rintense]

He was damn funny and damn stupid at the same time. That's what made him unique. The Mighty Mouse bit on SNL made me pee my pants.

[xp38]

He's pining for the fjords.

[whereasandsoforth]

A lot can happen in 20 years. What if it comes out Andy was killed in a boating accident in South Africa late last year? Who'd be laughing now?

[sharktrager]

Not only the best, but one of the first, if not the first.

The funniest thing he ever did was read the Great Gatsby to a crowd at ASU. Not because it was funny to read, but because they wanted to see Latka, and that is not what he was really about.

The guy totally did whatever he wanted, whether anyone else thought it was funny or not. The fact that he could do that and get paid well for it is a sign of his genius, even if it's not really a comic genius.