SHOW BUSINESS - COMEDIANS - 1

PATHWAY OF THE PERFORMER AS ETERNAL ADOLESCENT:
Storyline: The manic mugger chooses to stay childlike in order to avoid the awful pain of growing up and growing old, while staying in the thrall of his own compulsive need for audience adulation, parental approval and being eternally on.
Jerry Lewis (Joseph Levitch) (1926) - American comedian, producer and director. Outer: Both parents were in show business, father was night-club m.c. and singer, Danny Levitch, mother Rae accompanied him on the piano, and the duo toured 52 weeks a year. Spent much of his childhood with his aunts and grandmother, a seamstress, while his parents were off on the road, and also in the company of adults rather than other children, making him eternally childlike. Very close to his parents, idolizing his father and taking elements of his act. Began joining their act at the age of 5 as a singer, to add $4 to their usual $8 fee, during summers on the Catskills’ Borscht Circuit. Totally enthralled by show business, he quit high school after the 10th grade, although regretted it later, and while supporting himself with odd jobs, worked up a comedic act where he would mug his way through famous singers whose recordings would play off-stage. 5’10 1/2”, wiry. By 18, he was an experienced resort and club comedian, and married to Patti Palmer, a vocalist, 6 sons from union, including rock’n’roller Gary Lewis. At 20, he met Dean Martin, a vocalist, and the duo decided to become a team, as he unconsciously reversed his earlier life’s counterpoint comedy, letting Martin play the suave boulevardier he had been, while he created the retarded grotesque, which he had played off of beforehand. Initially unsure of himself because of his father’s competitive unwillingness to accept him as a comedian. Their act was an immediate success, although he had to spend 3 1/2 years paying off his gambling debts after his first Las Vegas gig. Wound up settling there later on in life anyhow. By the end of the 1940s, Martin & Lewis were the most popular comedy team in the country, through exposure from stage, TV, and clubs. Despite his little boy persona, he handled the business side of the act. While Martin would croon, he would continually interrupt him, and the two would play off insults, ad libs, and his penchant for mugging. Began their film career in his early 20s, and proved equally successful in that medium, making some 16 movies together, with the same format, the suave Martin playing against the hopelessly misfit Lewis. Thanks to Martin’s need to rise above second banana status, the duo mutually called it quits in 1956 after a decade together, and both went onto successful separate careers. Immediately began familiarizing himself with the technical aspects of film as soon as he was in front of the camera, which ultimately allowed him to be independent of the studio system. Began taking total control over his film vehicles, producing, financing and directing, as well as starring in them, reaching his peak in the early 1960s. Deeply disturbed by the effect Vietnam had on his rock’n’roll son, and the subsequent drug addiction it inspired in him. After doing radio-casts for muscular dystrophy for nearly 2 decades, he began doing a yearly Labor Day telethon in 1966, although he eventually received much criticism from activists. Effected an unrehearsed make-up with Martin on one of the telecasts. Although his eternally adolescent characters wore thin on American critics, he was deemed “Le Roi du Crazy,” by the French, and became a cult hero there, in an unconscious celebration of his previous existence there as king of comedy. Played a series of performances at the Paris Olympia to enthusiastic sell-out crowds in 1971, and wrote a book on his craft the same year, “The Complete Film Maker.” Because of his compulsive, nervous nature, and dependency on painkillers, he suffered a near breakdown during the 1970s, and came close to expiring from an aggravated ulcer condition. Reunited with Martin on his annual telethon in 1976, and in 2005, he co-penned Dean & Me (A Love Story), limning both the break-up and the reconnection. Wrote his auto-biography in 1982, Jerry Lewis in Person. Returned to the screen in the early 1980s after a decade’s absence. Divorced his wife after 36 years of marriage and 2 years later married SanDee Pitman, in his late-50s, one adopted daughter from union. In the mid-1990s, he finally appeared on Broadway as the Devil in “Damn Yankees,” a dream he had always had, and one that his late father had impressed upon him as the only way to have a complete entertainment career, which, indeed, he has had. Suffered pulmonary fibrosis and ballooned through painkillers, after finally conquered back pain, symbolic of father support, which plagued him for 37 years, and had brought him to the point of suicide. Returned to normal afterwards, with great relief his suffering had finally ended. Awarded the French Legion d’Honneur on his 80th birthday, and, appropriately clowned throughout the entire ceremony. Soon afterwards, he ascended to abbot of the Friar’s Club, in crypto-recognition of his status as both ancient and modern king of comedy, before suffering a heart attack, from which he recovered, to continue on with his career. Inner: Manic, obsessive, self-absorbed, compulsive to the extreme, with an eternal youthfulness that underscores his childish humor. A perfectionist, and generous to a fault, but supersensitive to criticism and highly emotional. Arrested adolescent lifetime of reversing his comedic stance from the one he had adopted earlier this century, and playing it out to a full life in the public eye, rather than truncating his existence as he had earlier in his desperation for love, adulation, a sense of inner peace, and most importantly, his father’s approval. Max Linder (Gabriel-Maximilien Luevielle) (1883-1925) - French comedian. Outer: From a farming family. Left school at 17 to study at the Bourdeaux Conservatoire, and then acted in Bordeaux, before moving to Paris in his early 20s, where he initiated his larger career by playing supporting roles in melodramas, before finding his true metier in comedy. Played against the grotesque comic manic archetypes of the day, by creating a suave, handsome boulevardier character with an impeccable ability to survive catastrophic situations. Began working in cinema at 23, but because of the low esteem in which early film was held, changed his name to Max Linder, in order to further separate himself from his stage presence. Spent several years dividing his time between the 2 mediums, and then totally switched to film in his mid-20s. By 1910, he had fully evolved his stage character and the counterpoint situations against which he would play, becoming an international star, and the best known comic of the pre-WW I era. Wrote, supervised and directed all his films after 1911. Interrupted his career to serve in WW I, where he was gassed and suffered a breakdown, never to fully recover psychologically or physically from it. Although Charlie Chaplin considered him an inspiration, and invited him to America to strut his stuff, his weakened condition disrupted his career, and he fell victim to double pneumonia, requiring a year in a Swiss sanitarium to recover. Returned to America and formed his own production unit, but his touch began to wane and he slipped into melancholia when Chaplin’s popularity far eclipsed his own. Came back to Europe and was infatuated with Jean Peters, the 17 year old daughter of a Paris restauranteur, whom he married in his early 40s. Became prey to a pathological jealousy, which ultimately culminated by his committing suicide by slitting his wife’s wrists and then his own, when he realized his career was over. Inner: Highly competitive, albeit highly original, and the prototype for many of the comedic films of the silent era. Dualistic lifetime of creating a unique niche for himself in the annals of comedy, only to be undone by his unintegrated interior and an overweening need to be publicly loved at the cost of his very life. Alexis Piron (1689-1773) - French playwright and epigrammatist. Outer: Father was an apothecary who wrote verse in the local dialect. Apprenticed to a banker, and then studied law. Went to Paris when he was almost 30, and gained money and notoriety through an accident. Became friends with a slightly older actress, Mlle. Quinault, whom he would marry 20 years later in 1741. Able to produce a monologue drama for the popular Theatres de la Foire, which only allowed that restricted form of entertainment, thanks to the competitive jealousy of the stage’s legitimate actors. His first piece, performed in 1722 was called Arlequin Deucalion, in which his character recreates humankind after the Flood, giving him lots of voices to use, and his reputation was made by it. Able to work for the established Comedie-Francaise afterwards. His later efforts into tragedy proved far less successful, as comedy proved to be his true metier. Gained noble patrons through his efforts, winning a pension over his last fifty years, as well as entree into literary circles, where his delicious wit was well-received. Had a particular gift for repartee, even besting his enemy, Voltaire (Michel Foucault) in a duel of words. Because of a licentious poem he had written years earlier, “Ode to Priapus,” the king denied him entrance into the France Academy in 1753, which elicited his scathing wit on the latter. Published his non-theatrical works in 1758, and lived a long and satisfying life. Inner: Sharp-tongued lifetime of coming into the perfect time and place for his wit to more than give him a living, and while leaving little for posterity’s remembrance, more than adequately provided for his own ongoing well-being.

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PATHWAY OF THE COMEDIAN AS HYPOCHONDRIAC EXTRAORDINAIRE:
Storyline: The non-stop shpritzer masks his fears and loathings behind a staccato comedy style, while keeping himself amused with his own continual sense of deterioration.
Mel Brooks (Melvin Kaminsky) (1926) - American filmmaker and performer. Outer: Of Jewish descent. Parents were immigrants, his mother from Kiev, his father from Danzig. The latter was a process server, who died when he was 2 1/2, and he was raised by his mother, who supported him and 3 older brothers by working 10 hour days in the garment district. Eventually a brother helped with factory work. Began doing impressions as a child, often using humor as a protective device in growing up in a tough urban neighborhood. His mother also had a good sense of humor. Used his musical talents to become a drummer and piano player as a youth. 5’5”. After a year at Virginia Military Institute, he served in WW II as a combat engineer, digging up land-mines, before transferring to Special Services as a song parodist, then played drums in Catskills resorts, eventually becoming social director and resident comic at Grossinger’s. Changed his last name to a form of mother’s maiden name, Brookman, to avoid confusion with trumpeter Max Kaminsky. Stepped into the early world of television as a writer and sometimes performer with Sid Caesar’s vehicles during the 1950s, which initiated the careers of numerous comedy writers in a shpritz style of joking that he usually dominated. Married Florence Baum in 1951, divorced a decade later, 3 children from union. Made a legendary recording with fellow Caesar alum Carl Reiner called, ‘The 2,000-Year-old-Man,’ which remains a comedy classic of his own brand of free associative humor with a Jewish twist. In the mid-1960s, he created the hit TV series “Get Smart,” about an inept spy. Often did the talk show circuit, directly bringing his manic style of comedy to a large audience. In his mid-40s, he married a 2nd time to actress Anne Bancroft, for whom, he proclaimed, he would kill. One child from union. Began his film career with perhaps his funniest work, The Producers, followed by a long string of comedies, some of which worked, like Young Frankenstein and Blazing Saddles, and some of which didn’t, but all of which featured his various obsessions, particularly with Nazis and bodily functions. Occasionally tasteless, but usually quite funny, if only in small segments, although his later work had nowhere near the imagination and surprise of his earlier oeuvre. Eventually formed his own production company, Brooksfilms, serving in different capacities, actor, director and executive producer on a variety of movies that occasionally featured Ms. Bancroft. Recrafted The Producers as a Broadway musical, at century’s new beginning, and realized a lifelong ambition with a spectacular SRO stage hit, culminating a career that had been at a standstill after several tepid films. Suffered the loss of his beloved wife in 2005, and continued working as an antidote to it. His second stab at a Broadway Musical transliterating one of his screen success, Young Frankenstein, would fare less well with both critics and audience alike. Wound up running the table with an Oscar in 1968, 3 Emmys, 3 Grammys, and 3 Tonys, including Best Musical in 2001, for The Producers, his legacy piece. Inner: Compulsively funny with a staccato sense of life’s absurdities, and a highly associative, freewheeling mind. Worldclass hypochondriac, with an extraordinary medical knowledge for a layman, and projected illnesses galore to keep his imagination working overtime. Borrowed time lifetime of turning his fears and neuroses into a rat-a-tat vision of life’s preposterousness. Israel Grodner (c1848-1887) - Lithuanian singer and actor. Outer: From extremely modest beginnings. Became a Broder singer, of Yiddish songs, and an actor, and began to wander, as an itinerant performer, moving to the Ukraine at the age of 16, where he met his wife, Annetta (Anne Bancroft), and she joined him in his travels. In 1876, while in Romania, he was recruited by Abraham Goldfaden to join the first professional Yiddish theater troupe. It was originally all-male, but eventually integrated. As the only Lithuanian Jew in the troupe, he had to deliberately remold his dialect to blend in with the others, who were Romanian and Ukranian. Most of the early plays were improvised with songs and comic material, and he fit right into the format, while also evincing a good sense of characterization whenever he took on a role. Traveled with the troupe around eastern Europe, and wound up in Bucharest, where he suddenly found himself competing with the brighter star wattage of Siegmund Mogulesko (Sid Caesar). In response, he formed his own stage company, taking his wife and several players, while hiring an accomplished playwright. Mogulesko soon joined him, but in 1880, the former once again took over the troupe. In failing health, he continued with several other companies, before forming a new one in Riga. In 1883, the Yiddish theater was banned by imperial decree in Russia, and he went to London, which had become the temporary center of the exiled actors and playwrights. Along with his wife, he played alongside Jacob Adler (James Woods), until his shpilkis or antsiness made him move on to try to form another troupe in Galicia. Continued traveling and performing, as his health worsened and he eventually died prematurely, worn out from his efforts. Inner: Addicted smoker, always had a cigarette dangling from his mouth. Part one lifetime of dipping down into Jewish culture to get his comic chops, in direct performance, while evincing an insatiable wanderlust, that was not born out by a body that could handle the vagaries of the road for very long. Ferdinand Raimund (1790-1836) - Austrian playwright and performer. Outer: Son of a poor woodworker, he grew up in relatively poverty. His mother died when he was 12, and his father passed on 2 years later. Worked as a confectioner’s apprentice until 18, when he ran away to become an actor with a traveling company. Gained a reputation as a first-class comedian, and was engaged by a Viennese theater. Also was a theater director later on in his career. In love with an innkeeper’s daughter, but her parents objected to the liaison because of his profession. At 30, he unwillingly married Luise Gleich, the daughter of a minor dramatist, but they were divorced shortly afterwards, and he entered into a common-law marriage with his true love, that lasted until his death. Began writing plays in the Viennese tradition which blended improvisation, vulgarity and low comedy with local references. Raised the level of that genre to an art-form, while often being crude and tasteless. Despite the popularity of his comedies, he wished to be known as a great tragedian, but had little ability in that sphere, and met with failure in his attempts at it. Returned to comedy, blending realism and fantasy to great effect. Had a natural gift for situation comedy, as well as poetry, with many of his incidental songs eventually becoming folk-songs. Despite his great successes and material security, he despaired over his limits, wishing for what he did not have, instead of enjoying what he did. Took little pleasure in his successes nor found joy in his later life. Tormented by hypochondria, and afraid he was losing his voice, he eventually shot himself after being bitten by a dog, for fear of going mad. Inner: Passionate temperament, sharp sense of humor and tendency towards melancholy and hypochondria, the archetypal unhappy comedian. Cross-purpose lifetime of a distinct inability to enjoy himself, which ultimately made him prisoner and victim of his own fears and neuroses.

