April 6, 2017

Goodbye to Don Rickles.

"Well into the era of political correctness, Rickles continued to target his trademark jabs at everything from audience members' weight problems to their ethnicities."
“There's a real Italian; you can smell the oil right here,” he said on stage at the Stardust in Las Vegas in 2006 when he was 80. “There's a definite odor in this area. Like a Polack gone bad. ...

For Rickles, everyone was fair game; the bigger the better.

He was a relatively unknown comic performing at Murray Franklin's, a small club in Miami Beach, Fla., in the 1950s when Frank Sinatra came in with his entourage.

“Make yourself comfortable, Frank — hit somebody,” said Rickles as the notoriously moody singer paused, and then broke up with laughter.

Pressing on, Rickles said: “Frank, believe me, I'm telling you this as a friend: Your voice is gone.”...
Much more at the link (which goes to the L.A. Times). Rickles was 90. 

21 comments:

rhhardin said...

We've got Trump.

stever said...

Mr Warmth

rcocean said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
rcocean said...

Don Rickles was hilarious - as is Bob Newhart. Too bad his TV shows was so terrible. Newhart joked that a Rickles sitcom had a -5 rating.

Hagar said...

New York humor.

Michael K said...

I loved Don Rickles. He was good in a serious role in "Casino" a favorite movie.

Mr. Majestyk said...

The man was absolutely hilarious! So sad that he's gone.

Quayle said...

Foster Brooks' roast of Don Rickles.

David Baker said...

Foster Brooks roasted Don Rickles, and Rickles - along with everyone else - couldn't stop laughing. Especially Dean Martin. Take a look, it's over on YouTube.

(Off Topic, but something serious is afoot regarding Assad/Syria)

Curious George said...

Meh. Gotta give him credit though, got a lot out of a little.

rcocean said...

He was good in a serious role in "Casino" a favorite movie.

Yeah, he was damned good. Jerry Lewis was pretty good in a few dramatic roles too.

David Baker said...

@Quayle

Thanks for the Foster Brooks/Don Rickles link. Funniest bit I ever saw.

Michael K said...

Long time since I've seen Rowan and Martin.

Jake said...

How tall was Don Rickles?

exiledonmainstreet, green-eyed devil said...

Apparently in 2006, you could still get away with insulting minorities - if they were white ethnic groups.

Hammond X. Gritzkofe said...

He will not be missed.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4MsWTb5c-Sw

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4MsWTb5c-Sw

DavidD said...

Hey, I liked CPO Sharkey.

Wilbur said...

AA, you gave us two great lines in your post; I could hear Rickles in my head, and laughed. Thank you.

I generally found him unfunny and hackeyed, especially in his later years. He was always best in short doses.

He was very well suited as an actor, serious or comedic. As are many comedians.

William said...

I get the sense that as comedians go he was remarkably sane, well balanced and good natured in his private life. He lived long enough to become an institution. An insult from Rickles was kind of an accolade, a form of validation for a celebrity. You had not really arrived until Rickles took the time to insult you.

Fandor said...

"And now, the final insult..."

donald said...

His best friend was Bob Newhart. They traveled the world with their wives. That is the coolest thing possible.