Charles Elmer "Rip" Taylor Jr. (January 13, 1931 – October 6, 2019) was an American actor and comedian, known for his exuberance and flamboyant personality, including his wild moustache, toupee, and his habit of showering himself (and others) with
confetti
Confetti are small pieces or streamers of paper, mylar, or metallic material which are usually thrown at celebrations, especially parades and weddings. The origins are from the Latin ''confectum'', with ''confetti'' the plural of Italian ''co ...
.
''
The Hollywood Reporter
''The Hollywood Reporter'' (''THR'') is an American digital and print magazine which focuses on the Cinema of the United States, Hollywood film industry, film, television, and entertainment industries. It was founded in 1930 as a daily trade pap ...
'' called him "a television and nightclub mainstay for more than six decades" who made thousands of nightclub and television appearances.
Early life
Charles Elmer Taylor Jr. was born in
Washington, D.C.
)
, image_skyline =
, image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...
,
on January 13, 1931, the son of Elizabeth Sue Evans (1911–2000), a waitress and former government clerk, and Charles Elmer Taylor (died 1933), a musician. His father died when he was two years old. As described in his 2010 one-man show ''It Ain't All Confetti'', Taylor had a tough childhood, which included being molested while in
foster care
Foster care is a system in which a minor has been placed into a ward, group home ( residential child care community, treatment center, etc.), or private home of a state-certified caregiver, referred to as a "foster parent" or with a family ...
and having to deal with bullies in school.
As a teenager he attended Capitol Page School.
Taylor worked as a
congressional page before serving in the
Korean War
, date = {{Ubl, 25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953 (''de facto'')({{Age in years, months, weeks and days, month1=6, day1=25, year1=1950, month2=7, day2=27, year2=1953), 25 June 1950 – present (''de jure'')({{Age in years, months, weeks a ...
; he was in the
U.S. Army Signal Corps
)
, colors = Orange and white
, colors_label = Corps colors
, march =
, mascot =
, equipment =
, equipment_label =
...
.
Although assigned to the Corps, he was sent to
Special Services, the entertainment wing of the military, where he performed for the troops in
Tokyo
Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.468 ...
and
Korea
Korea ( ko, 한국, or , ) is a peninsular region in East Asia. Since 1945, it has been divided at or near the 38th parallel, with North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) comprising its northern half and South Korea (Republic o ...
.
Career
Early career
Taylor's career in show business began when he joined the U.S. Army, where he started performing stand-up in clubs and restaurants abroad while also performing for the troops. After his military service, and back in the U.S., he focused on a nightclub career.
His mainstay material was "
pantomiming records, his favorites were
Yiddish folk songs and
Spike Jones tunes."
He said that ended one day when the record player broke, "I haven't shut up since."
In the mid-1950s he worked the
strip club
A strip club is a venue where strippers provide adult entertainment, predominantly in the form of striptease or other Erotic dancing, erotic or exotic dances. Strip clubs typically adopt a nightclub or Bar (establishment), bar style, and can also ...
s all along the Eastern coast of the U.S.
Although much of his material included jokes stolen from acts he saw in
USO
The United Service Organizations Inc. (USO) is an American nonprofit-charitable corporation that provides live entertainment, such as comedians, actors and musicians, social facilities, and other programs to members of the United States Armed F ...
shows, his first signature piece would be to pretend to cry while begging the audience for laughs.
He found he could get a bigger response that way.
His bookings started to get more upscale and he played all over
Miami Beach, Florida
Miami Beach is a coastal resort city in Miami-Dade County, Florida. It was incorporated on March 26, 1915. The municipality is located on natural and artificial island, man-made barrier islands between the Atlantic Ocean and Biscayne Bay, the ...
, which had become a winter destination for the wealthy.
Taylor was also a mainstay in the summer playground of the wealthy in
the Catskills Mountains.
A booking agent from ''
The Ed Sullivan Show
''The Ed Sullivan Show'' is an American television variety show that ran on CBS from June 20, 1948, to March 28, 1971, and was hosted by New York entertainment columnist Ed Sullivan. It was replaced in September 1971 by the '' CBS Sunday Night M ...
