One of – if not the — most distinctive voice in comedy has died.
Gilbert Gottfried passed away today. His official Twitter account confirmed the news in a statement, writing “in addition to being the most iconic voice in comedy, Gilbert was a wonderful husband, brother, friend and father to his two young children. Although today is a sad day for us all, please keep laughing as loud as possible in Gilbert’s honor.” Gottfried was just 67 years old.
Gottfried was a ferocious and fearless presence on the standup comedy scene for decades, known for that grating voice and his edgy material. (For many years, he was the voice of the duck in Aflac commercials, until he told a series of controversial jokes on his Twitter account, which got him fired from the gig.) To wider audiences, he was probably best known, somewhat ironically, as the voice of Iago the parrot in the family-friendly animated movie Aladdin, along and its various sequels and television shows.
Slightly older viewers might remember Gottfried as the longtime Saturday host of USA Up All Night, the cable channel’s showcase for weird movies all through the 1990s. The channel would air cult films like Chopping Mall and Laserblast into the wee hours of the morning, with Gottfried providing suitably strange intros and commercial bumpers.
In 2017, Gottfried was the subject of his own documentary, titled Gilbert.
Gottfried’s 40+ year career also included stints on Saturday Night Live and Hollywood Squares, appearances movies like Beverly Hills Cop II and Problem Child, and voice work in everything from Superman: The Animated Series to Clerks: The Animated Series to Crank Yankers to 30 Rock. He leaves behind a wife and two children, and many, many excellent jokes.
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