RIP Gilbert Gottfried

[Mysterian]

Just heard of Gilbert Gottfried's passing. He was 67, suffering from an unspecified illness. I was a big fan of his podcast especially, but I remember him from various movies and TV appearances, and of course hosting USA's Up All Night. He used to voice the Aflac duck, some of you may remember. ETA: And Iago from Aladdin, I almost forgot!

RIP, Gilbert. Best wishes to his wife and kids.

 

[chickapin parterre]

lago....that is all I got

 

[stitch'sgirl]

He and his wife were one of my favorite couples from Wife Swap. If you haven't seen it, it is worth a look!

My DS just sent me a PSA he had to watch in kindergarten. He said he was scared to death - I think it's hilarious!

 

[Mysterian]

He and his wife were one of my favorite couples from Wife Swap. If you haven't seen it, it is worth a look!

My DS just sent me a PSA he had to watch in kindergarten. He said he was scared to death - I think it's hilarious!

He's mentioned Wife Swap on the podcast a few times, I wish I saw it. I only know Alan Thicke was the other guy.

 

[charlie.nj]

ABCNews: “Gottfried died from recurrent ventricular tachycardia due to myotonic dystrophy type II, a disorder that affects the heart, his publicist and longtime friend Glenn Schwartz said in a statement.”


Geez he was going to perform in New Jersey April 23rd. RIP

 

[Micca]

I think many people are put off by his voice, but I thought he was really funny. I'm gonna miss him.

 

[stitch'sgirl]

He's mentioned Wife Swap on the podcast a few times, I wish I saw it. I only know Alan Thicke was the other guy.

Thanks for reminding me who the other couple was. It was such a contrast because Thicke was suave and extravagant and Gottfried was such a penny pincher. I remember a scene was of him going to the dollar store to buy Valentine gifts. He was so unique, I'm really going to miss his humor. Just saw a picture of him, Bob Saget and Norm MacDonald together. Along with Betty White, we have had such big losses in comedy.

 

[WDWEPCOT]

So shocked and sad to read this - I will miss him RIP

 

[superme80]

Another fan of his Wife Swap episode. RIP Mr. Gottfried!!!!

 

[AppleDumpling]

<quoted deleted post>

I don’t know anything about him as a comedian or about his personal life. It’s only the voice he’s known for that I will remember, and yes, I find it really annoying. Besides Iago, he voiced Digit, another bird character on the kids’ show Cyberchase, which DS loved when he was young. Frankly, I don’t get why he kept it up, but I’ve seen/heard him in interviews and he always stayed in character with the irritating fake voice.

 

[bcla]

I think many people are put off by his voice, but I thought he was really funny. I'm gonna miss him.

The high-pitched screeching was an act of course. He sounded like a typical New Yorker.

 

[Micca]

Frankly, I don’t get why he kept it up, but I’ve seen/heard him in a interviews and he always stayed in character with the irritating fake voice.

That's how he actually spoke. He laid it on a bit for performance, but his regular voice was just a less manic version.

 

[bcla]

I don’t know anything about him as a comedian or about his personal life. It’s only the voice he’s known for that I will remember, and yes, I find it really annoying. Besides Iago, he voiced Digit, another bird character on the kids’ show Cyberchase, which DS loved when he was young. Frankly, I don’t get why he kept it up, but I’ve seen/heard him in a interviews and he always stayed in character with the irritating fake voice.

Even when he didn't screech, that voice was not his natural cadence. He was kind of like Elizabeth Holmes in reverse.

 

[bcla]

That's how he actually spoke. He laid it on a bit for performance, but his regular voice was just a less manic version.

It was still somewhat of an act when he was in public. I linked a skit from his time on SNL, but even after that there are recordings of him privately where he's quite calm.

But the first role I think he got that got him really noticed was in Beverly Hills Cop 2. His time in SNL was pretty short of not all that memorable.

 

[Mysterian]

The high-pitched screeching was an act of course. He sounded like a typical New Yorker.

He used to joke that he was on the worst ever era of SNL. Granted this was during a time of transition for the show, and he was let go when Dick Ebersol took over.

 

[PollyannaMom]

I know him as the voice of Iago, and for doing something really nice for a young autistic gentleman who used Disney movies to work on speaking:

 

[Mysterian]

Ok, here's a clip from his podcast.

Gilbert and Mario Cantone reenacting a scene from When Harry Met Sally, only it's Gilbert as Herve' Villechaize and Mario Cantone as Carol Channing.
(The other person you'll hear momentarily is co-host Frank Santopadre.)

Please listen! It's likely the funniest thing you'll hear today:

EDIT:

In case anyone's forgotten who Villechaize and Channing are (and to provide a visual while listening):

 

[AppleDumpling]

The high-pitched screeching was an act of course. He sounded like a typical New Yorker.

Thanks for that clip. Didn’t know he was ever on SNL. LOL, I’m a New Yorker and he sounds normal here.

That's how he actually spoke. He laid it on a bit for performance, but his regular voice was just a less manic version.

The clip above is the first I’ve heard his natural voice.

So I can appreciate his talent as a voice actor; just wish he had diversified a bit more to appeal to a broader audience.
RIP

 

[sailorstitch]

He and his wife were one of my favorite couples from Wife Swap. If you haven't seen it, it is worth a look!

My DS just sent me a PSA he had to watch in kindergarten. He said he was scared to death - I think it's hilarious!

OMG I completely forgot about this PSA! It ran on tv here a lot back in the day.

Gilbert will always be Iago to me. The first time I saw him in something other than Aladdin, I knew he was Iago. His voice was unmistakable.

He also guest stared on an episode of Hannah Montana. He played a very harsh music critic.

 

[bcla]

Thanks for that clip. Didn’t know he was ever on SNL. LOL, I’m a New Yorker and he sounds normal here.


The clip above is the first I’ve heard his natural voice.

So I can appreciate his talent as a voice actor; just wish he had diversified a bit more to appeal to a broader audience.
RIP

His season on SNL was often considered a lost season other than Eddie Murphy and Joe Piscopo joining the cast. The only other cast member to stay on was Tim Kazurinsky. I look at the name of cast members and the only other one for the 1980-1981 season I recognize is Laurie Metcalf. But it's obvious that he wasn't using his later loudmouth screaming/screeching persona.

He could do a neutral accent. Heck - he's got a Matthew Broderick look here.

But yeah - even when he wasn't just laying it on thick, that was clearly an act. However, he was so used to it, there's a possibility that he started talking like that out of familiarity.