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PATHWAY OF THE HUMORIST AS AMERICAN ICON:
Storyline: The treasured storyteller uses laughter as a healing balm to close longheld wounds while continuing to serve as a voice for the unheard in his ongoing need to redress old imbalances.
Bill Cosby (1937) - American comedian. Outer: Of African/American descent. Mother was a domestic, who read Mark Twain and the Bible to her 2 sons. Father was a U.S. navy mess steward, frequently away from home. Grew up in a housing project, high school athlete, but also class clown, and despite a high I.Q., was a poor student. Dropped out of high school and joined the Navy at 19, earning a diploma through correspondence. Enrolled at Temple Univ afterwards on a football scholarship. 6’, 200 lbs. Met his wife, Camille Hanks, on a blind date in college, and proposed to her 2 weeks later, marrying her in 1964. 5 children from union, each of their names beginning with “E” for excellence. Started his career as a comedian in his sophomore year, then after graduation pursued stand-up comedy in nightclubs. Decided early on to reach out for everyone, rather than being an ethnic comedian, before switching to a extremely successful television career, beginning with I Spy from 1965 to 1968, in which he became TV’s first male black lead since the demeaning Amos and Andy Show of the early 1950s, and culminating in The Bill Cosby Show, from 1984 to 1992, where he played a successful obstetrician, Cliff Huxtable, living in a townhouse. Became the highest rated situation comedy of the late 1980s, a program over which he had complete creative control. Less of a cultural factor in films, beginning in 1972 with Man and Boy. Amassed a huge fortune, becoming one of the richest entertainers in America through his various endeavors, including serving as spokesman for Kodak and Jello, although always worked towards a more egalitarian society in all his endeavors. Took a break from his career and earned a Ph.D. in education, and sponsored scholarships for deserving students. 4 residences, several highly successful books and record albums, an industry unto himself. His only son, Ennis, was murdered in a robbery, after he had been transliterated into a national character via his father’s television show. At the same time, he was sued by a putative daughter trying to extort money from him. Used the tragedy as a healing spur, declaring his son, who had overcome a learning disability, to be his hero, while continuing to perform and do fund raisers at black colleges, despite his profound loss. A return to TV in the 1990s proved less successful, although he has still found success on the printed page, while transliterating his successful books into shows and movies. Forced to monitor his health more carefully, including giving up cigars after a thirty year habit, while becoming more curmudgeonly as he has aged, with a particular distaste for the foul-mouthed generation of comedians who followed him. Accusations of sexual misconduct would also dog him, clouding his otherwise upright image, and in 2006 he settled out of court with a woman who said he had drugged and taken advantage of her several years earlier, after several more women came forward with similar charges. Inner: Droll, articulate trail-blazer, whose easy public persona helped make him a bridge figure twixt black and white worlds, emphasizing the commonality of both. Strong desire for self-improvement, and improving the racial and social climate around him. Seen as greedy and arrogant by some, and an irrelevant scold by others, but loved by far more. Mixed lifetime of achieving immense popularity for his charming character, while trying to expand his skills at expression and his own strong vision of the way things should be, only to have to deal with tragedy and aspersions on his character, later on in life. George Washington Cable (1844-1925) - American writer. Outer: Father was a businessman from an old slave-holding family of Virginia, mother was a strait-laced Puritan. His sire suffered continual reverses, finally dying when his son was 14, leaving him as head of the household. Small and frail, nevertheless, he served the Confederatcy during the Civil War, where he was a daring soldier. Used the time to educate himself, but was wounded in the left arm during the conflict. Returned penniless to New Orleans, where he was an errand boy before studying civil enginerring. Worked as a surveyor afterwards, but was incapacitated for 2 years by malarial fever, during which time he wrote. Married Louise Bartlett in his mid-20s, 7 children from the union. Became a writer and reporter for the New Orleans Picayune, but was dropped when he refused to review theatrical performances, and subsequently found work as an accountant for a cotton manufacturer. A restless desire for self-improvement, had him up at 4 in the morning, studying. His short stories of New Orleans life began to appear in his late 20s, and were later collected and published as "Old Creole Days," which was recognized as an American classic, showing him to be a writer of great freshness and charm. Intensely active in many fields, he held a strong moral opposition to slavery and class distinction. His outspokenness eventually caused him to move to Northampton, Mass in his early 40s, where he focused his writings on social evils and the unfortunate situation of freed former slaves. Read from his own works and often gave lecture performances, making tours with writer Mark Twain (Kurt Vonnegut). Preferred the use of dialect in his fiction. His later works were largely romances that did not evoke his earlier charm and power. The 20th Century left him behind, and he struggled financially towards the end of his life, with his daughter helping support him. Following his wife’s death in 1904, he wed Eva Stevenson in 1906, and outlived her as well. His third and final marriage was to Hannah Cowing in 1923, two years before his death. Inner: Optimistic, cheerful. Continually driven towards self-improvement. Strong empathy with the disenfranchised and dispossessed. Liberal lifetime of delineating the life of a minority American group from a majority perspective, while reinventing himself as a public figure of considerable influence, before immersing himself far more deeply in his concerns the next time around in this series. William Dunlop (1766-1839) - American dramatist. Outer: Father was a former color bearer and soldier who ran a small store. Only child, injured and lost sight in his right eye as a boy, which brought his schooling to an end. His sire was a loyalist during the revolutionary war period, and had to move his family to NYC. Became a portrait painter, despite his handicap, after having taken art lessons. His progenitor became a prosperous China importer, and sent son to England to study under expatriate painter Benjamin West (Steven Soderbergh) there. His European experience turned him onto the potentialities of the theater. Returned to NYC and the stage, married in his early 20s, 2 children from union. His sire made him a business partner, when writing was not enough to support him. Achieved his first real success with his 2nd comedy, and then had a string of them afterwards, writing in the traditions of both Gothic romance and tragedy. Became a partner in the American Company, but struggles with fighting partners and financial losses caused him to abandon the enterprise. Ill health from yellow fever made him declare bankruptcy at 29 and forfeit his property. Went back to miniature portraiture, but was offered a job as general assistant to an actor, and took it for 5 years. Quit the theater a 2nd time, founded a short-lived magazine, then was assistant paymaster to the state militia for 2 years. Went back to painting and itinerant traveling, sending pictures out to exhibitions. Later was manager of the NYC Park Theater. Translated and adapted many French and German plays. Helped found and was secretary of the National Academy of Design. Also wrote his/stories of the American theater. His last years, he suffered both poverty and illness, but continued his active role as a writer. Died of paralysis after a stroke. First American to seriously pursue stage-writing. Inner: Enthusiastic, energetic, generous, abstemious and cheerful despite many hardships. Moderately talented, but very versatile. His ambitions were not complemented by talent, which he would redress in later lives. Roller-coaster lifetime of up-and-down ride in his public life, while suffering afflictions and periodic downfalls with good cheer.

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PATHWAY OF THE HUMORIST AS CYNICAL MORALIST:
Storyline: The jugular juggler has difficulty in extending his peculiar brand of wit and irony over a full entertainment lifetime, because of the more sophisticated demands he makes on a mass audience than his far less provocative contemporaries.
David Letterman (1947) - American comedian. Outer: Mother was a Presbyterian Church secretary, father was a florist, who had his first heart attack when son was 10, which gave his scion a lifelong fear of his own heart. The latter died in 1974. Middle of 3, with an older and younger sister. Grew up watching TV, and wanting to emulate fellow midwesterner, late night TV host, Johnny Carson. 6’2”. Received a degree in radio and TV at Ball State Univ., then worked for an ABC affiliate in Indianapolis for 5 years, and was also a TV bench announcer and radio disc jockey during that time. His clowning, however, was not overly appreciated by the stations. Married in his early 20s and divorced 8 years later. Went to LA in his late 20s with TV scripts which no one was interested in, then started doing improvisational comedy at a local club. Hired as a writer by comedian Jimmy Walker, who caught one of his performances. Wrote for several shows, including the Smothers Brothers, in the late 1970s, which was canceled by CBS for its political stances, making him leery of the network. Did some guest appearances, as well as doing a a low-rated summertime replacement called “Starland Vocal Band.” Came on the Johnny Carson show in 1978, and was soon a regular guest host. Signed to a contract by NBC, and an eponymous morning show followed in 1980, which won 2 Emmys, but no audience, and was quickly canceled. In 1982, he got a late night show, which followed Carson’s, in which he established himself as an offbeat imaginative wit, building a cult following among the college set for his acerb interviews and antics, including ‘stupid pet tricks’ and top ten lists. Expected to take over the Carson show on that entertainer’s retirement in 1992. When Jay Leno, another frequent guest host, was selected, instead, he signed a huge contract with CBS at Carson’s suggestion, and, based in NY, launched a competitive show to Leno’s. Despite early popularity, he eventually fell behind his rival in audience viewership, and remained that way for the rest of their dual dueling run, although unlike Leno, he would own his show, and thereby continually top him in yearly earnings, by several million dollars. Had a single shot as an embarrassing host for TV’s Academy Awards in 1995, during this period. His edgy comedy was not to everyone’s taste, forcing him to constantly reassess his need to be out there every night trying to entertain the nation-at-large. Keeps his theater at 55 degrees so that his audience will remain awake. Underwent heart surgery at the turn of the millennium, as a symbolic statement of not really having his heart in what he was doing, then returned to do endless jokes about his condition, while evincing a less acerbic persona. Had his special moment following the World Trade Center bombing in 2001, when he put into words the stark, emotional feelings of his viewers, then negotiated a longer contract with CBS, after flirting with leaving the station under the guise of not receiving enough respect from management. Continued suffering health problems, and then fathered a son with his longtime girlfriend, a production manager on his show, Regina Lasko, before the duo made if official in 2009. A decided misogynistic bent to his humor would lead to a contretemps with Gov. Sarah Palin after a particularly offensive slur about her daughter drew outrage from the latter, which he turned into a series of public mea culpas, and an attendant rise in ratings, allowing both sides maximum exploitation over the continued denigration of young women in American culture. His propensity for tabloid headlines would soon continue with the revelation of a $2 million extortion plot by a jealous TV producer over an affair he had with a staffer prior to his marriage who they were mutually pursuing, which led to more confessions and mea culpas as well as rating boosts, and little adverse affect on his career. Inner: Cynical, biting wit. Absolute perfectionist, looking to be letter perfect in a medium that invites the opposite. Obsessive-compulsive, consumed coffee and candy bars for a long time as a pre-appearance ritual in order to stoke himself for his show. Harbors a curious amount of self-loathing and great fear of failure, despite longterm success. Thin-skinned, with dualistic feelings about performing. Great fear of dying from a heart attack in his 50s, as his father did. Total identification with his work, so that the women in his private life have also been involved with his show. Protected heart lifetime of dealing with the issue of longevity as a highly public comedian, before exploring fatherhood deep into maturity as a way of reopening himself back up again. Ellis Parker Butler (1869-1937) - American humorist and writer. Outer: Descended from John Alden (Marilyn Quayle) and members of the Mayflower Company. One of 4 children, with a sister and two brothers. Along with a brother, he created a family newspaper, which was tacked to the woodshed door. Published his first story at the age of 13 in his Sunday School periodical. Left school at 17 to work as a bill clerk in a local spice mill, followed by a similar position in a crockery store and then a grocery store. In 1888, he had a 43 part parody published in the local paper, using the nom de plume of Elpabu. Got his first payment for his efforts in 1896 from Century magazine, and the following year he moved to NYC, and got a job for $15 a week as an editor for an interior decorating magazine. Returned home to marry Ida Zipser in 1899, 5 children from the union, including a pair of twin daughters. The next year, he and a partner, established Upholstery Dealer and Decorative Furnisher Magazine, a monthly publication, while penning his only serious tome, “French Decorative Styles.” Best remembered for his short story, “Pigs is Pigs,” in which a pair of shipped guinea pigs keep multiplying, while their owner argues with a bureaucratic freight agent, over whether the livestock rate for them is applicable. It first appeared in magazine form in 1905, and then became a book, while its title would forever be appended to his name. Continued writing in a humorous vein and publishing books throughout the decade, and was able to sell his interest in his magazine, and take an extended stay in Paris with his family, while sight-seeing around Europe. Bought a home replete with a barn in Queens, NY, a rustic suburb of NYC at the time, which he dubbed “the Butler’s Pantry.” In 1912, he launched the Authors’ League of America, which helped writers with copyright and taxation issues, and over which he served numerous terms as president. Became v-p of a local bank in 1913, and spent the rest of his working life as a banker, while taking a very active part in his community, particularly the Democratic party, making his enormous output even more remarkable. Went to Southern California in 1919 for an extended stay with his family, while one of stories was filmed there. Ultimately rose to director of the Flushing National Bank in 1930, as well as president of the Flushing Federal Savings and Loan Association five years later. The following annum he retired and moved to a small town in Massachusetts, where he had been spending his summer in order to live the life of a country gentleman. Died of cancer complicated by diabetes. Ultimately authored more than 30 books and over 2000 short stories, to win the accolade as the most published figure of the pulp fiction era. Inner: Avid lifelong stamp collector, and clubman, leading a very social, community-oriented existence. Good-humored lifetime of satisfying both his material and creative needs, through a balancing of his books and his books, before returning to focus on his performing side, with his sardonic sense of absurdity intact, and his character ever deeper and darker, per the demands of a highly competitive existence lit by the klieg lights of fame. Artemus Ward (Charles Farrar Browne) (1834-1867) - American journalist and humorist. Outer: Father was a lumber merchant and member of the state legislature. Apprenticed to a printer, he worked for an older brother, then moved to Boston, to labor as a compositor on a humor magazine. Added an ‘e’ to his last name, and became a wandering journeyman printer in the south and the west. Served as a reporter, then city editor of the Cleveland Plain Dealer. While working there, he invented the character of Artemus Ward, a carnival manager who commented on current events in a misspelled New England dialect. At first Ward’s ruminations merely served as filler material, but as they gained popularity, he took more care in their composition. Sallow, thin, sad-looking. Went to NYC in 1860, and joined the staff of Vanity Fair. His real fame came from his deadpan lectures, beginning in 1861, which made him into an enormously popular figure and household name. An ardent unionist, but TB stopped him from enlisting in the Civil War. Went west, then got sick returning through Utah and was nursed by a Mormon woman, which elicited an intense interest in Mormonism afterwards. Invited to lecture in England, and had great success there, but his body gave out and he died of TB. Left his property to found an asylum for printers, and for the education of their orphan children. Inner: Carried an innate unhappiness, but was a strong moralist and critic. Divided character lifetime of having his comedic gifts well-supported, and dying well before his act ran thin with the public.

