He has all the fruit cups he wants now.

May 29, 2008 5:14 PM

RIP, Harvey Korman

The link I provided is how I will always remember him, trying not to crack up on live television no matter how hard Tim Conway tried to. But there's also this. And a million others. Good night, Harvey.

posted by WolfDaddy (80 comments total)

It's Hedly!

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posted by Pope Guilty at 5:17 PM on May 29 [14 favorites]

One of the funniest human beings ever. RIP, Harvey, you've earned it.
posted by Zonker at 5:19 PM on May 29

Since my double is probably about to be deleted, I'll post this here:

How did he do such fantastic stunts with such little feet? (and it's Hedley, btw)

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posted by cerebus19 at 5:19 PM on May 29

You beat me to the obit - indeed, RIP funny man.

more -

A regular on the Carol Burnett Show, many of us grew up watching Harvey play dozens of hilarious characters. Fortunately, you can catch Harvey both in re-runs and through hundreds of vidoes on YouTube. Harvey was also well known as an actor in the movies, particularly Blazing Saddles and The History of the World Part I. Harvey, you will be missed.
posted by Muddler at 5:24 PM on May 29

He used his tongue prettier than a twenty dollar whore.

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posted by mosk at 5:25 PM on May 29 [2 favorites]

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posted by about_time at 5:29 PM on May 29

_

(single period keeping it's mouth tightly clamped together, trying not to laugh)
posted by yhbc at 5:32 PM on May 29 [14 favorites]

I wish that there was a way to make a "." that tries hard not to laugh, but then sputters just a little and makes all the "." around it completely lose it laughing.

His work on the Carol Burnett show, both with Ms. Burnett and most especially with Tim Conway, is some of the funniest work of the last 50 years.

Some of his best sketch work turns up on YouTube instantly with a quick search, but I'm partial to the firefighter sketch which is just as funny because of Korman's reactions as because of Conway's hilarity. I can't find it, alas, online, but Korman's efforts to keep it together as Conway destroyed the set are one of my fondest funny memories.
posted by Joey Michaels at 5:33 PM on May 29

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(History of the World, part I)
posted by gcbv at 5:34 PM on May 29

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posted by jburka at 5:35 PM on May 29

I hate death.
posted by Senator at 5:37 PM on May 29

Wow, I didn't realize there was so much on YouTube. Certainly more the last time I went searching for things related to the Carol Burnett Show. This is one of those times when YouTube=good. I'm crying from both mirth and sadness right now.

"Don't be saucy with me, Bearnaise!" -- Count de Monet
posted by WolfDaddy at 5:40 PM on May 29 [1 favorite]

Bad week for TV comedians.

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posted by pmurray63 at 5:45 PM on May 29

Aw, nuts.

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posted by jtron at 5:47 PM on May 29

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posted by briank at 5:51 PM on May 29

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posted by mike3k at 5:52 PM on May 29

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posted by ColdChef at 5:54 PM on May 29

:-(
posted by owhydididoit at 5:57 PM on May 29

Just saw this and I'm crushed. As mentioned upthread, the scenes in the CB show where Harvey is trying so hard not to laugh at Tim or Carol are hands down, some of the funniest things that have EVER graced the airwaves. I loved that show as a child and this man has always been one of my very favorites. May he rest in peace.
posted by pearlybob at 5:59 PM on May 29

This man made me laugh very, very hard.

Thank you, Harvey, I hope you're cracking them up in the Great Beyond.

*
posted by dbiedny at 6:01 PM on May 29

Let us not forget two of his... odder roles...

The Great Gazoo

Star Wars Holiday Special
posted by evilcolonel at 6:04 PM on May 29 [1 favorite]

This hurts. I heard that he and Tim Conway have been roomates for the last few years. It always made me happy to think of them laughing away their golden years together.

If it ain't true, it should be, goddamn it.
posted by Optamystic at 6:06 PM on May 29 [1 favorite]

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*stifles a giggle*

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posted by ZachsMind at 6:11 PM on May 29

High Anxiety is one of my favorite movies. Everyone is sooo funny in that movie. You could tell they were all comic geniuses as well as great friends. He's up there with Madeline Kahn and Richard Pryor, just telling really bad jokes about the world they left behind.. I hope. Wherever 'up there' is anyway. Rest in peace Mr. Korman.
posted by Flex1970 at 6:15 PM on May 29 [1 favorite]

Oh, damn. Crushed. Few things are more sad than when a comedian dies.