'' attended his show one night. Taylor would spend a week's salary on
champagne
Champagne (, ) is a sparkling wine originated and produced in the Champagne wine region of France under the rules of the appellation, that demand specific vineyard practices, sourcing of grapes exclusively from designated places within it, spe ...
to get the audience boisterous. He first appeared on the show in 1961 and made about twenty appearances.
Sullivan would forget his name, saying "Get me the crying comedian."
Television and film
In addition to the ''Ed Sullivan Show'', Taylor appeared on ''
The Jackie Gleason Show
''The Jackie Gleason Show'' is the name of a series of American network television shows that starred Jackie Gleason, which ran from 1952 to 1970, in various forms.
''Cavalcade of Stars''
Gleason's first variety series, which aired on the DuMon ...
'' in several guest appearances during the 1963–1964 season as "the crying comedian". Taylor's signature
confetti
Confetti are small pieces or streamers of paper, mylar, or metallic material which are usually thrown at celebrations, especially parades and weddings. The origins are from the Latin ''confectum'', with ''confetti'' the plural of Italian ''co ...
tossing gag came from an appearance in the 1960s ''
The Merv Griffin Show
''The Merv Griffin Show'' is an American television talk show starring Merv Griffin. The series ran from October 1, 1962 to March 29, 1963 on NBC, May 10, 1965 to July 4, 1969 in first-run syndication, from August 18, 1969 to February 11, 1972 ...
'' where he was bombing as a stand-up comedian.
"I did props and I was 'The
Prop Comedian
Prop comedy is a comedy genre in which performers use humorous objects, or conventional objects in humorous ways. The stages and films term "prop", an abbreviation of "property", refers to any object an actor handles in the course of a performance ...
.' I was dying like hell on Merv Griffin's show. The jokes were dumb, and I tore the five by eight cards, threw them up in the air and it became confetti," he recalled. "I knocked over his desk, walked up the aisle, went to
Sardi's
Sardi's is a continental restaurant located at 234 West 44th Street, between Broadway and Eighth Avenue, in the Theater District of Manhattan, New York City. Sardi's opened at its current location on March 5, 1927. It is known for the carica ...
and said, 'Well, that's the end of my television career.' I went home that night. Their switchboard had lit up. They said, 'Get the guy that went crazy!'"
Taylor became somewhat of a fixture in
Las Vegas
Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vegas ...
.
He was the opener for
Eleanor Powell
Eleanor Torrey Powell (November 21, 1912 – February 11, 1982) was an American dancer and actress. Best remembered for her tap dance numbers in musical films in the 1930s and 1940s, she was one of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer's top dancing stars du ...
's dance-focused revue, and would go on to warm up audiences for headliners "
Frank Sinatra
Francis Albert Sinatra (; December 12, 1915 – May 14, 1998) was an American singer and actor. Nicknamed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Chairman of the Board" and later called "Ol' Blue Eyes", Sinatra was one of the most popular ...
,
Sammy Davis Jr.
Samuel George Davis Jr. (December 8, 1925 – May 16, 1990) was an American singer, dancer, actor, comedian, film producer and television director.
At age three, Davis began his career in vaudeville with his father Sammy Davis Sr. and the ...
,
Ann-Margret
Ann-Margret Olsson (born April 28, 1941) is a Swedish–American actress, singer, and dancer. As an actress and singer, she is credited as Ann-Margret.
She is known for her roles in '' Pocketful of Miracles'' (1961), ''State Fair'' (1962), '' ...
,
Debbie Reynolds,
Frankie Laine
Frankie Laine (born Francesco Paolo LoVecchio; March 30, 1913 – February 6, 2007) was an American Singing, singer, songwriter, and actor whose career spanned nearly 75 years, from his first concerts in 1930 with a marathon dance company to hi ...