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PATHWAY OF THE PERFORMER AS CEREBRAL ABSURDIST:
Storyline: The illogical logician gradually turns his slapstick sensibilities into more enduring art, while pondering the nonsensical nature of reality, thanks to a discordant upbringing, and the ability to finally see his way past it.
Steve Martin (1945) - American comedian and playwright. Outer: From a very undemonstrative family, father was a real estate executive who also acted in community theater, and took out his frustrations on his family, particularly his son and timid wife. Had a strict Baptist upbringing, and one older sister. Badly beaten by his father at the age of 9, for a minor indiscretion, which ended any kind of connection twixt the two afterwards. Because of his sire’s desire to entire show business, his family moved to Southern California when he was 10. Played the banjo, juggled and did imitations to amuse his classmates, while proving to be a popular albeit indifferent student, with the ability to make people laugh, despite an innate shyness. His hair started turning gray at 15. Sold guidebooks and did tricks at nearby Disneyland as a teenager, adding the banjo and comedy routines to his act, so that he was a featured performer at 16, calling himself ‘Mouth and Magic.’ Switched to neo-vaudeville review at Knott’s Berry Farm, where he honed his act, looking, above all else, for originality, in order to elicit laughs from surprise. Simultaneously majored in philosophy at CSU, Long Beach, intending to become a teacher, but switched after a year to UCLA, graduating with a degree in Theater Arts. Became a TV comedy writer for the Smothers Brothers, through a girlfriend, and won an Emmy in his mid-20s. Continued writing for others, while appearing on TV variety shows, before becoming a stand-up comic, creating a ‘wild and crazy guy’ persona of goofy bits, building his act on logic and illogic instead of normal routines, so that his antics would generate laughter rather than his jokes, which were largely nonsensical. Hugely successful with his peculiar brand of humor, he went on to do recordings and working in clubs, while frequently hosting “Saturday Night Live,” where he gained his national reputation as a white-suited pseudo-simpleton, although he eventually became drained through directly dealing with an audience, and started suffering panic attacks, as well as questioning what he was doing. Able to abruptly walk away from stand-up, in the early 1980s, after nearly two decades of it. Made his cinematic debut in his early 30s, in The Absent-Minded Waiter. Began working more in films, scripting and co-producing them as he became more successful, giving birth to a very physical blend of comedy, while continuing his unconscious role as professor of illogic to his appreciative audiences. Married his co-star of one, Victoria Tennant, in his early 40s, divorced 8 years later. Continued his success in films, playing and writing a variety of roles, as well as scrivening several one act plays. Appeared off-Broadway in Samuel Beckett’s “Waiting for Godot,” which got poor reviews, before writing his first full-length play in 1993, “Picasso At the Lapin Agile,” which was well-received. More emotional, confident and open in his written work as he has aged, although his choice of movie material, particularly after century’s turn, has been mired in mediocrity. Close friend of comedian Martin Short. An essayist for The New Yorker, he published a collection of saidsame, “Pure Drivel,” in 1998, while continuing with his film career. Finally able to affect a resolution with his dying father, when the latter admitted to being unable to express love towards him. Added novelist to his burgeoning resume with “Shopgirl,” at century’s turn, which he later turned into a starring turn in a film. In 2007, he married Anne Stringfield, a journalist nearly 3 decades his junior, reportedly wearing an Inspector Clouseau mustache for the occasion. Later that year, he published his autobiography, Born Standing Up, at the behest of his wife to unburden himself of his childhood. Co-hosted the 2010 Oscars with Alec Baldwin, to good effect. Inner: Shy, serious, private, polite, reticent and cerebral. Prey to romantic disconnections because of his upbringing, as well as a misplaced desire for solitude. Avid art collector, with a great need to be taken seriously, despite his comic persona. Probing lifetime of playing the absurdist logician for laughs, while trying to integrate his considerable comedic intellect with a heretofore suppressed predisposition for serious reflection, via a displaced father/son dynamic, which was finally healed. Lew Fields (Moisha Schanfield) (1867-1941) - American comedian. Outer: Parents were Polish immigrants, father was a tailor. One of at least 8 children. Grew up in poverty in rat-infested NY apartments. Met Joe Weber (Martin Short), 7 months his junior, as a youth, and together the two danced in the streets for money, then began performing in vaudeville, appearing together for the first time at 9. Began working at the same time as a soda jerk. Expelled from school at 11, along with Weber, for doing handstands in the hallways and Lancashire clog dancing in the classroom. During their teens, they perfected their routines, by building a dual slapstick career on spurious dialects, combining Yiddish, Dutch and German to create two characters named, ‘Mike and Myer.’ The tall one of the duo, while Weber was short and wore a stomach pillow. Audiences took great delight in his manhandling his shorter partner. Married Rose Harris in 1893, 3 children, daughter Dorothy became a lyricist, son Joseph became a playwright and librettist, and his other son, Herbert, was a writer as well. Pioneer with his partner in creating variety shows. Owned their own music/hall, used chorus lines, ran clean family shows, and had the biggest guest stars of the day. In their late 30s, they decided to split up. Opened his own theater and became a theatrical producer, while making solo appearances in the productions of others. Reteamed again in their late 40s for a couple of stage productions and films, but their 2nd partnership was less steady, and a lot of friction existed over business decisions. Had a greater need than his partner to remain in the spotlight, and he continued his film and stage work until his mid-60s. Played himself in a biopic on Lillian Russell (Lauren Bacall). Burdened with heart problems, he died of pneumonia with his partner by his bedside. Inner: Once again, a serious comic, using slapstick and accents as his main means of comedic expression, while his children acted out his innate intellectuality. Innovative, with a strong need to both perform and be in control of his life. Part of a transcendental comic duo whose reputation and popularity have continued to live after them. Vaunted vaudeville lifetime of humble beginnings in order to recreate himself as a mass audience comedian, while playing off a partner in his ongoing role as teacher of the absurdities of life. William Burton (1804-1860) - English/American playwright and comedian. Outer: Father was a London printer and religious tract writer, grew up in a highly religious household, although probably had extremely mixed feelings about his ultimate calling. Destined for the Church, but his father died when he was 18, and he had to leave school to run his printing business. Did amateur plays, married an actress at 19, divorced and later remarried Caroline Glessing, a Londoner. The first union produced a painter, while the second yielded 3 daughters. Joined a professional company at 20. Spent his apprenticeship working the provinces for 6 years, then made his London debut in his mid-20s. Accepted an offer to come to America in his late 20s, and made his American debut the same year in Philadelphia, where he spent 4 years, playing and also writing magazine sketches. Associated with actor Charles Burke (Martin Short) during this period. Started “Gentleman’s Magazine” in his mid-30s, a monthly which lasted 3 years, with writer Edgar Allen Poe (Patti Smith) one of its editors the last annum. The duo, however, did not get along. Made his NY debut at the same time, then managed 2 Philadelphia theaters, as well as one in Baltimore and one in Washington. Acted constantly, evincing endless energy for his craft. Opened Burton’s Theater in his mid-40s, which came to be NY’s most popular stage venue for 8 years. His theater alternated classics with broad comedy, and also served as a training/ground for actors. Later moved to a larger house uptown, but it lost the sense of intimacy of the original. Wrote two domestic farces. Toured America, working constantly, until his death of heart disease. Inner: Born comedian, with a joyous, hearty nature, which found its spirituality in performing. Painstaking, intelligent impersonator, also an idealist. Collected a considerable library and enjoyed a reputation as both a gentleman and a scholar, despite being a ruthless businessman, who tried to force rival companies into bankruptcy. Multi-faceted lifetime of giving voice to his many talents, before zeroing in on sheer comedy the next go-round, in order to give depth to his ongoing absurdist view of the world, while doing battle with his own heart, an ongoing concern of his, both physically and emotionally.

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PATHWAY OF THE PERFORMER AS LONG-LASTING SHORT FOIL:
Storyline: The zany impressionist allows his optimistic nature to transcend life’s vicissitudes, while thoroughly enveloping himself in his ongoing need to brighten the lives of others through his irrepressibly entertaining persona.
Martin Short (1950) - Canadian/American comedian. Outer: Father was an Irish immigrant and the vice-president of the Steel Company of Canada, mother was a concert violinist with the Hamilton Symphony. Youngest of 5, including 3 brothers, one of whom became a comedy writer. Close, warm, funny crew. One brother was killed in an auto accident when he was 11. His mother died of cancer when he was 17, father 2 years later from a stroke, although he was able to deal with the losses. Like his name, short, 5’8” and wiry. Attended McMaster Univ., initially as a pre-med student, which he found too difficult, and eventually got a degree in social work, while performing. Worked with the mentally retarded for a year, as an unconscious way of exploring his own offbeat sense of the world, then plunged into show business as a fulltime career. Won a part in the Canadian production of “Godspell,” dated cast member Gilda Radner for a while, then married Nancy Dolman, her understudy in his late 20s, 3 children, and moved to Los Angeles. Joined the Second City improv group in his mid-20s, then went on to do sitcom work, before returning to Canada to appear on SCTV, where he built his zany reputation. Spent a season on “Saturday Night Live,” in 1984-1985, and was best known for his tufted-hair geek, Ed Grimley. Good impressionist, built up a further reputation on talk shows with his imitations. His film career, which began in 1979 with Lost and Found was less successful, although prolific, perhaps because he became embedded in the audience’s mind through his TV characterizations. Made his Broadway debut in his early 40s. Has worked numerous times with comedian Steve Martin and remains a close friend of his. Won a Tony in 1998 for a revival of “Little Me.” Began a TV talk show celebrating celebrity in 1999, although it had difficulty in finding its audience, and was moved around quite a bit, before being cancelled. Fared far better with an unscripted talk show satire centered around a fat-suited character named Jiminy Glick, whose density knew no bounds. Also penned his own show, “Martin Short: Fame Becomes Me,” in a further send-up of the egomania of show business, despite his own modest and good-humored sense of self. Lost his wife of 30 years in 2010, after a bout with cancer. Inner: Social, upbeat, strong show business sensibilities. Despite familial losses, no sense of being a comic to compensate for life’s bitter blows, rather a feeling of being blessed for having a good sense of humor, and an existence that reflects it. Good-humored lifetime of going solo in his ongoing exploration of his ability to entertain, after transmuting a deep sense of loss through family members, as well as his own desire to heal through laughter. Joe Weber (Moisha Weber) (1867-1942) - American comedian. Outer: Parents were Polish Jewish immigrants, father was a kosher butcher. One of the youngest of 17 children. Grew up in poverty in NYC. Met Lew Fields (Steve Martin), as a youth, and together the two danced in the streets for money, then began performing in vaudeville, making their initial appearance at 9. Began working at the same time in a cigarette factory. Expelled from school along with Fields at 11 for disruptive mischief-making and focused immediately thereafter on their potential for a show business career. During their teens they built a dual slapstick career on spurious dialects, combining Dutch, German and Yiddish to create two characters named, ‘Mike and Myer.’ The short one of the duo, he wore a goatee and pillow stuffed under his coat, and usually got pummeled by Fields in their routines. As their reputations grew, both became pioneers in creating variety shows. Hired the biggest stars of the day, had a chorus/line, and geared themselves towards a family audience. Married Lillian Freedman at 30, no children. The duo split up in their late 30s, where he became a producer in his own theater, earning a considerable amount of money. Re-teamed 8 years later, but they had continual friction over the business end of their partnership, with economic differences coming to redefine their long friendship. Content as a producer, rather than a performer, he continued to put on shows, but as he grew older he saw his investments erode. At his partner’s bedside when he died, and passed away less than a year later after a two month illness from arteriosclerosis. Money for his burial had to come from the actor’s fund. Inner: Willing stooge to his longtime partner’s dominating physical brand of comedy, although unwilling to allow that dominance to drift over into their combined material life. Transcendental comic duo whose reputation and popularity have continued to live after them. Self-inventing lifetime of extremely humble beginnings, and re-creation, through partnership, as a powerful entertainment force, while having far less of a need than his cohort to remain stage center once they decided to go their separate ways. Charles Burke (1822-1854) - American comedian. Outer: Father was an actor and dramatist of some repute. Mother was an actress of French ancestry, who remarried after the death of her first husband. Joseph Jefferson III (Jimmy Stewart) was his half brother. Began his career in infancy, in a lifetime geared towards performing from the very beginning. At 14, he made his official stage debut with Junius Brutus Booth (Johnny Depp). Began by singing comic songs, which were popular throughout his career. Toured with the Jefferson family through the West and the South. Came back East in his mid-20s, and became associated with comic/playwright William Burton (Steve Martin) in theaters in Philadelphia and NYC. Married Margaret Murcoyne, then after she died, remarried a widow, Mrs. Sutherland. His step-daughter from the union took his name and had a brief career of her own Slender, graceful and lithe, with a plain but expressive face. Effortless artist, who died in his early 30s, after literally spending his entire existence on the stage. Inner: Kind-hearted, born performer. First-act-only lifetime of exploring various means of theatrical expression, before exiting early in order to focus completely on his comic sensibilities through partnership with his longtime brother of the stage.

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PATHWAY OF THE PERFORMER AS UNHOUSE-BROKEN PARTY ANIMAL:
Storyline: The self-slashing samurai wields his warped sword on himself, in a dubious effort to make amends for his hidden murderous antics and unabated need to be the life and death of the party.
John Belushi (1949-1982) - American comedian. Outer: Parents were Albanian immigrants, father ran a Chicago restaurant. Viewed as the special child of their brood of 4. Younger brother Jim also became an actor. Extremely aggressive as a child and a constant disciplinary problem in school. Good athlete, was on his high school wrestling team as well as serving as captain of the football team. Also sang in a rock band, and later married his high school steady, Judy Jacklin in 1976. 5’8’, heavy-set and darkly-featured. Dropped out of the Univ. of Michigan, and in his early 20s, joined Chicago’s improvisational Second City comedy troupe for 2 years, before appearing off-Broadway in “Lemmings.” Became a writer, director and performer on the “National Lampoon Radio Hour,” as well as its off-Broadway offshoot, the “National Lampoon Show.” One of the original cast members of TV’s endless “Saturday Night Live” where he specialized in highly aggressive, angry comic characters, most notably a Greek diner chef who only cooked cheeseburgers and a psycho samurai warrior, the bit he had used to first get on the show. Often feuded with fellow cast members in a need to make his physical comedy style dominant. Formed ‘The Blues Brothers’ with close friend Dan Aykroyd, making a successful album with their take-off on rhythm and blues performers, which they later fashioned into a hit movie. Began his film career with his most popular portrayal, a non-stop party animal in Animal House in his late 20s. Despite his triumphs and popularity, his aggressive unchained nature needed a constant fueling of drugs to keep it going. Tried to branch out as a romantic lead in Continental Divide, but failed, which depressed him deeply. Continued his addictions and all-out self-destruction, with a constitution that seemed to be able to ingest virtually anything. After performing one night, then doing cocaine with Robin Williams and Robert De Niro, he was injected with a cocaine and heroin ‘speedball’ by his drug-connection female room/mate to help put him down for the night. Died in his sleep of an overdose. His life story was recorded in “Wired” by journalist Bob Woodward, which later became a film. Inner: Extremely aggressive and angry, the quintessential disruptive class clown. Driven, with a compulsive need to be wired and on all the time, and a feeling of immortality surrounding his excesses. Over-the-top lifetime of paying recompense for his taking of a life the previous time around while in party animal mode, by deliberately sacrificing his own in return. Roscoe ‘Fatty’ Arbuckle (1887-1933) - American comedian. Outer: Named after politician Roscoe Conkling (Michael Dukakis). Weighed 16 lbs at birth. His father thought he was illegitimate and beat him constantly. Grew up in a poverty-stricken family, and moved with them to California before he was 2. At 8, he made his performing debut in blackface. After his mother died in 1899, his father abandoned the family. Survived by doing odd jobs in a hotel in San Jose, winning an amateur contest in the process, which set him on a show business career. In his teens, already well over 250 lbs, he began laboring as a plumber’s assistant, before working in carnivals and joining a vaudeville troupe as a singer and dancer. 5’10”. Despite his heavy frame, he was remarkably agile, and able to earn a good living as a highly physical comic. Hired by the Selig Polyscope Company in his early 20s as an extra in their one-reelers, beginning with Ben’s Kid in 1909. Married comedienne Minta Durfee the same year, after meeting her on a streetcar, the duo separated a decade later, and were divorced in 1925. In his mid-20s, he joined the Mack Sennett (Quentin Tarentino) crew and soon became top banana in the Keystone comedies, using his inventive, puckish personality to create a memorable screen persona, of a sensualist gone amok. Came into his own after he left Sennett, and began writing and directing his own films from his late 20s onward, showing a good deal more sophistication than his earlier slapstick efforts. Eventually set up his own production company. A wild partyer and heavy drinker, he showed little inhibition in his ongoing pursuit of fun both on and off-screen, as he ballooned to over 300 pounds. At the height of his fame in his mid-30s, he threw a party at a San Francisco hotel to celebrate signing a huge contract with Paramount, where he sexually assaulted a young starlet named Virginia Rappe (Anna Nicole Smith) with a champagne bottle, and she died a few days later of a ruptured bladder. The actual events remain clouded, since Rappe was notorious for loose living, and her demise had been used by others to get money out of him. Charged with manslaughter, he went through 3 trials, the first 2 ending in a hung jury, before being acquitted the 3rd time, but his career had suffered a fatal blow because of the sensation surrounding the incident, combined with the indignation of the American public that Hollywood had gone amok. His public turned against him, and he was forced to retire from films as a performer. $200,000 in debt because of court costs, he returned to vaudeville, slowly winning back the appreciation of the crowds who had come to see him, although also taking to drink more and more to drown his sorrows. Through friends, he returned to films as a director, working under the name of William B. Goodrich, which were his father’s first and middle names. Despite his success as a director, he had a desperate need to perform, and went to Europe to do so, but his reputation had already preceded him there. Publicly begged in a national magazine to be given a 2nd chance to do the one thing he loved above all else, entertain other people. Died of a heart attack in his sleep a year after his return, despite a successful re-entry into films, and a new contract to do more. Inner: Surprisingly shy off-camera when not under the influence of alcohol. Dualistic character, part prude, part libertine, two people co-existing in one large body, with the latter ultimately deciding his fate. Barrelhouse lifetime of a great need for public love, with a totally unintegrated sense of himself and an equal disregard for moderation in anything he did, which ultimately destroyed him. Joe Cowell (Joseph Leatherly Witchett) (1792-1863) - English/American comedian. Outer: Joined the Royal Navy as a sailor, and struck a superior officer while at sea, but acquitted himself on the journey back to England and was never court-martialed. Quit the Navy, and took to the stage in 1812, where he became a versatile player of low comedy. Also a scene painter. Married in his mid-20s, wife died 7 years later. Emigrated to America in his late 20s and joined the company at the Park Theater, where he continued his craft for the next 20 years, as well as traveled on the Eastern Seaboard and the Ohio and Mississippi river valleys. His 2nd marriage was in his early 30s, wife died about 2 decades later. His final marriage was in his mid-50s. Garnered a modest reputation for his craft, which was unoriginal but more than adequate for the demands of the time. Inner: Blunt and plain-spoken, never taking himself particularly seriously. Had a strong resemblance to his future life as John Belushi, down to the raised eyebrow. Player of characters, rather than a creator of them, putting less stress on his own ongoing creativity, allowing him to complete his career, rather than being swallowed alive by it in later lives in this series. Relatively smooth-sailing lifetime of anti-authoritarian behavior which was channeled to good use on the stage, without his later self-destructing around it.

