As pranks and elaborate ruses were major elements of his career, persistent rumors have circulated that Kaufman faked his own death as a grand hoax.
Kaufman died of lung cancer on May 16, 1984, at the age of 35. The fact that the altercation was planned was not publicly disclosed for over a decade.
#Broken tv prank professional#
In 1982, Kaufman brought his professional wrestling villain act to Letterman's show by way of a staged encounter with Jerry "The King" Lawler of the Continental Wrestling Association. He was also a frequent guest on sketch comedy and late-night talk shows, particularly Late Night with David Letterman. During this time, he continued to tour comedy clubs and theaters in a series of unique performance art/comedy shows, sometimes appearing as himself and sometimes as obnoxiously rude lounge singer Tony Clifton. His Foreign Man character was the basis of his performance as Latka Gravas on the hit television show Taxi from 1978 until 1983. My only promise is that I will try to entertain you as best I can." Īfter working in small comedy clubs in the early 1970s, Kaufman came to the attention of a wider audience in 1975, when he was invited to perform portions of his act on the first season of Saturday Night Live. The comedian's promise is that he will go out there and make you laugh with him. He disdained telling jokes and engaging in comedy as it was traditionally understood, once saying in an interview, "I am not a comic, I have never told a joke. He has sometimes been called an " anti-comedian". While often called a "comedian", Kaufman preferred to describe himself instead as a "song and dance man".
Andrew Geoffrey Kaufman ( / ˈ k aʊ f m ə n/ KOWF-mən January 17, 1949 – ) was an American entertainer and performance artist.
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