,
Judy Garland
Judy Garland (born Frances Ethel Gumm; June 10, 1922June 22, 1969) was an American actress and singer. While critically acclaimed for many different roles throughout her career, she is widely known for playing the part of Dorothy Gale in '' The ...
and
The Kingston Trio
The Kingston Trio is an American folk and pop music group that helped launch the folk revival of the late 1950s to the late 1960s. The group started as a San Francisco Bay Area nightclub act with an original lineup of Dave Guard, Bob Shane, ...
".
In the 1970s he won Las Vegas Entertainer of the Year three times.
He appeared in two 1968 episodes of ''
The Monkees
The Monkees were an American rock and pop band, formed in Los Angeles in 1966, whose lineup consisted of the American actor/musicians Micky Dolenz, Michael Nesmith and Peter Tork alongside English actor/singer Davy Jones. The group was con ...
'' as well as having a cameo in their 1969 special '' Revolutions per Monkee''. He continued to work as a
voice performer in the 1970s cartoon series ''
Here Comes the Grump
''Here Comes the Grump'' is an animated cartoon series produced by DePatie–Freleng Enterprises and aired on NBC from 1969 to 1970. It was later shown in reruns on Sci-Fi Channel's Cartoon Quest.
Structured as a battle between good and evil, the ...
'', as the title character, and in the second edition of ''
The Addams Family
''The Addams Family'' is a fictional family created by American cartoonist Charles Addams. They originally appeared in a series of 150 unrelated single-panel cartoons, about half of which were originally published in ''The New Yorker'' over ...
'' cartoon series in 1992, as the voice of
Uncle Fester
Uncle Fester is a member of the fictional Addams Family. He was played by Jackie Coogan in the original television series, by Christopher Lloyd in the two feature films, by Nick Kroll in the 2019 and 2021 animated features, by Fred Armisen in ...
.
Throughout the 1970s, Taylor was a frequent celebrity guest panelist on television game shows such as ''
Hollywood Squares
''Hollywood Squares'' (originally ''The Hollywood Squares'') is an American game show in which two contestants compete in a game of tic-tac-toe to win cash and prizes. The show Television pilot, piloted on NBC in 1965 and the regular series debut ...
'', ''
To Tell the Truth'', and ''
The Gong Show
''The Gong Show'' is an American amateur talent contest franchised by Sony Pictures Television to many countries. It was broadcast on NBC's daytime schedule from June 14, 1976, through July 21, 1978, and in first-run syndication from 1976 to 1 ...
'', and substituted for
Charles Nelson Reilly
Charles is a masculine given name predominantly found in English and French speaking countries. It is from the French form ''Charles'' of the Proto-Germanic name (in runic alphabet) or ''*karilaz'' (in Latin alphabet), whose meaning was "f ...
on ''
Match Game
''Match Game'' is an American television panel game show that premiered on NBC in 1962 and has been revived several times over the course of the last six decades. The game features contestants trying to match answers given by celebrity panelis ...
.'' He became a regular on
Sid and Marty Krofft
Sid Krofft (born July 30, 1929) and Marty Krofft (born April 9, 1937) are a Canadian sibling team of television creators and puppeteers. Through their production company, Sid & Marty Krofft Pictures, they have made numerous children's television a ...
's ''
Sigmund and the Sea Monsters
''Sigmund and the Sea Monsters'' is an American children's television series that ran from September 8, 1973 to October 18, 1975, produced by Sid and Marty Krofft and aired on Saturday mornings. It was syndicated by itself from December 1975 to ...
'', playing Sheldon, a sea-genie who lived in a conch shell. In addition, Taylor was also a regular on ''
The Brady Bunch Hour
''The Brady Bunch Hour'' is an American variety show featuring skits and songs produced by Sid & Marty Krofft Productions in association with Paramount Television. It ran on ABC from November 28, 1976, to May 25, 1977.
The series starred the o ...
'',
playing the role of neighbor/performer Jack Merrill. He also hosted a short-lived send-up of beauty pageants titled ''
The $1.98 Beauty Show
''The $1.98 Beauty Show'' is an American game show that aired in Broadcast syndication, syndication from September 1978 to September 1980.
Hosted by Rip Taylor, the series is a parody of beauty contests, and featured six female contestants (inc ...