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PATHWAY OF THE PERFORMER AS AMIABLE, BIG-HEARTED BIG MAN:
Storyline: The gentle giant continually puts himself in danger’s way because of his uninhibited appetites for the pleasures of the palate, sacrificing his heart and body for his inability to rise from the table until the last scrap is consumed.
John Candy (1950-1994) - Canadian/American comedian. Outer: Only child, father died of a heart ailment a few years after his birth, raised by his mother, aunt and grandparents. His mother was very attached to him, and he had to fight to untie her apron strings. Hefty from early life onwards, and fascinated with films as a child. Attended Roman Catholic schools, where he played hockey and football, and began performing in the 11th grade. 6’3”, 300 + lbs. Studied journalism and theater at Centennial College, then was a salesman, while working in children’s stage productions and underground theater. Had a problem with his excess weight since his early 20s. Met Dan Aykroyd in his early 20s, and at his suggestion auditioned for the Chicago Second City Troupe, which ultimately led, after his appearance in low-budget films, to SCTV in Toronto, where he learned his trade in sketches and skits through both writing and performing. The show was picked up by American TV, and he won two Emmys for it in the early 1980s. Rosemary Hobor, a potter, in 1979, daughter and son from the union. Became famous for his impressions and his characters, including the chain-smoking egotist, Johnny LaRue. Left TV when the show was cancelled and began his film career, scoring his breakthrough in a supporting role as a lovable lecher in Splash. Became a major star in his mid-30s with Planes, Trains & Automobiles, playing a boisterous, but lonely salesman. Lived far more quietly off-screen then on. Became one of the co-owners of the Toronto Argonauts football team, as soon as he began making big money in show business. Heavy smoker as well as hearty meat eater. Made his TV directorial debut in his early 40s, and seemed to be expanding his talents when he died from a massive heart attack in his sleep, while filming in Mexico. Inner: Relatively shy, modest, genial, gentle, big-hearted, well-loved. Spontaneous wit, unpretentious, with a remarkable ability to often transcend mediocre material. Unconsciously acted as a poster boy for the consequences of the unrestrained pursuit of unhealthy habits. Hungering lifetime of allowing himself free reign on his gargantuan, oral appetites to see where it would take his large, generous, albeit fragile heart. Mack Swain (1876-1935) -American comedian. Outer: Entered show business quite young, touring with minstrel shows, vaudeville troupes and stock companies. In 1899, he married Cora King. Spent some two decades on the stage, before joining the Keystone stable in his late 30s. 6’2”, 280 lbs. Started out as a support to Charlie Chaplin, playing his large size off the diminutive comedian as a heavy foil, before starring in his own series as an oversized lecher named Ambrose with a huge mustache and heavy make-up. Remained with Keystone for 4 years, then moved around to several studios, as his initial film career waned. Married. Rescued by Charlie Chaplin, who cast him in his most memorable role as prospector Big Jim McKay in The Gold Rush, in 1925, where in his hunger and delerium, he imagines Chaplin as an edible chicken. Played character parts and occasional leads in feature films, and then retired, before dying of a probable heart attack. Inner: Genial, modest, lovable. Large-framed lifetime, once again, of playing with the comic possibilities of a huge body, and once more being undone by his appetites and a heart that could not support his overblown physical frame. James Hackett (1800-1871) - American actor. Outer: Of English-Irish descent on his father’s side, and Dutch on his mother’s. The family was part of the NY’s Knickerbocker aristocracy. At 15, he attended Columbia Univ., but was forced to leave after a year because of ill health. In 1819, he married Catharine Lee Sugg, a former singing actress, one son from union, who became a noted jurist. Showed a proclivity for entertaining, by doing amateur impersonations. Tried various businesses, but couldn’t hack it, and when he lost his money in speculation, his wife returned to the stage, and ultimately died in 1845. The following year, 1826, he inaugurated his own theatrical career, and he quickly established himself via the eccentric parts he played. Particularly noted for his larger-than-life portrayal of Shakespeare’s Falstaff, which he successfully assayed in both England and the United States. In addition to acting, he also served as a manager. His wife At the time of the notorious Astor Place riots in 1849, between the fans of William Macready (Ralph Richardson) and Edwin Forrest (Marlon Brando), he was managing the theater. Acted only fitfully after 1855. In 1863, he published “Notes and Comments on Shakespeare.” The following year, he married again, and at life’s nearend, he fathered matinee idol James Hackett (William Shatner), although died when his son was only 2. Inner: Sturdy and handsome early on. Genial and charming. Encouraged American drama. Large-sized lifetime of being identified with Shakespeare’s heartiest appetited character, Falstaff, while acting as a cheerleader for the early American stage, in a go-through that saw him finish all the acts of his personal drama, rather than having it curtailed by bad health habits in his next two go-rounds.

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PATHWAY OF THE PERFORMER AS ONGOING COURT JESTER:
Storyline: The multi-talented merry andrew transmutes his earlier megalomania as comic to kings into an all-around career, winning enough love and approbation to allow him the full play of his eccentricities and release him from his ongoing centerstage view of himself.
Danny Kaye (David Kominski) (1913-1987) - American comedian. Outer: Youngest of three brothers of Russian immigrants. Father worked in NYC’s garment center as a tailor. A good athlete, he originally wanted to be a surgeon, but finances prohibited it. Dropped out of school at 13 and became a clowning busboy in the Catskill Mountains. Supported his show business ambitions as a soda jerk and insurance agent, although his ineptitude cost his company thousands of dollars. 6’, 160 lbs. Began entertaining at parties, then appeared in vaudeville and nightclubs as a triple threat entertainer, singing, dancing and making people laugh. Originally partnered with a straight man, he eventually became a single. Appeared in several educational shorts in his 20s, and made his Broadway debut in his mid-20s. Married a pianist, Sylvia Fine, in 1940, and his wife wound up writing much of his comedy material and also many of his songs, one daughter from the union. The following year he proved a show stopper by reeling off the names of 54 Russian composers in 38 seconds, so that his fast delivery would subsequently become one of his trademarks. Made his film debut in his early 30s in Up in Arms, and became a very popular star in a series of comedies that were tailored to his multi-talents. Producer Sam Goldwyn thought he looked too Jewish and lightened his hair from its natural reddish-brown. A winning personality, with an ability to do impersonations, as well as an all-around talent to entertain made him an international star. Had a particular appeal to the British, who loved his combination of sophistication and silliness, helping him enjoy record-breaking engagements at the London Palladium in his mid-30s, in an unconscious nod to lives past as court jester there. Often played meek characters that became emboldened by crises. Recorded many nonsense songs, with his gift for speed-talking gibberish. His popularity waned a decade later, and he began devoting more time to traveling tirelessly for UNICEF, entertaining children in developing countries, which made him a beloved figure around the globe. Given a special Oscar in 1954 for his unique talents, and in 1981 he was awarded the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award by the Motion Picture Academy. Only appeared sporadically in film after his mid-40s. From 1963-1967, he starred in his own variety series on TV, winning an Emmy for his efforts, and in his mid-50s he returned to Broadway to do a musical. In addition to his other talents, he was also a gifted musician, occasionally appearing as a mock guest conductor for several symphonies. Co-owner of the Seattle Mariners baseball team. Officially died of hepatitis and internal bleeding, after the transfusion of contaminated blood during quadruple bypass surgery 4 years previously, although it has been rumored that he succumbed to AIDS. After his death a biography revealed a 10 year affair between himself and actor Laurence Olivier. The duo would dress up as bride and groom for private parties. Had an understanding with his wife, who allowed him his alternate sexual nature. Inner: Born entertainer, sunny, charming, intelligent and as versatile sexually as he was in all other aspects of his life. Gourmet cook, translating his gift for free-flowing expression into most of the endeavors he undertook. Buoyant lifetime of comfortably exploring his eccentricities through a more permissive culture, after being forced into madness his previous go-round via Victorian restrictions on acting out nontraditional interiors. Dan Leno (George Galvin) (1860-1904) - English comedian. Outer: Parents were itinerant music-hall performers who played under the name of Mr. and Mrs. Johnny Wilde. His father was Irish with a marked accent, and trained his son as a tumbler and contortionist. The youngest of 6. Made his debut at the age of 4 as ‘Little George, the Infant Wonder, Contortionist and Posturer,’ and continued working the rest of his life on the stage. After his progenitor died, his mother married a performer whose stage name was Leno. A brother was also an acrobat. The family had an act for a while, before he re-emerged at the age of 9 as a single in Ireland. Became Dan Leno via a printer’s error. Toured as a clog dancer, and around the age of 20, established himself as a world champion in that art. 5’3”. Married Sarah Lydia Reynolds, a music hall singer, in 1883, and had a half dozen children. Made his London debut in his early 20s and in a few years, had won great success, often appearing with his wife. As a caricaturist, he mixed monologues and songs, and knew how to endear himself to audiences. Starred in Drury Lane in winter, and toured provincial music halls the rest of the year, exhibiting great drawing power. Called “the funniest man on Earth,” when he made his only U.S. tour in his late 30s, although he failed to live up to the expectations of that claim for his transatlantic audience. Began billing himself as ‘The King’s Jester,’ after appearing before Edward VII (Prince William) at century’s beginning. Wrote “Dan Leno: His Book,” in 1901. Honor and fame ultimately went to his head and he became unbalanced. Entering a mental institution the year before his death, he asked, “Is that clock right?” When told it was, he quipped, “Then what’s it doing here?” Fellow jester Peter Sellers claimed his spirit as a guiding force in his life. Died from brain paralysis. Inner: Born performer, with a multiplicity of gifts, and a great need to be stage center. Lavish, loved to paint, and lived to perform. Off-balance lifetime of acting out his ongoing role of jester, while allowing his billing to literally go to his head, before disappearing into his own mind as a result. Joseph Grimaldi (1778-1837) - English clown and pantomimist. Outer: From a multi-generational family of dancers and clowns. His father, Joseph Grimaldi (Eddie Murphy), known as Giuseppe, was also a balletmaster, who was noted for his grotesque humor and practical jokes, while his mother was a dancer and minor actress. First appeared on stage as a 3 year old child dancer at Sadler’s Wells, London’s most famous variety theater. Attended a boarding school in between seasons, while also performing at Drury Lane. When he was 9, his father died, leaving the family in debt, so that he became its prime support. Completely centered his subsequent life around the stage, playing a variety of pantomime characters while gradually building up a reputation as a master of pure physical expression. In 1799, he married the eldest daughter of one of the Sadler’s Wells proprietors, although she died a year later in childbirth, much to his great grief. Threw himself into performance afterwards, while also assaying straight dramatic parts, along with his comic portrayals, although it would his clowning and acrobatic skills that would draw the oohs and aahs of the audience. Made his clown debut in 1800, in a pantomime in whiteface with two red halfmoons on his cheeks, big red lips and dark arched eyebrows to create the enduring archetype for clowndom, and within a brief period, he became recognized as the king of painted English buffoons. Took the role out of its country bumpkin 16th century Italian commedia dell’arte roots, and made it into an all-purpose mocker of all things contemporary. His ‘Joey’ would go on to have an immortal life of its own, through the expertise of the many who would subsequently build on his characterization over the centuries. In 1802, he married an actress, Mary Bristow. Their son, Joseph Grimaldi (George Carlin), would enter the family profession, only to drink himself to death before ever realizing his potential. Played comic parts in both London and the provinces, and after terminating his association with Drury Lane, switched theatres to Covent Garden in 1806. His clown character would act out urban and Regency England’s excesses, while making fun of all aspects of British society. Seen as virtually possessed and demonic in some of his characterizations, due to his ability to project extremely exaggerated expressions. Showed an expertise at both patter and comic songs, to be a complete entertainer, working both with and without words. Despite gaining great fame and earning huge sums, he was also extravagant with a spendthrift’s total lack of any sense of money. By the early 1820s, he was becoming more and more disabled, so that he wound up giving his last performance in 1825. Could barely walk afterwards, and by 1828 he was penniless, thanks to his earlier improvidence, but a pension fund was set up for him, along with benefit performances. Oversaw the pantomimes and clowns at Sadler’s Wells afterwards, then suffered his son’s premature death in 1832. Spent his last years by the fireplace of a popular inn, before being carried home on the back of its landlord at each day’s end. His last eve unfolded in the exact same manner, and he died in his bed sometime during the night. His memoirs were published posthumously, and were edited by Charles Dickens (Richard Burton), whose earlier incarnation, David Garrick, had given his father his London start. In celebration of his extraordinary skills, on the first Sunday in February each year, hundreds of clowns from around the globe continue to give performances for children after memorial services are held for him in London. Inner: Had a great comic visual sense, and extraordinary timing, as well as an imaginative use of any and all props available to him. Little real connection to existence outside of performing, despite his genius for giving comic grace to all human foibles. Applause-besotted lifetime of giving his all for entertaining others, leaving little for himself at the end, an ongoing phenomenon it would take him at least two more go-rounds to correct, in his on-going desire to be the nonpareil all-around jester of his times. St. Genesius (?-c286) - Ethiopean/Roman actor and martyr. Outer: Life clouded in myth, and he may be a totally apocryphal figure. A comedian, he became the leader of a theatrical troupe in Rome. While performing in front of the emperor Diocletian (Alfried Krupp), pretending to receive the rites of baptism in order to mock them, he suddenly had an epiphany, seeing angels holding a book with his sins writ in it, and declared himself a Christian. The emperor had him tortured to recant his apostasy, but he refused, and subsequently was beheaded and died a martyr. Patron saint of actors, comedians, dancers and musicians, among others, with a feast day on August 25th, and a cult following. Inner: Mythic lifetime of blurring the distinctions between artifice and reality, and suffering the consequence for them, a posture he would, upon occasion, continue to play off of.

