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Charles Nelson Reilly, Tony-Winning Comic Actor, Dies at 76
nytimes.com ^ | May 28, 2007 | By PATRICK McGEEHAN

Posted on 05/27/2007 7:49:33 PM PDT by lunarbicep

Charles Nelson Reilly, who acted and directed on Broadway but came to be best known for his campy television appearances on talk shows and “Match Game,” died on Friday in Los Angeles. He was 76 and lived in Beverly Hills, Calif.

The cause was complications of pneumonia, said his partner, Patrick Hughes, who is his only immediate survivor. Mr. Reilly had been ill for more than a year, he said.

Long before moving west to become what he somewhat ruefully described as a “game show fixture,” Mr. Reilly was an actor and an acting teacher in New York City. In 1962, he won a Tony Award for his portrayal of Bud Frump in the original Broadway production of “How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying.”

But he was proudest of “The Belle of Amherst,” a one-woman play starring Julie Harris based on the life of Emily Dickinson, which he directed on Broadway at the Longacre Theater in 1976, said Timothy Helgeson, who collaborated with him on the show. Two decades later, Mr. Reilly directed Ms. Harris and Charles Durning in a revival of “The Gin Game” at the Lyceum Theater. He was nominated for a Tony for best director in 1997, and Ms. Harris was nominated for best actress.

His final work was an autobiographical one-man show, “Save It for the Stage: The Life of Reilly,” in which he recounted his difficult childhood. Born in the Bronx, the only child of a Swedish mother and an Irish father, Mr. Reilly told of the pain of being considered the oddest member of a decidedly odd family.

(Excerpt) Read more at nytimes.com ...


TOPICS: Miscellaneous
KEYWORDS: hulhulhul; lidsville; obituary
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1 posted on 05/27/2007 7:49:38 PM PDT by lunarbicep
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To: lunarbicep

The flame goes out.


2 posted on 05/27/2007 7:51:28 PM PDT by brivette
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To: brivette

The old loafers will be a little lighter tonight.


3 posted on 05/27/2007 7:52:50 PM PDT by PetroniusMaximus
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To: lunarbicep

Well, at least he can be reunited with Paul Lynde...


4 posted on 05/27/2007 7:53:47 PM PDT by Tall_Texan (NBC News - the preferred network of assassins and terrorists.)
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To: lunarbicep
He was great as Jose Chung.
5 posted on 05/27/2007 7:55:25 PM PDT by MarkeyD (Just another country bumpkin looking forward to Fred!)
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To: lunarbicep
I grew up watching him on the game shows...he *was* odd to me, but entertaining...seemed like he would be a nice man to meet.

He was in an episode of X Files = "Jose Chungs 'From Outer Space'"

6 posted on 05/27/2007 7:56:59 PM PDT by Alkhin (star dust contemplating star dust)
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To: lunarbicep

RIP. I enjoyed his antics.


7 posted on 05/27/2007 7:57:41 PM PDT by Jet Jaguar
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To: lunarbicep
Rest well sir. A pretty funny guy.
He didn't push his home life on everyone.
8 posted on 05/27/2007 7:58:32 PM PDT by theDentist (Qwerty ergo typo : I type, therefore I misspelll.)
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To: Alkhin

I enjoyed his feuds with Brett. I still watch them.


9 posted on 05/27/2007 7:58:39 PM PDT by MamaB
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To: lunarbicep

I haven’t been this upset since Gene Rayburn died.


10 posted on 05/27/2007 8:00:07 PM PDT by D-Chivas
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To: lunarbicep
"The thing that's funny is that everyone thinks I'm dead.”
-CNR

Goodnight, Charles.
11 posted on 05/27/2007 8:00:38 PM PDT by Thrownatbirth (.....when the sidewalks are safe for the little guy.)
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To: lunarbicep

Sorry to here he died.
Grew up watching him on Match Game.
Thought he was funny.


12 posted on 05/27/2007 8:01:48 PM PDT by Shadowstrike (Be polite, Be professional, but have a plan to kill everyone you meet.)
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To: lunarbicep

Aw shucks. I remeber him best as Claymore Gregg from the tv show The Ghost and Mrs. Muir


13 posted on 05/27/2007 8:02:09 PM PDT by lowbridge ("The mainstream media IS the Democratic Party." - Rush Limbaugh)
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To: lunarbicep

A funny guy, comfortable playing a funny character. May he rest in peace.


14 posted on 05/27/2007 8:03:58 PM PDT by Roberts
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To: lunarbicep
Also miss him in this;

“Uncle Croc’s Block”

http://www.geocities.com/sshumsuper7fan78/JimsUncleCroc.htm

Once again we lose a true entertainer, someone who had to work for his stardom. There are fewer and fewer every day.

15 posted on 05/27/2007 8:04:21 PM PDT by Hillarys Gate Cult (The man who said "there's no such thing as a stupid question" has never talked to Helen Thomas.)
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To: lunarbicep

Rest in peace, Mr. Reilly.

I enjoyed seeing him on the game shows and on Johnny Carson. He was a very funny man.


16 posted on 05/27/2007 8:05:29 PM PDT by Theresawithanh (You are my tagline, my only tagline, you make me happy when skies are gray...)
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To: lunarbicep

The "Dirty Bubble" has finally burst.

17 posted on 05/27/2007 8:06:35 PM PDT by dfwgator (The University of Florida - Still Championship U)
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To: lowbridge
I remeber him best as Claymore Gregg from the tv show The Ghost and Mrs. Muir

The Ghost and Mrs. Muir.

-PJ

18 posted on 05/27/2007 8:06:42 PM PDT by Political Junkie Too (It's still not safe to vote Democrat.)
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To: MarkeyD

LOL you beat me to it!! LOL


19 posted on 05/27/2007 8:09:05 PM PDT by Alkhin (star dust contemplating star dust)
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To: lunarbicep

Craftsman comic - of the old school.


20 posted on 05/27/2007 8:10:22 PM PDT by llevrok (Illegal Immigration? We are a nation of laws - not scofflaws.)
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