(PCM) Andy Kaufman may be alive, in spite of his apparent death in 1984. Before we discuss whether he is hanging with Elvis, Tupac, Jim Morrison and D.B. Cooper on the Earthly plane, here is a little information about the man.
Andy was best known as a comedian, an actor, an Elvis impersonator, a hoaxer, a Foreign Man (from Caspiar), and c-list lounge singer Tony Clifton, among others.
He wasn’t a serial dater, although he did date Cindy Willams (Shirley from Lavern and Shirley) and comedienne Elayne Boosler.
Debby Harry (Blondie) told me she considered him a friend as well, but didn’t elaborate. They debuted together on Broadway in ‘Teaneck Tanzi,’ a very short lived show about wrestling, years before the era of Hulk Hogan and the WWF (now WWE).
Andy sometimes opened for himself as Tony Clifton, who was jealous of Andy’s success, and made that fact very clear to both the audience and in interviews. Tony was once booked as a guest on ‘Taxi,’ and caused a scene, getting booted off set. 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.
Tony Clifton (on stage):
It could be said that he invented the art of Elvis Impersonation, and the King was quoted as saying that Andy was his favorite. His character of Latka Gravas, on TV’s Taxi, was based on his Foreign Man. When on the road, people most knew him for his Latka role, and would often heckle him when he wasn’t in that character. Every comedian has a response for hecklers - his was reading The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald to the audience aloud.
On The Tonight Show (1977):
Andy was also the self-proclaimed “Inter-Gender Wrestling Champion of the World,” offering women $1000 if they could pin him. Although there were several draws, he kept his title. He befriended pro wrestler Jerry Lawler, and they feuded on television and in areas throughout the country. At one point Jerry may or may not have broken Andy’s neck (on David Letterman). Andy wore the neck brace for nearly a year after that incident. It was probably painful, but not as severe as it was claimed.
Jim Carrey believably played Andy Kaufman in the 1999 film ‘Man on the Moon.’
Andy was also the subject of the song “Man On The Moon’ by R.E.M.
Comic Relief was started in the UK, in 1985. Comic Relief USA was started in Andy’s honor, in 1986.
The Mighty Mouse Theme (1975):
Andy found he had lung cancer in late 1983, and died on May 16, 1984. Or did he?
He did discuss faking his death with friend and sometimes partner Bob Zmuda. He was 35 when he died, and he made no secret about the sudden cancer. In many ways it was a perfect setup for a fake death, and Andy was the perfect celebrity to do it.
About three years before his death, in 1981, Kaufman met with professional hoaxer Alan Abel, who himself successfully faked his own death – in 1979. Abel staged his own death from a heart attack near the Sundance Ski Lodge. Abel’s stunt was so believable it earned him an obituary in the ‘paper of record’ New York Times. Abel also started the Society for Indecency to Naked Animals (SINA), his most famous hoax. SINA’s mission was to clothe naked animals throughout the world.
At the 2000 Republican National Convention in Philadelphia, Abel introduced a campaign to ban all breastfeeding because “it is an incestuous relationship between mother and baby that manifests an oral addiction leading youngsters to smoke, drink and even becoming anti-social.”
The owner of AndyKaufmanLives.com is Stephen Maddox of Greenwood, Indiana and more than one reporter thinks he may be more than a ‘relative’ of Andy.
Kaufman’s brother, Michael Kaufman, he admitted that he didn’t always know when his brother was acting even in some of his most bizarre skits. ‘One time I told him not to let me know what was really going on, because when people asked me questions I didn’t want to lie to them,’ he told VICE Magazine in 2012.
Is Andy alive? Probably not. If he is, his reintroduction will be the single greatest performance art of all time.
Comedy is always cruel at its heart. Andy was a cruel, cruel man.
“Andy made himself the premise and the rest of the world was the punchline.”
-Robin Williams
“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.”
-Carl Reiner
“Andy Kaufman was by far the most innovative comedian at that time – although he never liked being called a comedian. With Andy, you never knew whom you were talking to. He liked to disappear into different personas offstage as well as onstage and refused to ever break character. He was a remarkable guy, but basically confusing to spend any time around.”