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PATHWAY OF THE PERFORMER AS CONSUMMATE RAP ARTIST:
Storyline: The jaundiced jester used the lubricants of his times as fuel for his sharp perceptions, serving as both a scold and a truth-sayer to those who enjoyed getting their perceptions from a self-proclaimed classical’ foole.'
George Carlin (1937-2008) - American comedian. Outer: From a family of 2nd generation Irish Americans. His mother left his father, an advertising salesman with a drinking problem, after his birth, younger of 2 brothers. Named after a crazy uncle. Grew up in Harlem, with his mother working as a secretary to support the family, after his sire died when he was 7. The former was a traditional Roman Catholic, with a strong personality, and an equally powerful sense of judgment about her son, which he would subsequently carry around. Although she wished him to be a sober businessman as a father replacement, his interests lay elsewhere. Spent a lot of time alone as a child, making him both introspective and critical of the world around him. Always had a love of language and all its possibilities, with the dictionary quickly replacing the Bible in his schema of things. Acted the role of class clown in a progressive parochial school, eventually quitting at the end of his sophomore year to join the Air Force as a radar mechanic, but was asked to leave. 5’10,” and lean. Initially wanted to be a musician. Became a disc jockey in New Orleans and then in Boston, where he teamed up at 20 with comic Jack Burns, but was fired for borrowing the news van for a marijuana run. The duo went to California, where comedian Lenny Bruce (Chris Rock) helped them find work. Did standard shtik and also experimented with off-the-wall routines. Went solo in his mid-20s, and soon became a TV regular with relatively inoffensive material. Married Brenda Hosbrook, a hostess at a club where he worked in 1963, daughter from union. Barely survived during this period, living out of his car and also with both sets of parents, while appearing on TV in a recurring role on “That Girl,” and doing some filmwork. Began pursuing comedy in the Lenny Bruce tradition in his early 30s, after being fired in 1969 for using a four-letter word at a Las Vegas hotel, where he was booed off the stage. Further enflamed audience sensibilities with a riff on the Vietnam War at the Playboy Club, establishing himself as an anti-establishment comedian. Grew his hair long, and turned to rock concerts for his venues and although he was less offensive than Bruce, he was arrested for disorderly conduct at a Milwaukee concert. The FCC fined a radio station for airing one of his routines, ‘’7 words you can never say on TV,’ a case that went all the way to the Supreme Court, which sided with the authorities, and he became a societal scold, brilliantly limning the ordinary in his routines, as well as the convolutions of language. Served as a tireless performer during the 1970s and early 1980s to continually receptive audiences, although cocaine abuse eventually led to a heart attack in 1978. His wife became an alcoholic, and his mother moved in with them in 1975, which exacerbated the situation. Near death when he checked into a detox center, while his mother moved out, and his family life became normal again. Suffered a 2nd heart attack, and was greatly relieved when his mother finally died at 89, feeling a mixture of sadness and freedom. Became more aggressive, born of a frustration for a movie career, which he finally fulfilled in the late 1980s. In 1992, he went back to his confrontational style of commentary, and 2 years later, he had a brief TV sitcom playing a NY cabbie. In the interim, he spent 15 years paying the IRS a $3 million debt. In 1997, his wife, who had been tremendously supportive of him, died of breast cancer, and he went back to performing full time as a way of dealing with his grief, hooking up with a much younger comedy writer, and doing some 150 shows a year, despite a third heart attack, or ‘event’ as he called them. Dubbed ‘The Grand Old Man of the Counterculture,’ by the New York Times, he continued his career unabated as a voice of comic reason in increasingly unreasonable times, despite growing more and more pessimistic and didactic. The author of 3 best-selling books, beginning with “Brain Droppings,” in 1997, which he constantly limned in notebooks, in a nonstop litany of telling observation and dark insight. Checked into rehab in 2004 over too much vino and Vicodin, in his ongoing struggles between acute addiction and equally penetrating perception. Performed up until life’s end and died in a hospital of a heart ailment, months before he was to receive the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor. Inner: Angry, highly observant, with an excellent ear for language and a telling eye for the details of a society run amok. Strong affinity for marijuana, rarely performed without it during his earlier career. Quiet private life, eschewing show business milieus. Lifted eyebrow lifetime of taking full advantage of more permissive times, to allow his perceptions and observations uninhibited release, while continuing to ply himself with the lubricants of his times to oil the brain droppings that continually fell from his deliciously irreverent mind, until his overamped heart finally did him in. Raymond Hitchcock (1865-1929) - American comedian. Outer: Spent his early working life unhappily pursuing a variety of trades, before switching to amateur theatricals. Joined a road company in his mid-20s, but the audience didn’t like him, much to his regret. 5’11”, thin, blond and blue-eyed. Worked for a shoe company for a year, then returned to the stage singing in a chorus for the Carleton Opera Company, playing minor characters in musical pieces. When the show’s star took ill, he took over for him. Other productions followed and he became a star, known affectionately as ‘Hitchy.’ His first real success was in “King Dodo.” Always looked half drunk on stage. Married one of his costars in 1905, a woman of Armenian ancestry who played under the stage name of Flora Zabelle and continued to appear in many of his shows. Made his British debut in his early 50s, then had a string of Broadway hits, with “Hitchy-Koo,” his greatest success in 1917. Famous for his curtain speeches, as a monologuist who would rap on any subject, thanks to a strong taste for alcohol, and an equally uninhibited mind. Invalided at life’s near end. Died several months after a heart attack, while returning from a morning drive with his wife. Inner: Bibulous, but continually able to perform in an altered alcoholic state. Avid reader, eccentric personality, lanky figure, mobile features, highly whimsical, good-humored. Lubricated lifetime of a fairly traditional show business career amplified by a taste for the grape, that gave rise to his unique well-oiled comic perspective, which he would explore far more freely in his next go-round in this series. Joseph Grimaldi (1802-1832) - English comedian and actor. Outer: Son of comedian and pantomimist Joseph Grimaldi (Danny Kaye), who would set the standard for pantomime and clowning on the 19th century English stage, and give him an extremely difficult model to try to live up to. Mother was an actress. Made his debut in 1814 as a pre-teen in “Robinson Crusoe,” and had his first considerable success playing Clown in a harlequin drama. Although he showed great promise in continuing his family’s multi-generational traditions, he also had an ineluctable draw towards the bottle, and wound up a victim of his own excess. Totally wild and out-of-control, he drank himself to an early grave, and died of delerium tremens, predeceasing his sire, who had grown prematurely old and infirm. Inner: Obliteration City lifetime of allowing his innate sense of self-destruction to far outstrip his creativity, as part of his ongoing struggle twixt his extremes to find the proper comic balance between them.

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PATHWAY OF THE PERFORMER AS OFF-COLOR WISEGUY:
Storyline: The supremely confident scatologician bides his time as second banana to a world-class comic brother, before returning determined to outdo the latter as a triple-hyphenated Hollywood mainstay.
Eddie Murphy (1961) - American comedian. Outer: Of African-American descent. Father was a policeman. His parents divorced when he was 3, and his sire died when he was 8. Placed in foster care with his brother, until his mother remarried. Raised in middle-class comfort afterwards, in a non-racially charged environment. His early idol was Elvis Presley. Began performing comedy routines in his mid-teens at local youth clubs and bars while still in high school. Worked the comedy club circuit after graduating, using sex and race as subject matter, but without any bitterness or anger. Came to national attention as part of the cast of TV’s “Saturday Night Live,” at the tender age of 19. 5’10”. His characterizations of black cultural types and irreverent wise-guy humor made him extremely popular, while his club and concert work was uninhibitedly obscene, as he fashioned his social commentary after Richard Pryor’s groundbreaking perceptions, without the experiential rancor behind them. Enjoyed his newfound wealth and fame, although remained under rein in his pursuit of even more comedic power. Made an easy transition into film in his early 20s, beginning with 48 Hours, for which he was paid $1 million, the first time anyone was remitted that much for a debut film, and became one of Hollywood’s top stars during the 1980s, thanks to Beverly Hills Cop and its sequels. Married Nicole Mitchell, a model in his early 30s, 5 children. Took his thin voice to records, although proved less popular as a singer, then began gearing his work towards black audiences, while appearing more hostile in his act to other minorities , women and homophiles in particular, and his audience, which remained enthusiastic, began to register numerous detractors as well, offput by his arrogance and insensitivity. His subsequent film career took a downturn through some poor choices in vehicles, although his supremely self-confident character remained a mainstay of all of them. His studio was also successfully sued for plagiarism by writer Art Buchwald for one of his films, Coming to America. Able to make a comeback with The Nutty Professor, while adding multiple-character portrayals to his oeuvre. Arrested for giving a ride to a transsexual prostitute in 1997, although able to explain his good samaritan deed away to his public. Wound up making more sequels than any other actor, while achieving the rare feat of having $100 million dollar movies in each of 3 decades. An acrimonious divorce in 2005, however, brought an unhappy termination to what had been viewed as a stable showbiz relationship, and he subsequently took up with a Spice Girl, Melanie Brown, only to see that end, too, with her pregnant and the paternity at issue, to which he finally admitted, and willingly supported, although denied a mutual plan to start a family with her. Nevertheless, continues to mine box office gold with his comedies and his ability to infuse even stereotypical characters with a life all their own. Wed Tracey Edmonds, the ex-wife of producer Kenny “Babyface” Edmonds, in 2008 in a non-binding ceremony in the South Pacific, only to announce two weeks later that they would not make the union official, signaling an end to it. Inner: Disciplined, manic depressive, but extremely well-grounded, with a good business sense. Anti-drug and alcohol and well-socialized. Strong desire to imitate Charlie Chaplin’s complete control of his entertainment life, as producer, star and director. Mostly a one-man show in his films, letting his shtik prevail, rather than making noticeable connection with any of his costars. Act Two lifetime of coming back into an era that allowed his scatological comic consciousness freer reign as one of latter day Hollywood’s kings of comedy. Sydney Chaplin (Sydney Hawkes) - English comedian and manager. Outer: Mother, Hannah Hill (Amy Winehouse) was minor music hall star, who performed under the name Lily Harvey. Father was a conman who seduced his mother to go to South Africa with him and pimped for there among the gold miners. Pregnant with her first son, she returned to England to resume her career and marry Charlie Chaplin, Sr., a fellow entertainer. Older half-brother of legendary comedian Charlie Chaplin. Took on his stepfather’s name, and after his mother’s syphilitic descent in madness, he grew up in poverty in orphanages and on the streets of London, while attending several schools. His mother would have one more son, Wheeler Dryden, although he would be raised by his father. 5’’7 1/2”, 150 lbs.Joined the Navy as a young teen, then afterwards, went on stage as a member of the Fred Karno company, and brought his brother into the troupe. Considered the funnier of the two in their stage incarnations, although could not successfully make the transition into films. Most of his humor was off-color and too risqué for the screen. His brother brought him over to Hollywood after his own initial success, but he never found a distinctive screen character for himself. Appeared with his hair parted down the middle and comic costumes, but was often censored by his directors. Became his brother’s business manager, instead, proving himself far more adept in that arena, securing for him substantial contracts. Played occasional roles later on in his sibling’s silent films, as well as sometime leads and supporting roles. In 1919, he created America’s first domestic airline with a pilot partner, although it only lasted a year, despite a number of ‘firsts’ to its credit. A sex scandal in which he was accused of biting off the nipple of actress Molly Wright in 1929, was paid off by his British studios, and by the following year, he declared himself bankrupt. Never got American citizenship, and after raising the ire of the IRS, returned to England in the late 1920s, and spent the rest of his life there. His first wife died in 1936 after surgery for breast cancer, and he remarried a woman known as ‘Gypsy.’ Remained close to his sibling throughout his life. Died on the Riviera on his brother’s 76th birthday, and supposedly his wife soon followed him, expiring from a broken heart. Inner: Raunchy, earthy, lecherous, slightly before his time in what audiences could accept in their performers. Excellent business sense, well-grounded. Frustrated lifetime of playing second banana to his far more adaptive half-brother, while learning what it takes to become a singular all-around star in control of his career for his next go-round. Joseph Grimaldi (Guiseppe Grimaldi) (1733-1788) - Italian/English comedian. Known as ‘Iron Legs.’ Outer: Life ill-recorded. His fatherwas Giovanni Grimald, who was well-known in Ital a Frace. Became both a dancer and clown, and wound up as paterfamilias for a multi-generational family of entertainers. Built his reputation in France, then appeared initially in London as a balletmaster at Drury Lane, performing for David Garrick (Richard Burton). Married Rebecca Brooker, a dancer who also filled in with utility parts. Father of Joseph Grimaldi (Danny Kaye), who would become the most famous clown of his age. Began his family’s connection to the Sadler’s Wells theater and company, and his son performed with him as a child. Died when the latter was 8. Inner: Notorious for his grotesque and often obscene humor, as well as being a practical joker. Paterfamilias lifetime of being genetically connected to comic genius, just as he would his next go-round in this series, while evincing the same off-color humor that would not find its true audience until several centuries hence.

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PATHWAY OF THE PERFORMER AS FASTEST MIND IN THE WEST:
Storyline: The compleat alien relearns love, domesticity and the simple virtues of family life and turns himself into a soggy sentimentalist after many a go-round as a scathing scorner of ordinary sensibilities.
Robin Williams (1952) - American comedian. Outer: Mother had an excellent sense of humor and had always wanted to be a performer, while his father was a Lincoln-Mercury executive, who ultimately became disillusioned with the corporate world. Two much older half-brothers. Grew up in a rented 30-room mansion on 20 acres. Fat and lonely as a child, he often played alone with his 2,000 toy soldiers, giving them voices and personae. Tape recorded routines of his idol, comedian Jonathan Winters, and practiced them in the attic. Attended an exclusive boy’s school, and had an alienated childhood. Finally came out of his shell when his father retired and the family moved to Northern California and he attended regular high school his senior year, where he was voted, ‘Least Likely to Succeed.’ 5’7”. Went to Claremont Men’s College to study political science, and found his metier in acting in an improv class. Got a full scholarship to the Juilliard School and trained with director/actor John Houseman. Left school in his final year to come back to San Francisco, and worked the comedy clubs. Married Valerie Velardi, a dancer in his mid-20s, one son from the union, divorced a decade later. Moved to Los Angeles, began appearing on TV sitcoms, and scored his own first breakthrough as an alien on “Mork and Mindy.” Began working in films in his mid-20s, slowly gaining the discipline and also the breadth of performance to become an extremely popular movie star in such vehicles as Dead Poet’s Society and Good Morning, Vietnam, despite initial limited acting abilities. Became involved with cocaine in his early 30s, which rendered him both paranoid and impotent. The death of John Belushi, after being one of the last people to see him alive, straightened him out. Continued as a comedian with TV appearances and specials, exhibiting an extraordinary associative mind, an excellent ability at mimicry and a deep-seated sense of the ridiculous. An ongoing host, along with Billy Crystal and Whoopi Goldberg, for ‘Comic Relief,’ a fundraiser for the homeless. Divorced his first wife, and, in his late 30s, married Marsha Garces, his son’s nanny, well after she had left his employ, daughter and son from the union. Later formed a production company with her, Blue Wolf Productions, scoring a big hit with their first outing, Mrs. Doubtfire. Although prone to excessively sentimental vehicles in his later career, he was able to maintain his popularity as an endearing healer through laughter and shrewd observation, at the sacrifice of his earlier anarchic humor. After the millennium, he began playing darker roles while returning to stand-up, with a far greater interest in his ultimate comedic legacy. Following 20 years of sobriety, he stumbled briefly off the wagon in 2006, before checking into rehab to right himself again, although his marriage faltered in the process and finally ended in 2008. After his older brother died of complications following heart surgery in 2007, two years later, it was announced, he would also need similar surgery to replace his aortic valve. Inner: Zany, domestic, extremely perceptive, politically liberal. Ironically warm and fuzzy in his screen portrayals of family life, after his earlier existence of profound anti-domesticity. Largely hidden and inaccessible, far more interested in pleasing an audience, than challenging it. Also garnered a reputation as a joke thief, and has won the enmity and jealousy of numerous comedians. Turn-around lifetime of rising from extremely comfortable, albeit lonely circumstances, to challenge for the title of world heavyweight comic champion of his time, and then sacrifice his sensibilities for feel-good treacle, before trying to expand again in middle age. W.C. Fields (William Claude Dukenfield) (1880-1946) - American comedian. Outer: Father was an illiterate cockney immigrant vegetable-seller. Disliked his bullying progenitor, close to his American mother, who shared his nose and his cynical wit. Oldest of 5. Had a middle-class upbringing, although later reinvented himself, claiming to have run away from home after a fight with his father and living on the hard streets. Quit school after 4 years to help with his progenitor’s business. Began juggling at 9, practicing with his father’s vegetables, and was first hired at 14 to do the same at an amusement park. 5’8” 160 lbs. Worked as a carnival grifter, card sharp and patent medicine hawker, before doing smalltime burlesque and vaudeville, beginning in 1898 as a tramp juggler. Married at 20 to Harriet Hughes, a member of a burlesque company. The couple had one son, and the union never offically dissolved, but was over when he started straying with chorines. His Roman Catholic wife refused to divorce him and turned their son against him. By his early 20s, he was playing London and Paris, using self-mockery as his primary shtik, with his wife introducing his act. Made his Broadway debut in his mid-20s, and a decade later he did a silent film short, wearing a paste-on mustache. Never spoke on stage until his mid-30s. During the next decade, he solidified his reputation with the “Ziegfeld Follies,” and then topped himself as a Broadway star in a musical comedy in his early 40s, returning to the screen in an adaption of the play 2 years later. Had an illegitimate son with a Ziegfeld showgirl. Appeared in a number of silent films, but did not come into his own in that medium until the advent of sound, when his curiously punctuated speech patterns, and muttered asides, which were derived from his mother, made him a distinctive screen personality. Also used some of his stage oeuvre, particularly his Follies’ sketches as part of his filmwork. Played his only serious role in his mid-40s, as Mr. Micawber in David Copperfield. Rarely went a day without downing two quarts of gin, although his work was never impaired by his drinking, until career’s near-end. Combined nasty, petty sensibilities with comic grandeur to create a unique ongoing character for himself, full of Victorian locutions, and a genuine loathing for any and all pathos and sentiment, as well as all authority. As a master stylist, he was able to transliterate the drunken state into hilarious routines. Became a hugely popular film star in the 1930s, often working with Mae West, who abhorred him. Best remembered for The Bank Dick and My Little Chickadee. Wrote the screenplays for many of his films, often working out his pet peeves through comic exaggeration and excessive mean-spiritedness. Had a profound distrust of bankers, and he frequently deposited tiny amounts in the various banks across the country in towns he played, rather than one big sum in one big bank. Had 700 savings accounts at one point, and constantly thought people were stealing from him. Disintegrated from drink at the end of his career, and was barely able to remember his lines. Died from a violent hemorrhage, dropsy and other ailments, fittingly on Christmas day. His longtime mistress Carlotta Monti wrote his biography, “W.C. Fields and Me.” Two decades after his death, he became a cult figure to a whole new audience. Inner: Anti-authoritarian, anti-sentimentalist, with the ability to skewer sacred American sensibilities and still be well-loved for his contumely. Lonely, good-natured, calm. Felt pain was central to humor. An avid reader, he had numerous literary friends, and ultimately amassed a huge classical library. Serious gardener, serious drinker, would start downing martini cocktails from the time he woke up. His humor was entirely situational and non-political. Petulant lifetime of working out his bitterness and acerb wit through acting out, and being accepted for who he was, allowing him to return in far more integrated, albeit equally lonely, form to deal with his deep-seated sense of alienation from the norm. Samuel Foote (1720-1777) - English actor and playwright. Outer: Father was a magistrate, and an MP, as well as a onetime mayor of Truro. His mother was the daughter of a baronet, from whom she inherited a considerable fortune after one of her brothers murdered another. 4th son and 5th child, with a brother and sister dying in infancy. Showed himself to be a prankster and jokester from youth onwards. Attended Worcester College, Oxford, which he left without degree, much to the relief of his professors, who disliked being mimicked by him. Extravagant in college and afterwards, he wasted his entire fortune at coffeehouses. Short, fat and flabby. In 1741, he married Mary Hickes, a teenager, whose inheritance he decimated, sending both to debtor’s prison, after which she disappeared from his life. After one more short stint in debtor’s prison and squandering his inheritance by his mid-20s, he looked to the theater for his future survival. His initial efforts drew some applause, although his repertory roles failed to gain him employ with the companies in which he appeared, but he displayed his gift for mimicry, and soon found his audience through them. In his late 20s, he rented the Haymarket theater, assembled a company and presented a series of entertainments ridiculing fellow members of his profession, as well as the public personalities of his time. Styled his shows as ‘teas’ to avoid paying patents for public performances. Returned to the stage in his early 30s, although he was not successful in roles written by others, only his own continued ‘teas,’ and satires which depended on his adept mimicry and witty commentary on current events. Innovative and challenging to his audiences, as well as highly resourceful, he finally achieved financial independence in 1765, while continually feuding with rival acting and writing personalities. The following year, he fell from his horse, and had to have a leg amputated, a condition which he later exploited in 2 of his farces, “The Devil Upon Two Sticks” and “The Lame Lover.” The duke of York, who had been responsible for his accident, secured a life patent for him, allowing him to perform directly. Used sharp wit for venomous attacks upon others, which often aroused their ire, despite the merciless laughter they provoked, and was far too much of a buffoon to ever assay serious roles. Finally forced to quit the stage when agents of Elizabeth Chudleigh (Beryl Markham) whom he had satirized, went after him with such persistence, it stopped him from performing. Died after a shivering fit, with his last words, an appropriate lament, “What a fool I have been!” Left 2 illegitimate sons. Inner: Egotist, gourmand, thoroughly selfish with few redeeming traits. Direct and scathing satirist. A figure of both fear and merriment because of the power he held in his stinging verbal portraiture. Contumacious lifetime of exercising his verbal power to the fullest, without bothering to get in touch with his humanity, leaving him literally with barely a leg to stand on.