Harvey is...was...one of the best comedy actors since the invention of film. His television work was extraordinary. Find copies of the Carol Burnett show, and covet them. He sharpened his abilities there, and it shows.
posted by blixco at 6:18 PM on May 29

shit.


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posted by CitizenD at 6:22 PM on May 29

What a wonderful, gifted talent. I'll continue to enjoy his work for years to come.

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posted by cavalier at 6:34 PM on May 29

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posted by MythMaker at 6:39 PM on May 29

When you look up 'corpsing' in the dictionary, his picture is there.

Now, even more so.

".", sweet prince.
posted by Kinbote at 6:45 PM on May 29

"I want rustlers, cut throats, murderers, bounty hunters, desperados, mugs, pugs, thugs, nitwits, halfwits, dimwits,....vipers, snipers, con men, Indian agents, Mexican bandits,...muggers, buggerers, bushwhackers, hornswogglers, horse thieves, bull dykes, train robbers, bank robbers, ass-kickers, shit-kickers and METHODISTS!"


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posted by humannaire at 6:47 PM on May 29

Chewing gum on line? I suppose you brought enough for everyone?
posted by mr_crash_davis at 6:50 PM on May 29

Looking for Korman clips on Youtube, I found this, which...while not really highlighting Harvey, shows the kind of comedy he made and loved: Mama gets personal.
posted by ColdChef at 7:04 PM on May 29

He made me laugh so many times.
posted by longsleeves at 7:06 PM on May 29

The skit on the CB show, where they're doing the parody of Gone With the Wind? Just thinking about it makes me laugh.

Thank you, Harvey - thank you so so much for making me laugh so so hard over the years. Heaven will definitely be funnier from now on.
posted by rtha at 7:12 PM on May 29

(that's what I get for posting before reading. bad mefite. bad!)
posted by rtha at 7:14 PM on May 29

lily lily lily lily leeeegggs lily lily
posted by stargell at 7:15 PM on May 29

Harvey and the others have trouble holding it in again at Tim Conway's Elephant Story.
posted by evilcolonel at 7:19 PM on May 29

Some of my earliest memories are of him making my family laugh.
Harvey Korman and Tim conway were my nighttime Bert and Ernie.

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posted by Cat Pie Hurts at 7:21 PM on May 29 [2 favorites]

My apologies, that's not Harvey, that's Dick Van Dyke in the last link.
posted by evilcolonel at 7:21 PM on May 29

"Give the governor a harrumph!"

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posted by PlusDistance at 7:28 PM on May 29

God, I probably haven't seen the whole Gone With the Wind parody in decades. I completely forgot Dinah Shore was in it - the whole thing is just about perfect sketch comedy.

Like many of us, I suppose I'll be up too late, watching small videos on YouTube, laughing and crying.
posted by yhbc at 7:33 PM on May 29

Harvey on the Muppet Show: 1, 2, 3

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:)
posted by not_on_display at 7:34 PM on May 29 [1 favorite]

I was just going to post not_on_display's first Muppet clip. Who else could get a laugh from calling a Muppet a blackhearted hellhound?


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posted by saffry at 7:39 PM on May 29

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posted by effwerd at 7:41 PM on May 29

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posted by Ironmouth at 7:49 PM on May 29

<>
posted by deCadmus at 7:57 PM on May 29

shit
posted by geekyguy at 8:08 PM on May 29

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posted by Tacodog at 8:18 PM on May 29

What a loss! I knew he had a long, great career, but I'm surprised at how much material is out there. He's already missed - there's a Blazing Saddles viewing coming up soon..


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posted by Space Kitty at 8:22 PM on May 29

What a loss. I have many fond memories of laughing to his (and Tim's) antics on the Carol Burnett show. They don't make them like this anymore.

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posted by never used baby shoes at 8:42 PM on May 29

my heart sank at the news. thanks for all the links to memories.
posted by medium format at 8:48 PM on May 29

Aw.