-Jay Leno
“When I perform, it’s very personal. I’m sharing things I like, inviting the audience into my
room.”
-Andy Kaufman
“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.”
-Richard Lewis
“He was a practical joker. Most practical jokers work their pranks one-on-one. Andy’s jokes were on his entire audience.”
-Joe Hummel
“T’ank you veddy much!”
Leonard Cooper of Little Rock, Arkansas will go down in history as one of the coolest Jeopardy contestants of all time. He competed in the Jeopardy Teen Tournament and won with a very gutsy answer.
It’s hard to believe these mega-famous twins are now 26 years old considering their childhood was immortalized on film as they established their own empire in the entertainment industry. But even when they were just babies, they were thrust into the spotlight. When they began playing Michelle Tanner on Full House at just 9 months old, their worlds changed as they literally grew up on the screen before us continuing to portray the youngest of the Tanner family for the next 8 years. How would you like to be a superstar at the age of 1? And then, just as a testament to your power, remain a star for the rest of your life? There’s a reason we all own at least one (maybe all) MK&A movie.
BLUE IVY CARTER
You had to know it was coming. Whether we’re talking the power to inspire an entire generation to get back to reading or the power to defeat the most powerful Dark Wizard of all time when he was just one year old (with, of course, the love and protection of his late mother), this list would be null and void if Harry Potter wasn’t included. He may not have exactly known his power or even known he was a wizard until he was 11 years old, but the power was there within him all along. After all, without his early tragedy and brush with power and the prophecy that was thrust upon him, he never would have defeated Lord Voldemort for good and earned his own name of power in the Wizarding World.
WYATT HALLIWELL
Nothing quite says power like the Antichrist, right? Whether you believe in him or simply acknowledge the power of believing in him, you have to admit… Christ is a pretty powerful figure. So to be compared to him, even if it’s as his antithesis, that already sets you up with some pretty heavy powers. Mix in there that Damien, a character from The Omen series, embodies the feared notion of 666, being born at 6 AM on June 6 (the sixth hour of the sixth day of the sixth month, 666) and you’ve got a dangerous little man on your hands. In The Omen series, Damien is adopted after his adoptive parents lose their child in a supposed stillbirth. Riiiiiight. His truly evil and powerful acts didn’t start until he was a few years old, but when you have a nanny who is actually a demon sent to guard you, again, clearly you’re important and quite powerful, perhaps even the single figure of concentrated evil like the Antichrist.
THE CHILDREN FROM THE VILLAGE OF THE DAMNED
Easily one of the greatest cartoon characters of all time, Tommy Pickles is not just your average baby. Anyone who’s grown up with Rugrats will tell you that. No, Tommy may be young – even the youngest of the playpen group until Dil came along – but the boy is whip-smart and even more imaginative. Throw in his extraordinary level of bravery and there is no problem or situation that Tommy can’t get himself and his friends out of. Seriously, he can help you overcome fears and establish new rules all while wearing a t-shirt and diaper. As his motto goes, “a baby’s got to do, what a baby’s got to do!” Clearly the little dude with the plastic screwdriver deserves credit for his intelligence and the power – and freedom – that comes along with it all.
E*TRADE BABY
Okay, okay, maybe The Powerpuff Girls aren’t “babies,” but they’re only in preschool, they haven’t aged since they were created from sugar, spice, everything nice and Chemical X by the Professor and Bubbles still sleeps with Octi… so they totally count. And, honestly, they are some of the most powerful little girls across any medium. With the help of a supportive father figure in the way of the Professor and a handy telephone that connects them immediately with the Mayor’s Office, Blossom, Bubbles and Buttercup are only ever just a second away from saving Townsville from imminent danger. With their superpowers of super speed, super strength, flight, x-ray vision, heat vision and more, I sure wouldn’t want to be on the Powerpuff Girls bad side whether it was the first day they were born or twenty years down the line, would you? And yet, they do it all while staying super sweet, super cute and maintaining a regular bedtime. Particularly impressive if you ask me.
Cherry Jones
Cherie Currie
Marc Cherry
WWE’s Cherry
Sherri “Cherry” Valance
Mary Cherry
Agent Dale Cooper
Cherry Coke
Cherry Chapstick
Cherry Street