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PATHWAY OF THE PERFORMER AS HEARTY BIG MAN:
Storyline: The buoyant behemoth brings his extroverted effervescence to all he undertakes, while maintaining his good-natured, un-outsized sense of himself.
John Goodman (1953) - American actor. Outer: Father was a postal worker, who died when son was 2. Mother worked as a drugstore clerk to support her family of 3 children. Had an ultra-conservative upbringing. Initially shy, but he had a penchant for entertaining people, doing celebrity imitations. Played football at Southwest Missouri State, until a torn kneecap ended his athletic career, and turned him towards drama. 6’2”, and full-bodied, 250+ lbs. Struggled on and off with weight his entire life. Headed for NYC on graduation, despite family objections, after a brother gave him $1000 towards the trip. Worked off-Broadway, while supporting himself with menial jobs. Found support for what he was doing, and made his Broadway debut in Loose Ends in his mid-20s, as a replacement in a featured role, which led to commercials, more Broadway and character parts in TV and films, allowing him to be an actor full-time, and slowly build a reputation. Married Annabeth Hartzog, a fine arts student in his mid-30s, one daughter. Entered mass public consciousness with his role as the wise/ass husband Dan Conner, on the angry blue-collar TV comedy, “Roseanne,” at 36. Despite tensions upon the set, he spent 9 seasons with the show, reaping full benefit from the exposure, which made him a millionaire. Became in demand in films, starring in several vehicles, including a biopic of Babe Ruth. Has also worked repeatedly with the Coen Brothers, for whom he played his favorite role, the volatile Viet vet still at war with world, Walter Sobchak, in the cult classic, The Big Lebowski. Very unHollywood, lives in Louisiana, but is in continual demand for his large and good-humored presence, as well his ability to imbue his characterizations with the depth of his entertaining personality, although audiences found it a stretch when he played a homophile in TV’s “Normal, Ohio,” preferring more normal renditions of him. His subsequent forays into TV proved equally unsuccessful. Devastated by the aftershock of Hurricane Katrina, he turned to theater, and a natural role for him, ‘Big Daddy,’ in a reprise of “Cat on a Hot Tin Roof,” before returning to filmwork. Returned to his native New Orleans in 2010 in “Treme,” a cable series focusing on a post-Katrina neighborhood, where he plays a college professor. In the process he almost halved his near 400 pound frame, to reclaim his body as well his health. Inner: Extroverted, clever, well-liked, a good ole boy with a sharp wit. Sexy with a puppydog soul. Lovable rascal lifetime of putting his propensity for carrying around great weight onto a much larger frame, while building on his comedic repertoire and watching his intake, so as not to flame out, as he had done in his previous go-round in this series. John Bunny (1863-1915) - American comedian. Outer: From a family who were sea captains for nine generations. Father was a British naval officer who had emigrated to the U.S. Grew up in Brooklyn and, instead of following family tradition, became a clerk in a neighborhood market, but ran away to join a traveling minstrel show. Apprenticed in various stock companies, as actor, stage manager and director, before becoming part of mainstream theater. Married Clara Scallan in his mid-20s, 2 sons from union. A 300 pound comic actor, albeit short, he joined Vitagraph in 1910, and quickly became America’s first recognizable screen comic, with a genial, hearty grace to all his work. An outstanding character actor, he was pulling in $1000 a week as an early movie star. Made 160 shorts in his relatively brief film career, doing, upon occasion, pathos and drama as well. Many of his comedies played his large size off of skinny Flora Finch (Whoopi Goldberg) in their marital discords over his lusty nature. Hoped to turn his added film fame into a hit Broadway show, “Bunny in Funnyland,” and put a lot of his own money into the production. When the show folded, he was absolutely broken, and died of Bright’s disease soon afterwards. His brother George (Jim Belushi), who looked like him, tried to continue his career, but had little success as a pale imitator of his great, good humor. Inner: Warm and subtle, rarely used slapstick, depending on characterization, instead, for his comic effects. Hearty appetite lifetime of considerably expanding his comedic talents, although his expanding waistline, as well as his final disappointment, eventually taxed his health and brought him to a relatively premature end. Dan Marble (Danforth Marble) (1810-1849) - American comedian. Outer: Ended his education at an early age and worked as an errand boy, before becoming apprentice to a silversmith. Visiting actors intrigued him, and he decided to go to NYC to pursue a stage career. A silversmith friend there helped get him work, and at night, he played minor roles under an assumed name. At 21, he abandoned his trade and appeared under his real name for the first time. The next year, he began employing Yankee dialect in his presentations, and over the next 4 years, he became proficient in Yankee stories, a popular theatrical mode at the time. Married the daughter of actor William Warren (Walter Matthau). Scored his biggest triumph as “Dan Patch,” a Yankee play written especially for him, and it became his most popular and identifiable character. Made a handsome fortune off of it, particularly by playing the Mississippi Valley theaters. Jumped 40’ as part of the role, although always managed the maneuver without mishap. Equally popular in the East as well as in London, Glascow and Dublin, as a touring player. Died from cholera at the height of his fame. Inner: Patched together lifetime of developing an identifiable stage character and then riding it for all the fame and fortune it was worth, before exiting somewhat prematurely to see if he could expand on his innate capacity to brilliantly entertain.

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PATHWAY OF THE PERFORMER AS ATYPICAL TOPICAL CRITIC:
Storyline: The wily wag skewers everything and everyone in sight with his mordant observations, earning the opprobrium of some and the wild laughter of others, in his ongoing self-appointed role as provocative perceiver of America’s excesses.
Bill Maher (William Maher, Jr.) (1956) - American comedian. Outer: Of Irish Catholic descent on his father’s side, and Jewish on his mother’s. Father was a network news editor and radio announcer. Mother was a nurse. Raised a Catholic, and didn’t discover he was half-Jewish until his teens, by which time he had had quite enough of religion of all stripes. Got a B.A. degree from Cornell Univ. in English, and while there decided to give stand/up comedy a whirl, and launched his career in a local Chinese restaurant. 5’8”. Became a regular soon after at Catch a Rising Star in NYC, eventually rising to the level of host there, before making it to that ultimate preserve of having made it in standup, “The Johnny Carson Show,” although he found the constraints of TV far too limiting. Appeared in several films, including the seminal anthropological epic, Cannibal Women in the Avocado Jungle of Death, as well as on numerous TV sitcoms, but his real love remained standup. Given his own show in 1993 on cable TV with Comedy Central, and developed a roundtable format called “Politically Incorrect,” which featured celebrities, pundits and politicians offering noisy opinion on the issues of the day. The popularity of the mix led to a weekly prime-time network series of the same name in 1997 on ABC TV. After the 9/11/2001 destruction of the twin towers in NYC, he opined that it took courage to fly a plane into a building, while the real cowards were the mad bombers, dropping their load from 30,000 feet in the air. Immediately got heat for the remark, and wound up an inadvertent victim of the attacks himself, when he lost nervous advertisers and his show was subsequently canceled. Rebounded with a return to cable TV, and its far looser confines, with “Real Time with Bill Maher,” a tri-paneled affair, exploring the issues of the day, without the constraints on language or point of view that the network show had. An equal opportunity insulter of both the left and right, with a particular animus towards organized religion, most especially the Catholic faith, which has resulted in numerous witty ripostes on his part, and an equal amount of contumely from those who feel insulted by his demeaning of their faith. Largely liberal and libertarian in his own views, as an enthusiastic supporter of the legalization of marijuana, and same sex marriage, and a decrier of the excesses of corporate America. A board member of PETA and NORML, and a scold against the exploitative health industry, which feeds off the country’s unhealthy eating habits. Settled into a divided year, between live performances and his show’s run, while also adding an internet-only talk show entitled Amazon Fishbowl on Amazon.com in 2006. The fall of the twin towers would continue to follow him in the form of periodic protests around his refusal to contemplate the conspiratorial possibility that 9/11 was an inside government job. A confirmed bachelor, which was underlined by an ex-girlfriend’s multi-million dollar lawsuit for his breach of a non-marriage relationship contract, which was tossed out of court. In 2008, he wrote and appeared in Religulous, a documentary dedicated to parboiling sacred cows, and summing up his longtime negative sentiments on organized spirituality. Inner: Strongly opinionated, and enjoys his own humor. New rules lifetime of transliterating his ongoing sharply observed humor to the next medium available to him, after rising through print and the radio his previous two go-rounds in this series, while remaining extremely protective of his well-rewarded private life, without a need to share it with anyone. Fred Allen (John Francis Sullivan) (1894-1956) - American comedian. Outer: Father drank himself out of work and his mother died when he was 3. Raised by an older sister, and lived with an aunt. Worked at night as a teen at the Boston Public Library, where he began collecting jokes. Taught himself to juggle with comic asides and was a hit at the library Christmas show. After high school, he began on the vaudeville circuit, changing his name to Fred Allen and billing himself as “the world’s worst juggler.” Married Portland Hoffa in 1927, and she became his partner in vaudeville and later on radio,in what would be an extremely warm and happy marriage. Became a comic, switching to the legitimate stage before establishing his persona on radio in 1932 with a longrunning show, which he wrote, often with a plug of tobacco in his cheek. After his first show, he worried he had used up his whole life in producing it, but went on to nearly 2 decades of being a totally original personality in that medium. The first in broadcasting to lampoon the news, commercials and big business, he proved the godfather of comedy for a host of comedic hosts to follow. “Allen’s Alley” became a staple of the show with a variety of comedians playing offbeat personalities. Became one of radio’s top attractions, with more than 20 million listeners. Originally wanted a literary career, selling one story to The New Yorker. Used both nonsense and understatement in his witty jibes. Carried on a long mock feud with comedian Jack Benny on radio. Eventually left the air in the late 40s, after being superseded by precisely the type of shows he mordantly satirized. Did some guest shots on TV, but did not feel comfortable with the medium, saying it was called a medium, because nothing on it was ever well done. Did not photograph well, and came across as shy and vigilant in front of a camera. Made some motion pictures, with a similar lack of success, and wrote his autobiography, Treadmill to Oblivion. In 1952, he suffered his first heart attack, and was forced to retire. Collapsed and died of a 2nd heart attack on the sidewalk near Carnegie Hall. Inner: Sharp, sardonic, honorable, kindly person with an ironic wit,. Hated both California and television, calling the latter, a “device that permits people who haven’t anything to do to watch people who can’t do anything.” Religious, regularly went to Mass. Perfectionist, put pen to paper all the time, and constantly rewrote the scrivenings of his later writers in order to put his personal stamp on his material. Juggling jester’s lifetime of making an entertainment institution of himself, only to be ultimately rejected by a fickle public, necessitating more reinvention and self-protection to allow him to address the one medium which had eluded him in his next go-round in this series. David Ross Locke (1833-1888) - American humorist. Outer: Grandfather was a minuteman in the American Revolution, and father had fought in the War of 1812. At the age of 10, he was apprenticed for 7 years to an upstate NY newspaper. Steadily moved westward, and wound up with the Pittsburgh Chronicle next, before starting, with several others, an Ohio paper, the Plymouth Herald. Married Martha Bodine in his early 20s, 3 sons from the union. At the outbreak of the Civil War, he created the character of the Rev. Petroleum V. Nasby, a semi-literate complainer, drunk, bigot and corrupt opportunist who inadvertently espoused the Union cause, despite being a Democrat and Copperhead or Northern sympathizer with the South, through his rants, all-around unlikeability, and singular goal of securing the sinecure of a postmaster’s job. Antislavery himself, and a prohibitionist, he used Nasby to expose the Southern rationalization that slavery was in the Bible, and therefore acceptable. His purported letters, with their misspellings and mislocutions, were classics of a kind, deliberately writ to create the total opposite effect of their supposed message. Had a wide-ranging audience, all the way up to Pres. Lincoln, who offered him political opportunities, although he rejected them. Following the Civil War, he turned his acute wit towards Reconstruction, with similar penetrating results. Despite being given further political possibilities by Pres. U.S. Grant (Omar Bradley), the only office he ever coveted was alderman in Toledo, which he won with some difficulty. Discontinued the “Letters,” several years before his death, since they had run their course, and were no longer relevant. Lectured throughout the latter part of his life. Wound up the most powerful political satirist of his day. Inner: Acerbic wit with a particular affinity for exposing hypocrisy and corruption. Acid-tongued lifetime of discovering a means through which he could successfully give voice to his caustic view of contemporary events, to launch his own multi-life career as a premier commentator on all things Americana.

