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posted by chromas on Wednesday May 15 2019, @02:16AM   Printer-friendly
from the R.I.P. dept.

Thomas Daniel "Tim" Conway passed away today, Tuesday May 14, 2019 at the age of 85.

He gained his first national following as Ensign Charles Parker on McHale's Navy in the 1960s. He was possibly best known for his being a regular cast member on The Carol Burnett Show where he frequently attempted -- and often succeeded -- in getting his fellow cast members to "break character". He'd ceaselessly ad-lib lines and employ mannerisms that led them to bust out laughing.

Wikipedia has a full write-up on his life and career that I was only fortunate enough to experience a small fraction of his comedic genius. His humor was self-effacing, self-deprecating, and his comedic timing was unparalleled.

My favorite skit was his portrayal of a dentist, fresh out of dental school, and his difficulties with helping a patient (Harvey Korman) who was complaining of a toothache. (Video available on YouTube. (Watch Harvey Korman struggling to maintain his composure.)

Coverage at: Variety, CBS News, USA Today, NPR, LA Times, and TV Guide.

The world is a darker place for his passing.

What were your favorite scenes, skits, or memories?

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  • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday May 15 2019, @04:33AM (2 children)

    by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday May 15 2019, @04:33AM (#843694)

    I heard it on the radio today, but was left wondering who the fuck he was. I'm not the youngest, but they mentioned his work on the Carol Burnett show. I've seen the show but definitely wasn't old enough to remember much besides the fact I did. I don't know if he did much in the 80's and later, but apparently he had a role on the Spongebob show.

    • (Score: 2) by FatPhil on Wednesday May 15 2019, @07:04AM (1 child)

      by FatPhil (863) <pc-soylentNO@SPAMasdf.fi> on Wednesday May 15 2019, @07:04AM (#843716) Homepage
      He didn't make it over the atlantic, so I've never heard of him - I've only barely even heard of Carol Burnett. However, I did some googling, and it does seem like they did have great comic chemistry; this cracked me up: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sJIh70IZua8

      Which raises the question why so many US attempts at comedic Sweeeeedish accents are always so terrible, bork bork bork.
      --
      Great minds discuss ideas; average minds discuss events; small minds discuss people; the smallest discuss themselves
      • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday May 15 2019, @02:48PM

        by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday May 15 2019, @02:48PM (#843841)

        The show was filmed live (I think they did two shows in a day). Conway was well known for ad-libbing and making the other performers struggle with staying in character, and even when he was delivering the lines he was supposed to say, sometimes just the way he said them or looked cracked them up. They left a lot of that into the broadcast version, which is one of the charming things about that TV show.

        This one is probably the best known version of that happening: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3qqE_WmagjY [youtube.com]

        Carol Burnett is supposed to be angry in this scene and you can see her really struggle keeping it together.

  • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday May 15 2019, @06:38AM (2 children)

    by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday May 15 2019, @06:38AM (#843711)

    Yes, this guy was famous back in the Sixties, when most soylentils were in their teens? How old is this place?

    • (Score: 2) by damnbunni on Wednesday May 15 2019, @08:00AM

      by damnbunni (704) on Wednesday May 15 2019, @08:00AM (#843730) Journal

      He was on TV a lot in the '70s and had some pretty good comedy specials in the '80s and early '90s that were on VHS, so they tended to get watched when we were looking for some standup or sketch comedy.

    • (Score: 2) by All Your Lawn Are Belong To Us on Wednesday May 15 2019, @02:18PM

      by All Your Lawn Are Belong To Us (6553) on Wednesday May 15 2019, @02:18PM (#843825) Journal

      Wait. Someday someone will tell you, "Yes, the Kardashians were famous back in the 2000s, when you were in your single digits, wow you're old!" on whatever platform is around then.

      If you're lucky enough to be around then.

      --
      This sig for rent.
  • (Score: 2) by Gaaark on Wednesday May 15 2019, @10:45AM

    by Gaaark (41) on Wednesday May 15 2019, @10:45AM (#843764) Journal

    He was great on the CB show: was VERY good at ad-lib comedy... easily the high-light of the episodes he was in.

    REALLY loved winding up Korman.

    --
    --- Please remind me if I haven't been civil to you: I'm channeling MDC. ---Gaaark 2.0 ---
  • (Score: 2) by Gaaark on Wednesday May 15 2019, @10:47AM

    by Gaaark (41) on Wednesday May 15 2019, @10:47AM (#843765) Journal

    A genius.

    --
    --- Please remind me if I haven't been civil to you: I'm channeling MDC. ---Gaaark 2.0 ---
  • (Score: 2) by fliptop on Wednesday May 15 2019, @03:27PM (1 child)

    by fliptop (1666) on Wednesday May 15 2019, @03:27PM (#843858) Journal

    He was a master at making the others break character, but my favorite character from "The Carol Burnett Show" is the recurring office scene [youtube.com].

    Also The Apple Dumpling Gang [imdb.com] stands out as a particularly funny favorite. His work w/ Don Knotts was hilarious.

    --
    Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other.
    • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday May 15 2019, @04:08PM

      by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday May 15 2019, @04:08PM (#843867)

      I forgot about that, I mostly remember him from McHale's navy reruns and as Dorf. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dorf_(character) [wikipedia.org]

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