'', created by
Chuck Barris
Charles Hirsch Barris (June 3, 1929 – March 21, 2017) was an American game show creator, producer, and host. Barris was known for hosting ''The Gong Show'' and creating ''The Dating Game'' and ''The Newlywed Game''. He was also a songwrite ...
in 1978, producer/host of ''
The Gong Show
''The Gong Show'' is an American amateur talent contest franchised by Sony Pictures Television to many countries. It was broadcast on NBC's daytime schedule from June 14, 1976, through July 21, 1978, and in first-run syndication from 1976 to 1 ...
''.
Taylor appeared as a celebrity on the 1990 version of ''Match Game''. In 1979, he was the voice of C.J. from the
Hanna-Barbera
Hanna-Barbera Cartoons, Inc. ( ) was an American animation studio and production company which was active from 1957 to 2001. It was founded on July 7, 1957, by William Hanna and Joseph Barbera following the decision of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer to c ...
television movie ''
Scooby Goes Hollywood
''Scooby Goes Hollywood'' (later released on home video as ''Scooby-Doo Goes Hollywood'') is a 1979 animated television special starring the cast of Hanna-Barbera's Saturday-morning cartoon series ''Scooby-Doo''. It was originally broadcast on A ...
''. Taylor's other appearances also include ''
The Kids in the Hall
The Kids in the Hall is a Canadian sketch comedy troupe formed in 1984, consisting of comedians Dave Foley, Bruce McCulloch, Kevin McDonald, Mark McKinney and Scott Thompson. Their eponymous television show ran from 1989 to 1995, on CBC, ...
''; referred to as Uncle Rip by
Buddy Cole, the show's most flamboyantly gay character. He also appeared as himself in the movie ''
Wayne's World 2
''Wayne's World 2'' is a 1993 American comedy film directed by Stephen Surjik and starring Mike Myers and Dana Carvey as hosts of a public-access television cable television show in Aurora, Illinois. The film is the sequel to ''Wayne's World'' ( ...
'', one of the special guests invited to "WayneStock" after being visited in a dream by
Jim Morrison
James Douglas Morrison (December 8, 1943 – July 3, 1971) was an American singer, poet and songwriter who was the lead vocalist of the Rock music, rock band the Doors. Due to his wild personality, poetic lyrics, distinctive voice, unpredicta ...
.
Taylor made "dozens of mayhem-filled appearances" on both ''
The Tonight Show
''The Tonight Show'' is an American late-night talk show that has aired on NBC since 1954. The show has been hosted by six comedians: Steve Allen (1954–1957), Jack Paar (1957–1962), Johnny Carson (1962–1992), Jay Leno (1992–2009 and 201 ...
'' and ''
The Mike Douglas Show
''The Mike Douglas Show'' was an American daytime television talk show that was hosted by Mike Douglas. It began as a local program in Cleveland before being carried on other stations owned by Westinghouse Broadcasting. The show went into nati ...
.''
In 1990, he voiced the genie in ''
DuckTales the Movie: Treasure of the Lost Lamp''. Taylor appeared uncredited on a December 1994 edition of ''
WWF Monday Night Raw''. He assisted another wrestler and they pushed
Jeff Jarrett
Jeffrey Leonard Jarrett (born July 14, 1967) is an American professional wrestler and promoter. He is currently signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW), where he also serves as Director of Business Development.
Beginning his career in his father ...
.
In 1997, Taylor appeared in a segment on the show ''
Beyond Belief: Fact or Fiction''. He played the role of Elmo Middleton in the segment "The Man in the Model T". Also in 1997, he appeared as himself on the sitcom ''
Brotherly Love'' in the episode "Easy Come Easy Go". He also portrayed Chief Undersecretary Wartle in the graphical adventure game ''
Zork: Grand Inquisitor'' in 1997. In 2003, Taylor also appeared as himself on ''
Will & Grace
''Will & Grace'' is an American television sitcom created by Max Mutchnick and David Kohan. Set in New York City, the show focuses on the friendship between best friends Will Truman (Eric McCormack), a gay lawyer, and Grace Adler (Debra Messing), ...