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PATHWAY OF THE PERFORMER AS INVISIBLE MAN:
Storyline: The empty vessel clears out any semblance of an interior for himself in order to be a perfect comic channel, although discovers in the process, that being there for anyone other than an audience is impossible, when no one’s really home inside his barren center, a plight he would redress by a better integration of his interior and exterior the next time around.
Sacha Baron Cohen (1971) - English actor and comedian. Outer: From an Orthodox Jewish family. His mother was Israeli and an aerobics teacher, while his father owned a fine menswear shop in London. Had a comfortable middle-class upbringing in a devout household. 2nd of 3 sons. Attended private school, and joined a Jewish Youth Group in 1989, making his stage debut in Neil Simon’s “Biloxi Blues,” while realizing that would be his life’s direction, despite his parents wanting him to pursue an academic career. Went to Christ’s College, Cambridge, where he was active in theater as a member of the Footlights. A his/story student, he visited America in his third year to study Jewish-black relations, and wrote his thesis on the American civil right’s movement, with a focus on the 1964 Mississippi deaths of three martyrs to the movement, two of whom were Jewish, and one black. 6’3 1/2”. Proved himself an exemplary ga-ga ball player, an Israeli form of dodge-ball, winning the English title numerous times with his team, as well as a silver medal in the world championships. Spent a year in Israel on a kibbutz, then returned to London, doing TV work, as well as his first feature, Punch, in 1996. Became noticed through his character Ali G, a thick-headed gangsta rapper wannabe, which began on British TV in 1998, and by 2000 he had his own show. Using the character’s dim grasp on events, he turned him into a tour de force interviewer, embarrassing the worldly and the famous in all spheres with his purposefully obtuse questioning. The unscripted show would eventually make it to America on cable in 2003, giving himself enough notoriety that his interviewees eventually knew to avoid him. The character would also be featured in the 2002 film Ali G Indahouse. Added to his character repertoire on the show with Bruno, a gay Austrian fashion reporter and provocateur, but by far, his most inspired creation would be Borat Sagdiyev, an anti-Semitic TV journalist from Kazakhstan, who would be the very embodiment of political incorrectness. In 2006, he launched, amidst much publicity, and the wrath of the government of Kazakhstan, Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan, in which he lured ordinary Americans into expressing their prejudices in most hilarious manner, and winning himself a huge audience for his efforts. Despite his own deep-felt Judaism, Borat would constantly burrow in for anti-Semitic sentiments, and easily elicit it from a host of unsuspecting dupes. Usually manages to stay in character for his own publicity interviews, in an integration that he was never able to achieve in his earlier go-rounds in this series. Moved to America and affianced actress Isla Fisher, who pledged to convert to Judaism before the ceremony, one daughter from union, and at the end of 2007, he bid final farewell to both Ali G and Borat, permanently retiring both. Subsequently pulled a host of publicity stunts for the 2009 release of his Brüno film, including a wired bare-bottomed landing on the face of singer Enimen at the MTV awards, posing nude on a magazine cover and marching in hotpants and a bearskin hat as a mock member of the queen’s guards, although his publicity stunts would prove far more imaginative than the actual film. Saw his opening weekend in America fall well below expectations, because of Twitter reviews, which caused a huge dropoff between its first and second nights. Although it wound up the number one movie of the weekend, it fell some $20 million below expectations, as a victim of instant critiquing and a certain predictability that has crept into his creations. Announced soon after, he was retiring that character as well. In 2010, after a six year engagement, he finally made it official with Isla Fisher. Inner: Idolized Peter Sellers as the ultimate in comedic genius, finally finding a means to integrate himself with his characters. Quite devout, keeping kosher and obeying the laws of the Sabbath. Extremely private, keeping himself well hidden. Sharp-witted, great kidder and a guerrilla comedian to the core. Alter ego lifetime of finally finding the metier to integrate himself with his creations, after many a go-round of emptying himself out to do the same, and discovering there was little left when he wasn’t performing. Peter Sellers (Richard Henry Sellars) (1925-1980) - English comedian and mimic. Outer: Both parents were struggling comic vaudevillians. Father was a Protestant pianist and musical director, mother was a Jewish character actress, although neither gave their son religious training. The latter was domineering and controlling, while the former was weak and often absent, giving his son a legacy of self-loathing, which was counterbalanced by his mother’s smothering affection, as well as her spoiling him, which he would later do to himself. Called ‘Peter’ from an early age. Appeared on stage as an infant and grew up surrounded by entertainment industry people. His grandmother and 8 uncles were also in show business. His father continued to tour, while his mother settled down and ran an antique shop. Made his debut at 5 in one of his parents’ shows, “Splash Me,” which was produced by his grandmother. Attended a nearby Catholic school, although a poor student. 5’10”, 175 lbs. Began his show business career as a drummer, working with a dance band, and proving himself a versatile and skilled musician. At 17, he served with the RAF in India during WW II, often doing impersonations of his superiors. Called a producer while imitating a popular comedian and recommended himself. The ruse worked and in 1951, he began the legendary ‘Goon Show,’ with friends Spike Milligan and Harry Secombe. Created a bevy of characters for the zany show, and established a reputation in England as a cheeky comedian. Had the remarkable ability to shape-shift into his characters, totally becoming them. Married English actress Anne Howe in 1951, 2 children, divorced in 1964, after his wife called him a “bore of a little boy.” Began appearing in English shorts at the same time, and extended his audience appeal by the end of the 1950s, with two British exports, The Mouse That Roared and I’m All Right Jack. In his late 20s, he appeared as Inspector Clouseau, a bumbling French detective in The Pink Panther, and became an international star. Married sexy Swedish actress Britt Ekland in his late 30s, divorced 5 years later, one daughter from union. Reached his peak by the middle of the 1960s with his triple turn as a mad scientist, the U.S. president and an RAF group captain, in Dr. Strangelove, breaking his leg during the shooting, in fine old show business tradition, and suffering a massive heart attack afterwards that nearly killed him. Sequels to “The Pink Panther,” made him rich and even more famous, but stunted his comic invention. Married again in 1970 to Australian model, Miranda Quarry, divorced 4 years later. Struggled to regain the eminence he had earlier reached as a master mimic while he battled with the twin demons of acting: self-assurance and self-doubt. Tried yoga and meditation to balance his extravagant extremes, while marrying in 1986 and divorcing again, proving far too abusive with his wives and children for them to stomach his continued company. Two more children from union. Scored a come-back with The Return of the Pink Panther, and did more predictable sequels, then after years of pursuing the role, played Chance, the empty vessel, in the filmed version of Jerzy Kosinski’s Being There. Heart problems curtailed his later career. Married actress Lynn Frederick in his early 50s, then died of a heart attack three years later, on the day he meant to sign divorce papers and erase his wife from his will. As one final joke, he asked that Glenn Miller’s (Wynton Marsalis) “In the Mood” be played at his funeral, a song his close friends all knew he hated. Inner: Compulsive, little sense of restraint, devious, violent, abusive and sublimely selfish. Had an out-of-body death experience prior to exit. Also had trouble maintaining his own identity, found it far easier to disappear into characters. Felt they were past incarnations of himself. Also felt English comic Dan Leno (Danny Kaye) was guiding his spirit from the other side. Despite his highly public life, hardly anyone felt they really knew him. Had lots of possessions with a particular taste for gadgets and cars. Make believe lifetime of exploiting his comedic skills to maximum benefit, while struggling to find the human that was inside his own brilliant channel. Fred Mace (1879-1917) - American comedian. Outer: Became a dentist, but found the lure of the stage far too great., and began his career doing stock work with Mack Sennett (Quentin Tarantino). Chubby-cheeked and mild-mannered. Became a stage comedian, and then began working in film in the early days of silent movies, rejoining director Sennett at Biograph in his late 30s. Starred in many one-reel comedies, creating the character of a fumbling detective, “One-Round O’Brien” in many of them. Reached his peak in 1912 when he followed Sennett to Keystone, but the following year, he went out on his own, producing, directing and starring in his own shorts to far lesser effect. Returned to Keystone 2 years later, but could not resurrect his earlier success there. Found dead in his hotel room of apoplexy, after being distraught over his continued unemployment. Inner: Abbreviated lifetime of ‘being there’ at the early inception of film, before making an early exit to re-enter it at a more developed stage of its ongoing evolution in order to try to give his channeling talents more of a complex arena in which to grow.

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PATHWAY OF THE PERFORMER AS HIGHLY CHARITABLE COMEDIAN:
Storyline: The large-eyed laugh-getter consistently shows an even bigger heart when it comes to helping the unfortunate, in his own ongoing thanks for the blessings bestowed upon him for a series of beloved go-rounds based on his incandescent gift to entertain.
Chris Tucker (Christopher Tucker) (1972) - American actor, comedian and social activist. Outer: Of African-American descent. Father ran a janitorial service, mother was involved in Church work. The youngest of 6, with 3 older brothers and 2 younger sisters. An aficionado of comedy from an early age, he received much encouragement both at home and at school to become a performer. Upon finishing high school, he headed west to Los Angeles to break into the comedy club circuit. Made his TV debut with an episode of “Roseanne” in 1988, and became part of the Def Comedy Jam troupe, which led to his first film role in House Party Jam. Got noticed in 1995 with Friday, and after several more well-received turns, he became a major star with the Rush Hour series, playing comic foil to martial arts star, and equally adept physical comedian, Jackie Chan, beginning in 1998. The first in the series was so popular that his asking price for the second leapt to $20 million. Has a son with casting director Azja Pryor, who served as an important witness in the Michael Jackson molestation trial in 2005. Has subsequently limited his film roles, despite his high pricetag potential, in lieu of his considerable charity work, with a focus on raising American consciousness around African poverty and social problems. In 2001, he toured Uganda and Ethiopia along with singer/activist Bono and the following year he joined former Secretary of State Colin Powell in a South African conference focused on regional economic growth. Gives charity concerts, as well, in order to deal with Africa’s ongoing problems with famine and underdevelopment. His one rush hour brush with the law resulted in a reckless driving ticket in 2005, which would be his single offense in an otherwise largely straight-arrow life. Continues his love of live performing, while maintaining bi-coastal residences in Florida and Southern California. Ran afoul of the IRS through underpaying and wound up owing them some $11 million in 2010, in a further repudiation of his image. Inner: Gregarious, large-hearted, and committed to making the world a better place for his having graced its stages. Do-gooder lifetime of switching ethnic minorities, in order to re-identify with the world’s oppressed poor, in his ongoing need to entertain, edify and eradicate the many inequities of our sprawling and long-suffering globe. Eddie Cantor (Israel Itzkowitz) (1892-1964) - American comedian and social activist. Outer: Parents were Russian Jewish immigrants. Father was an impoverished violinist who abandoned the family after his mother died of lung cancer when he was 2. Brought up by his grandmother, who sold candles and ran a domestic employment agency for girls on NYC’s lower East Side, which he later used as source material for imitations, while singing and clowning on street corners. Registered in school as Isidore Kantor, because he could not pronounce his grandmother’s name, although he spent most of his time in pool rooms or singing and doing impressions for spare change. Never finished grade school. Entered amateur contests, worked as a singing waiter and got into show business as an assistant to a juggling team. Small, lithe, 5’5”, 140 lbs. Married his childhood love, Ida Tobias (Azja Pryor), in 1914, and later immortalized her in the song, “‘Ida, sweet as apple cider.” 5 daughters from the extremely close union. Joined a songwriter’s troupe, then formed duos, before enjoying his first real success as a member of the “Ziegfeld Follies” in his mid-20s, ultimately headlining the show in 1927. Became one of Broadway’s biggest stars, often appearing in blackface, while skipping, clapping and singing inane songs and rolling his banjo eyes. Also enjoyed a successful recording career in the 1920s with novelty songs. Had his first solo hit on Broadway at 30 with “Kid Boots,” which ran for several seasons, and then made his film debut with a silent film version of it in 1926. His next hit was “Whoopee,” which netted him $5000 a week, despite the beginning of the Great Depression during its 3 year run. Co-wrote his autobiography in 1928, “My Life Is In Your Hands,” and also penned at least 5 other books, including 3 more volumes of memoirs. Lost all his money in the 1929 stock market crash, but quickly made it back through records and Broadway shows. Began on radio in 1931, and remained a staple of that medium for 20 years. Spoke up against the anti-Semitic Father Charles Coughlin during the 1930s, which cost him his show for a while. Served as the first president of the Screen Actors Guild from 1933 to 1935, and was also the president of the Jewish Theatrical Guild as well as the inaugural national chief executive of the American Federation of Radio Artists (AFTRA). Translated Whoopee into one of the first lavish all-color film musicals, and then had a successful film career as a wide-eyed impudent innocent in a series of popular comedies, including Kid Millions and The Kid From Spain. Repeatedly entertained troops during WW II, and helped create the March of Dimes to fight infantile paralysis, while also serving as a fund raiser for Bonds for Israel and the United Jewish Appeal. With the advent of TV, he became one of the guest hosts of the Colgate Comedy Hour, a Sunday night staple. Slowed by a heart attack in his late 50s, he gradually went into semi-retirement, doing occasional guest appearances on radio and TV. Given an honorary Academy Reward in 1956. Lost one of his daughters in 1959, which devastated both him and his wife. After the latter died in 1962, he was inconsolable, and too ill to attend the funeral. Died of a heart attack 2 years later. Inner: Optimistic, domestic, fey and worrisome, with a desire to right public wrongs. Charitable, into service, and God-loving. Strong identification with his Judaic roots. Not particularly funny, far more of the salesman of corny jokes than a true humorist. Ingratiating lifetime of expanding his public character, as well as his own humanity, as an unfunny comedian whom everyone loved rather than laughed at. Francis Chanfrau (1824-1894) - American actor. Outer: Both parents were French immigrants. Father was a French naval officer who settled in America. Grew up in a wooden tenement. After seeing Edwin Forrest (Marlon Brando) on stage, he decided to become an actor. A good impressionist as a youth, he left home and headed west, becoming a driver on the Ohio Canal. Learned the trade of carpentry before taking to the stage and returning to NYC. Debuted at the Bowery Theater, initially mimicking other actors, then toured with a variety of companies. Had his first hit in his mid-20s, as Mose, a typical rough/house fireman of the time, in the play, “A Glance at NY.” Became a star through that vehicle and the character and took it all over America, creating such a strong link in the public’s mind between part and performer, that he could never quite get past his first success. Became a theater manager soon afterwards, then went to California for a year. Married a well-known actress and singer from a good family, Henrietta Baker (Dinah Shore), in his mid-30s, although the duo preferred performing separately. His long career and popularity hinged on a single characterization, but he was willing to repeat it for the rewards and security it offered, rather than stretching himself. In 1857, he became the manager of the Bowery Theater, and tried to expand his repertory to other parts, doing satires on Shakespeare and popular acts of the day, although largely remained identified with his one role in the public memory, despite his long career. Spent his last dozen years portraying ‘Kit, the Arkansas Traveler,’ and worked right up until his death. Inner: Simple, honest, hearty and ingratiating. Generous, but also careful with money. One trick pony lifetime of finding his act early on, without the desire to expand his abilities beyond it.

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PATHWAY OF THE PERFORMER AS WELL-LOVED LONG-RUNNING ACT:
Storyline: The genial healer finds laughter to be the ultimate medicine, as he addresses his previous shortcomings by making his reverse self the brunt of his jokes, giving him the last laugh in an extended career of unabated success to compensate for his earlier inability to gauge the temper of his times.
Jack Benny (Benny Kubelsky) (1894-1974) - American comedian. Outer: Parents were Polish Orthodox Jewish immigrants. Raised in Waukegan, Illinois, where his father owned a saloon and later a dry goods store. Forced to take violin lessons at 6 in hopes that he would become a classical violinist. Timid as a boy. At 15, he played in a pit orchestra in Waukegan, and 2 years later entered vaudeville. Offered a job as an accompanist to the young Marx Bros., but his parents made him turn it down. Enlisted in the Navy during WW I and discovered his talent for comedy with wisecracks between playing, while entertaining troops. After returning to civilian life, he resumed his career in vaudeville, first using the stage name Ben K. Benny, although comic Ben Bernie complained. Married salesgirl Mary Livingstone in his early 30s, and she became an integral part of his subsequent career, one adopted daughter. Made his first film appearance 2 years later, but proved far more popular in the medium of radio, first getting his own show in 1932. Hit his peak in the mid-1930s, and his long-running show lasted until the mid-1950s, with a continuing cast of supporting players, who were never shy about teasing him. His wife eventually retired in 1957. Able to continue long-running gags, with a stable of talented writers and performers, so that the show was still funny in reruns decades later. Most of his routines evolved by accident, rather than by being planned, creating an ongoing self-deprecating, vain, selfish and stingy character frozen at the age of 39. In actuality, he was the total opposite of his show business facade. Master of the long pause, which he used to excellent comic effect. Made most of his films in the late 1930s and WW II era, with one notable classic, To Be or Not To Be. Appeared on Broadway in his 30s, but it, too, failed to take full advantage of his unique humor. Able to make the transition into TV, and various incarnations of his show ran for another 15 years, from 1950 to 1965. Spent over 30 years as a regular visitor into American homes, and always found himself welcome there. Never stopped working, doing concerts, and keeping remarkably youthful throughout his long life. Died of pancreatic cancer. Inner: Generous, modest, uncomplicated, and well-loved by one and all. Knew how to say things funny, rather than say funny things. Adversity-free lifetime of mocking his polarities, while proving he learned his lessons well from his previous go-round as an innocent set adrift in a corrupt and disheartening world. John Brougham (1810-1880) - Irish/American comedian. Outer: Parents were Irish and French. Grew up in Dublin, studied at Trinity College and Porter Street Hospital, but his ambitions to be a doctor were cut short by family adversity. Went to London and drifted into the theater world when he was 20. Joined Mme. Vestris’s (Gilda Radner) company, following her to Covent Garden, where he served his apprenticeship. Married Emma Williams, an English actress of considerable beauty, but the 2 soon separated and divorced. His 2nd wife, Annette Hawley, was the daughter of a Naval officer and also an actress who died when he was 60. By 30, he was manager of the London Lyceum and wrote several plays for its repertory. Began his transatlantic career in “His Last Legs,” in 1842, and was chiefly connected with the American stage afterwards. Joined William Burton’s (Steve Martin) company as a comic actor and playwright. Opened his own Lyceum Theater at 40, but the public thought the building was unsafe, and it closed. A prolific playwright and compulsive punster, he joined the Wallack Company and continued in the same capacities for them. In 1860, he returned to England for 5 years, avoiding the American Civil War, then came back at its end and never left. His last venue was Brougham’s Theater, which was taken away from him by robber baron Jim Fisk (Bob Hope), and he never managed again. After becoming impoverished, a testimonial benefit was given for him, and he lived off the proceeds the rest of his life. Wrote 75 dramatic pieces in a 50 year career on the stage. Inner: Broadly comic, with a genial ease to his acting. His witty curtain speeches became great favorites. Popular socially, charming, ready wit. Childlike in business matters, causing him to suffer greatly for it later in life. Eye-opening lifetime of tempering his natural good grace with adversity in both life’s beginnings and endings, showing him that his natural trust and good nature were not the way of the rest of the world, which may have made for his comic character the next time around, in which he remedied his shortcomings.