From Carol Burnett to Mel Brooks, the guy always brought the funny in a steamer trunk.

thank you Hedley

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posted by djrock3k at 8:56 PM on May 29

As the most charming of princes.
posted by HotPatatta at 9:08 PM on May 29

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posted by lupus_yonderboy at 9:45 PM on May 29

Let us all pledge to Hedley Lamar!

This man made my childhood full of laughter.
posted by redbeard at 9:47 PM on May 29

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posted by fuse theorem at 10:10 PM on May 29

Harvey Korman was incredibly funny in everything he did. I have fond memories as a kid watching the Carol Burnett Show when the regulars made each other crack the heck up. The chemistry between Carol, Harvey and Tim Conway was magic, and they made each other laugh while making us laugh too. The only time I felt bad for him was when he starred in that crappy Fawlty Towers "adaptation" in the late '70s...
R.I.P. Harvey
posted by Ron Thanagar at 10:19 PM on May 29

What a wonderfully funny and engaging man.

He will be missed.
posted by Fuzzy Skinner at 10:57 PM on May 29

Good night Hedley.
posted by ooga_booga at 11:10 PM on May 29

"I want rustlers, cut throats, murderers, bounty hunters, desperados, mugs, pugs, thugs, nitwits, halfwits, dimwits, vipers, snipers, con men, Indian agents, Mexican bandits, muggers, buggerers, bushwhackers, hornswogglers, horse thieves, bull dykes, train robbers, bank robbers, ass-kickers, shit-kickers and Methodists."

METHODISTS!!

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(If you haven't seen Blazing Saddles, you won't understand why that quote is so amazing. It's what HK puts into it. Now go see the movie).
posted by Dipsomaniac at 11:21 PM on May 29

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posted by paddbear at 3:26 AM on May 30

He was amazing. Very sad.
posted by dasheekeejones at 3:26 AM on May 30

"You have to have a certain persona to be a star, you know, and I don't have that. I'm a banana."

Bye, Harvey, and thanks for all the laughs.

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posted by Samizdata at 4:04 AM on May 30

I've been searching but haven't found a sketch with Harvey and Tim in a butcher shop. Tim is the "old man" character and Harvey plays a customer. Tim works Harvey right up to the edge of losing it and then kills him with an improvised line "do you want a hot dog, or..a...wheeeeeenie" Makes me laugh even thinking about it.
posted by Ber at 4:45 AM on May 30 [1 favorite]

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posted by fixedgear at 4:52 AM on May 30

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posted by Smart Dalek at 4:57 AM on May 30

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posted by tommasz at 4:59 AM on May 30

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posted by Pollomacho at 5:29 AM on May 30

Watching him try to keep it together while working with Tim Conway was comedy gold.

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posted by ObscureReferenceMan at 5:31 AM on May 30

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posted by aldus_manutius at 5:46 AM on May 30

DeMoNAY!
posted by Eideteker at 5:47 AM on May 30 [1 favorite]

One of the funniest human beings ever.

Ditto!

(pause)

Ditto?
posted by hal9k at 6:28 AM on May 30 [2 favorites]

He might have made it if it weren't for his lucky ham.
posted by Pollomacho at 6:38 AM on May 30

I keep picturing him not being able to keep a straight face in the coffin.
posted by hellbient at 7:37 AM on May 30 [2 favorites]

". . .through the Vatican?"

"kinky"

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posted by killy willy at 7:53 AM on May 30 [1 favorite]

also, the Los Angeles Times has a spectacular header image in their tribute.
posted by killy willy at 8:05 AM on May 30

But for YouTube, who would have noticed that Carol Burnett's intended line ,"if I have to lie, cheat, steal or murder," came out, "if I have to lie steat, cheal, or murder." (6:35) Vicky Lawrence must have driven her to distraction. They were great together as Mama and Eunice.
posted by namret at 8:23 AM on May 30

I just can't stop being really, really upset about this. He and Tim Conway used to make me laugh until I lost my breath every time I saw them together when I was a kid, and right up through to the present.

This sucks so hard. :( I dont care what his age was or what ailment assailed him. Some folks should just live forever by default.

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posted by perilous at 2:28 PM on May 30

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posted by miss-lapin at 4:12 PM on May 30

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posted by popechunk at 4:39 PM on May 30