''. In 2005, he appeared as himself on an episode of ''
George Lopez
George Edward Lopez (born April 23, 1961) is an American comedian and actor. He is known for starring in his self-produced ABC sitcom. His stand-up comedy examines race and ethnic relations, including Mexican American culture. Lopez has rece ...
''. Taylor guest-starred as chef "Rappin' Rip" in four episodes of ''
Life with Bonnie
''Life with Bonnie'' is an ABC television sitcom that originally aired from September 17, 2002 to April 9, 2004. The show outlined the life of character Bonnie Malloy, who juggled her personal life and her job as a daytime TV talk show host. The ...
''.
He guest starred in ''
The Suite Life of Zack & Cody
''The Suite Life of Zack & Cody'' is an American sitcom created by Danny Kallis and Jim Geoghan. The series aired on Disney Channel from March 18, 2005, to September 1, 2008. The series was nominated for an Emmy Award three times and was al ...
'' episode "
Loosely Ballroom" as Leo. He is also in some episodes of ''
The Emperor's New School
''The Emperor's New School'' is an American animated television series created by Mark Dindal that aired on Disney Channel for two seasons between January2006 and November2008. It is the second sequel to the 2000 film ''The Emperor's New Groove ...
'' as the voice of the Royal Record Keeper. He was also in the
Jetix animated series ''
Super Robot Monkey Team Hyperforce Go!
(commonly known by its acronym, ''SRMTHFG'', or simply, ''Super Robot Monkey Team'') is an anime-influenced animation, anime-influenced television series created by Ciro Nieli, one of the directors of ''Teen Titans (TV series), Teen Titans'', and ...
''. He made a special guest appearance at the end of the 1,000th episode of
G4's video game review show ''
X-Play
''Xplay'' (previously ''GameSpot TV'' and ''Extended Play'') is a TV program about video games. The program, known for its reviews and comedy skits, airs on '' G4'' in the United States and had aired on ''G4 Canada'' in Canada (and briefly on Y ...
''. He made a guest appearance on a 2012 episode of ''
The Aquabats! Super Show!
''The Aquabats! Super Show!'' is an American action-comedy musical television series which aired from March 3, 2012 to January 8, 2014 on The Hub Network and resumed as an independent YouTube web series in September 2019. The series was created ...
'', where he played a genie reminiscent of his character on ''Sigmund and the Sea Monsters''.
![RipTaylorDorisRobertsNov10](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/44/RipTaylorDorisRobertsNov10.jpg)
In 1995, Taylor performed the intro for the
Bloodhound Gang
The Bloodhound Gang was an American rap rock band from Collegeville, Pennsylvania. It was founded in 1988 by rappers Jimmy Pop and Daddy Long Legs (now in Wolfpac) as a hip-hop group, before branching out into other genres as their career pro ...
's ''
Use Your Fingers
''Use Your Fingers'' is the debut studio album by Bloodhound Gang. It was released on July 18, 1995, by Cheese Factory Records. Some of the songs on the album were reworked version of demos from Bloodhound Gang's earlier demo tapes. The album h ...
'' album. In the early 2000s,
Johnny Knoxville
Philip John Clapp (born March 11, 1971), best known professionally as Johnny Knoxville, is an American stunt performer, actor, writer, producer, and professional wrestler. He is best known as a co-creator and star of the MTV reality stunt show ...
asked Taylor to be in the film ''
Jackass: The Movie'' (2002). and in the final scene, he wielded a pistol that, when fired, released a sign that read "The End." He did the same thing at the ending of ''
Jackass Number Two
''Jackass Number Two'' is a 2006 American reality slapstick comedy film directed by Jeff Tremaine. It is the sequel to '' Jackass: The Movie'' (2002), both based upon the MTV series '' Jackass''. Like its predecessor and the original television ...
'', and ''
Jackass 3D''. In the credits of the
2005 remake of ''The Dukes of Hazzard'', Taylor shows up in the blooper reel.
