Comedian Dick Martin Dies at 86
Dick Martin, creator of “Rowan and Martin’s Laugh-In,” died yesterday of respiratory complications in Santa Monica, CA. Martin was 86 years old.
Laugh-In, which debuted in January 1968, was unlike any comedy-variety show before it.
Rather than relying on a series of tightly scripted song-and-dance segments, it offered up a steady, almost stream-of-consciousness run of non-sequitur jokes, political satire and madhouse antics from a cast of talented young actors and comedians that also included Lily Tomlin, Goldie Hawn, Ruth Buzzi, Arte Johnson, Henry Gibson, Jo Anne Worley and announcer Gary Owens.
Presiding over it all were Rowan and Martin, the veteran nightclub comics whose standup banter put their own distinct spin on the show.
Martin’s rep stated that he was surrounded by loved ones at the time of his death.
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