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PATHWAY OF THE PERFORMER AS LONG-SUFFERING CLOWN:
Storyline: The stone-faced masochist tries to integrate his unique comic genius with his own disconnected interior, and wins respect, but not love for his efforts, while doing continual brutal battle with an outer world that emphasizes both the slap and the stick as its weapons against his achieving any kind of healing inner balance.
Buster Keaton (Joseph Francis Keaton) (1895-1966) - American comedian. Outer: Parents were acrobatic comedians and medicine show performers. Literally born backstage in a tent, while his parents were on tour. Given his nickname by magician Harry Houdini (Tony Curtis), who saw him fall unharmed down a flight of stairs at the age of 6 months, performing a perfect ‘buster.’ At 2, he caught his right hand in a clothes ringer, and lost the first joint of his index finger. Joined his family act at the age of 3, as ‘The Human Mop,’ allowing his often drunk father to sweep the stage with him. By the time he was 6, he was their mainstay, and the trio entered vaudeville. His progenitor taught him never to react to the sadistic pummelings that he received on the stage, which always brought extra laughs. An accomplished acrobat, he developed an immobile expression, earning him the sobriquet of ‘the Great Stone Face.’ The family act finally broke up when he was in his early 20s, because of his father’s heavy drinking and inability to maintain the precision needed for their routines. Chose to enter films as a supporting player, and began his career in comedy shorts directed by Fatty Arbuckle (John Belushi) in NYC. 5’6”. Served in the infantry in the waning days of WW I and then resumed his film career. Made his first feature as a star in his mid-20s, under the renamed Buster Keaton Studio, which soon became Buster Keaton Productions. In 1921, he married the sister-in-law of his producer, Natalie Talmadge (Jennifer Aniston), who co-starred in several of his features, although the marriage, happy at first, eventually disintegrated, when she refused to have sex with him after after they had 2 sons, for fear of more children, and they divorced when he was in his mid-30s. Established himself as America’s reigning comic genius during the 1920s with a series of memorable masterpieces, most notably The Navigator and The General, all putting his unique talent for minimalist expression on display. At his peak, he was earning $3500 a week, which he translated into a $300,000 Beverly Hills mansion. Despite huge audience approval, he never quite won their love, only their delighted respect, while exercising complete artistic control over his films. Never used a double, thanks to his extraordinary facility for taking punishment, without suffering its consequence, and rarely went with scripts, preferring to wing it. In the early 1920s, he switched from shorts to full-length features, showing his virtuousity as both director and performer. Gave up his own studio in the late 1920s to sign with MGM, but in the process lost artistic control over his films, and his career, as well as his marriage, waned. Filed for bankruptcy in 1934, and became an alcoholic. Although he continued working, his star had been permanently eclipsed, and he eventually entered a psychiatric institution, ultimately re-emerging to do bits and act as an uncredited gag writer and assistant director. Married again in 1935 to Mae Scrivin, divorced 2 years later, and made a final union in 1940 to Eleanor Norris, a 21 year old dancer and the daughter of a studio electrician, who worked with him in stage shows. In his mid-50s, he began appearing live at the Cirque Medrano in Paris, and soon resurrected his career, thanks in large part to British TV, capping himself off by performing with his earlier silent rival Charlie Chaplin in the latter’s Limelight. Began appearing on American TV shows and in commercials, as well as returning to the screen. The Buster Keaton Story, a weak biopic, appeared in his early 60s, which gave him financial security for the rest of his life, and he spent his final years busily working, before he ultimately succumbed to lung cancer, dying at home. Wrote his autobiography, “My Wonderful World of Slapstick” in 1960. Inner: Highly inventive, and a superb athlete, although unable to capture the hearts of his audiences, only their risibilities because of his unusual, distant sense of comedy, based less on persona than abstract visuals. Never used scripts and never had body doubles in his films. Painful lifetime of suffering for his unusual gifts, before finally receiving the true acclaim which his unique comic masochistic genius ultimately called for. George Fox (1825-1877) - American comedian and pantomimist. Outer: Father was a property man at the Tremont Street Theater in Boston, mother was an actress. 3 siblings also entered show business, including brother Charles Kemble Fox (Harold Lloyd), to whom he was especially close. Made his debut at the age of 5 in “The Hunter of the Alps,” in a benefit for actor Charles Kean (Charles Laughton). Had only brief schooling, then worked as an errand boy for a department store, while appearing in productions around Boston. At 21, he joined the Howard-Fox company in Provincetown, staying with them until 1850. Made his NYC debut at the National Theater in “A Pleasant Neighbor.” Did melodrama, burlesque and pantomime, serving his apprenticeship in all manner of presentation, while playing with his name, ultimately calling himself G.L. Fox. Married twice, to Caroline Gould, then Mattie Temple, who acted with him. Became a manager as well as an actor in his early 30s, and leased the Bowery Theater in NYC. Served briefly as a lieutenant in the union army at the beginning of the Civil War, seeing action at the Battle of Bull Run. In 1861, he returned to theatrical life and opened George L. Fox’s Olympic the following year, although financial difficulties forced him to return to the New Bowery Theater as a lessee. Sometimes played 4 or 5 roles in an evening, and was able to make pantomime into an American art form. Played Bottom in Shakespeare’s “Midsummer’s Night Dream,” but it was as a pantomimist that he enjoyed his greatest success. Teamed with his brother, Charles, who acted as his foil, and was also the more practical of the duo, for his greatest triumph, “Humpty Dumpty,” performing some 1268 times in the role, for which he is best remembered. Assumed management of Fox’s Broadway Theater, but eventually retired as a manager. Made his last performance in 1875, when he was devastated by the sudden death of his younger brother. Showed signs of dementia, and was put in an institution, although recovered. Suffered a paralytic stroke, and died at the home of his sister. Inner: Prince of pantomimists, helping to make it an American art form. Far more the creative artist than the practical businessman, leaving a rich legacy of his creations for 19th century America. Humpty dumpty lifetime of using his unique creative genius to create a new American art form, but his innate unintegrated interior, the source of his distinctive art, eventually undid him.

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PATHWAY OF THE PERFORMER AS SIBLING REVELER:
Storyline: The bumbling everyman learns his lessons well from his crypto-brother in lives past, to become part of the mainstay comic trinity of silent Hollywood through his athletic antics, while proving himself equally adept at managing his own affairs, unlike his sad-faced sibling.
Harold Lloyd (1893-1971) - American comic actor. Outer: Father was an unsuccessful photographer who eventually became a poolhall proprietor when the family moved to San Diego. Did odd jobs around local theaters, and worked his way into small roles with touring and stock companies. Made his film debut at 19 with the Edison company as an extra. 5’10”. The following year he appeared as an extra in a couple of Keystone comedies, before being hired by Universal, where he befriended Hal Roach, also a bit player. When Roach, after inheriting $3000, formed his own company, he hired him to play a character named Willie Work in a series of one-reel comedies, which proved unsuccessful. Moved back to Mack Sennett’s (Quentin Tarantino) Keystone, but the two did not get along, and he returned to the newly reorganized Roach company, and together they created a new character, Lonesome Luke, a tramp who was patterned after Charlie Chaplin. Despite being popular with the public in some 100 shorts, which he directed himself, neither he nor Roach saw any further potential in their creation. Began experimenting, with Roach’s help, with a clean-cut average-looking young man wearing a pair of over-sized horn rimmed glasses, which would become his ultimate trademark, after he introduced them in Grandma’s Boy in 1922. Became, along with Chaplin and Buster Keaton, a premier comedian of the silent screen, creating zany ‘thrill’ situations for his overly optimistic character, which made him the highest paid comedian in Hollywood during the 1920s, with the ability to finance his own films. During the filming of Haunted Spooks, a property bomb exploded in his hand, causing him to lose his right thumb and forefinger and leaving his right hand semi-paralyzed. Subsequently hid it with a glove. An excellent athlete, he was able to overcome his handicap to perform some spectacular stunts, the most famous of which, from Safety Last, was his dangling from a clock hand on a skyscraper above a busy street. Sometimes used doubles, but usually performed his own stunts. Gradually expanded to full length feature films, and invested his money well, building ‘Green Acres,’ a 44 room estate. At 30, he married the leading lady of several of his films, Mildred Davis, 3 children. His eldest daughter became an actress, while his wife gave up her screen career to raise their family, even though he was constantly unfaithful to her. Parted on good terms with Roach the same year and began producing his own films. Owned his later films outright and reaped a small fortune from them in re-release. Less effective during the sound era, and gradually eased out of filmwork, making his final one in 1947. Given a special Oscar in 1952, and a decade later issued scenes from his old movies in a film called Harold Lloyd’s World of Comedy, and then produced a sequel the following year. Wrote his autobiography, An American Comedy, in 1971. Died of cancer 2 years after his wife passed, and bequeathed his Beverly Hills mansion as a motion picture museum. Inner: Happy, good-natured, but a perfectionist in his work. A mason, like his father. Far more of an actor doing comedy than a comedian. Used to hold live previews and charted laughs on a graph. Serious student of comedy, tendency towards reclusiveness, and highly superstitious. Safety first lifetime of parlaying his practical and comic skills into creating a unique film character, from which he was able to derive a long and prosperous life, despite a lingering sense of self-destruction. Charles Kemble Fox (1833-1875) - American comic actor. Outer: Father was a property man at the Tremont Street Theater in Boston, mother was an actress. 3 siblings also entered show business, including older brother George L. Fox (Buster Keaton), to whom he was especially close. Made his debut at the age of 6 in “Carpenter of Rouen,” and then acted occasionally at his father’s theater, and also traveled with the family on New England tours, moving with them ultimately to Rhode Island. Spent 4 years, beginning in 1846, with the Howard-Fox troupe. Married 3 times, the first to Kate Denim, a well-known actress, while his 2nd wife, Mary Hewkins, became a drama critic. His third marriage was to a widow named Dulaney. In 1852, he appeared in a farce which followed the enormously popular “Uncle Tom’s Cabin,” at each of its presentations. Other successes ensued and in 1869, he formed his own traveling arrangement with a partner and toured the West, although his brand of fare was unsuccessful there. In his early 40s, he toured with his brother’s Fox Pantomime Troupe, and became identified with its “Humpty Dumpty” fantasies. Gave his last performance in 1874 in “Humpty Dumpty at Home.” Good actor and great pantomimist, closely associated with his more famous brother, serving as a good foil for him. Also far more practical and less the artist than George Fox, although his creativity helped make pantomime an American art. Died from typhoid fever that he contracted while touring Tennessee. His brother George was devastated by his premature death. Inner: Practical, down-to-earth, with an excellent sense of inventiveness. Apprentice lifetime of learning from and playing off of his brother’s superior skills, before returning to embark on a life as a single act that would rival and surpass him in popularity, if not quite artistic merit.

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PATHWAY OF THE PERFORMER AS INSECURE ICON:
Storyline: The wounded lion is never quite able to integrate his clowning, cartoonish stage nature with his serious, worrisome off-stage persona, and winds up cowering from life’s many vicissitudes despite his well-received public presence.
Bert Lahr (Irving Lahrman) (1895-1967) - American comedian. Outer: Parents were German Jewish immigrants, father was an upholsterer. Quit school at 15 and worked as an office boy in a jewelry house. Although his parents objected, he attended variety theaters, and sang in blackface on the street. In 1910, he joined a child vaudeville act, and then toured minor vaudeville circuits, so that by his late teens he was already a vaudeville veteran. 5’9“. At 20, he became a burlesque comic, with a German-accented Dutch character, and was known as ‘the boy wonder of Burlesque.’ Served as a seaman, 2nd class in the Navy during WW I, then returned to the Keith and Orpheum circuits, enjoying notable success and earning $350 a week. In 1929, he married an exotic Spanish dancer, Mercedes Delpino, and formed an act with her, as Lahr and Mercedes, one child from union. His wife was committed to a sanitarium shortly afterwards, and the marriage was eventually annulled. Told risque jokes, adopting a tough exterior, but with a putty face and soft heart behind it. Played Broadway, and had a rivalry with wide-mouthed comic, Joe E. Brown. Made his film debut in his mid-30s, and finally scored his most memorable role in his early 40s, as the cowardly lion in The Wizard of Oz. A high energy performer, he worked best on the stage, with a trademark echo of panic to go along with his mugging and noisemaking. Was disturbed, however, that he was seen as a cartoon, despite his cartoonish stage image. In 1940, he married a former showgirl, 2 children, including writer and critic John Lahr. Won high plaudits for portraying Estragon in Samuel Beckett’s “Waiting for Godot,” although admitted to never understanding the role. Later won a Tony award in his late 60s, for “Foxy,” a retelling of Moliere’s “Volpone.” At career’s end, he immortalized himself in a series of potato chip commercials daring him in various guises to eat just one. Died of cancer while shooting his final movie, The Night They Raided Minsky’s. His last spoken word was, ‘hurt.’ His son John wrote his biography after his death, Notes on a Cowardly Lion. Inner: Despite easy-going facade, serious, hypochondriac and a worrywart. Insecure and depressive when not performing, extremely driven, indefatigable worker, saving the best part of himself for his performances, and leaving those close to him at home with the worst. Thorn in his paw lifetime of compulsively entertaining while trying to learn to receive love from his audience, as a balm for his own basically wounded nature. John Gilbert (1810-1889) - American comedian. Outer: Worked for his uncle’s drygoods store as a boy, and developed a strong interest in the theater, attending it regularly. Auditioned and won a part, making his debut at 18, before being offered a permanent position with the Tremont Theater Company. Stayed for a year, and then got a better offer from a New Orleans company. Played in New Orleans and other Mississippi River towns for the next 5 years, before returning to his original company, and remaining with them until the theater closed, as an actor-manager. Began doing elderly men while still young, which became his speciality. In his mid-20s, he married Maria Deth Campbell, who died 3 decades later, no children from the union. In 1847, he went to Europe to study, played in London, and learned from both the Paris and London stages. Best known for his role as Sir Anthony Adverse. Played in the Northeast, eventually joining the Wallack Company in his early 50s, and remaining with them until the year before he died. Remarried Sarah Gavett the year following his first wife’s death, and the last year of his professional life, was with the Joseph Jefferson III’s (Jimmy Stewart) Company. Inner: Offstage formal and humorless, although the hardness to his acting edge softened over the years. Old man at heart, finding his singular release while performing. Unintegrated lifetime of being one person on stage and quite another one off it, and never quite figuring out how to make the twain meet.

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