Taylor made occasional appearances in movies, usually in broad comedies like ''
The Happy Hooker Goes to Washington
''The Happy Hooker Goes to Washington'' is a 1977 American comedy film directed by William A. Levey. It was the sequel to '' The Happy Hooker'', which was released in 1975. Joey Heatherton replaced Lynn Redgrave as the lead character of Xaviera ...
'' (1977)
and the R-rated ''
Deep Throat'' parody ''
Chatterbox
Chatterbox also styled as CHATTERbOX was a project of the Crucified's Jeff Bellew. The project has hosted many session musicians, including Stavesacre and the Crucified's Mark Salomon, and Argyle Park and Circle of Dust's Scott Albert. Bellew ha ...
'' (1977). In
Cheech & Chong
Cheech & Chong are a comedy duo consisting of Cheech Marin and Tommy Chong. The duo found commercial and cultural success in the 1970s and 1980s with their stand-up routines, studio recordings, and feature films, which were based on the hippie a ...
's ''
Things Are Tough All Over
''Things are Tough All Over'' is a 1982 American action comedy film directed by Thomas K. Avildsen and starring Tommy Chong and Cheech Marin as two aging hippies, and additionally as Arab businessmen Mr. Slyman and Prince Habib.
Plot
Cheech an ...
'' (1982), he picks them up in the middle of nowhere driving a convertible full of props. He then proceeds to drive them to Las Vegas and telling jokes the whole way and moving Chong to tears from laughter (and, later, tears because he won't stop). In ''
Amazon Women on the Moon
''Amazon Women on the Moon'' is a 1987 American satirical science fiction film that parodies the experience of watching low-budget films on late-night television. The film, featuring a large ensemble cast including cameo appearances from film and ...
'' (1987) a funeral service turns into a
celebrity roast
A roast is a form of humor in which a specific individual, a guest of honor, is subjected to jokes at their expense, intended to amuse the event's wider audience. Such events are intended to honor a specific individual in a unique way. In addition ...
when guest Rip Taylor shows up to "honor" the deceased. In 1992, Taylor voiced Captain Kiddie in ''
Tom and Jerry: The Movie'' (1992) and appeared in ''
Wayne's World 2
''Wayne's World 2'' is a 1993 American comedy film directed by Stephen Surjik and starring Mike Myers and Dana Carvey as hosts of a public-access television cable television show in Aurora, Illinois. The film is the sequel to ''Wayne's World'' ( ...
''. In 1993's ''
Indecent Proposal
''Indecent Proposal'' is a 1993 American erotic drama film directed by Adrian Lyne and written by Amy Holden Jones. It is based on the 1988 novel by Jack Engelhard, in which a couple's marriage is disrupted by a stranger's offer of a million d ...
'', he appeared as
Demi Moore
Demi Gene Moore ( ; née Guynes; born November 11, 1962) is an American actress. After making her film debut in 1981, Moore appeared on the soap opera '' General Hospital'' (1982–1984) and subsequently gained recognition as a member of the Br ...
's boss, Mr. Langford.
Live theatre
Taylor's first big live show was in 1966, when he went on a tour with
Judy Garland
Judy Garland (born Frances Ethel Gumm; June 10, 1922June 22, 1969) was an American actress and singer. While critically acclaimed for many different roles throughout her career, she is widely known for playing the part of Dorothy Gale in '' The ...
and
Eleanor Powell
Eleanor Torrey Powell (November 21, 1912 – February 11, 1982) was an American dancer and actress. Best remembered for her tap dance numbers in musical films in the 1930s and 1940s, she was one of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer's top dancing stars du ...
in Las Vegas. In 1981, Taylor appeared on Broadway when he replaced
Mickey Rooney in the burlesque-themed musical comedy ''
Sugar Babies''. He was a frequent co-star with
Debbie Reynolds in her live shows in Las Vegas; Reno, Nevada; and Lake Tahoe. Taylor performed frequently in Atlantic City as well.
In 2010, he appeared in the one-man show ''It Ain't All Confetti'' in North Hollywood, where he shared personal stories about his life and career.
Personal life and death
In 2005, Taylor appeared as the grand marshal of the Washington, D.C.,
Capital Pride parade.
When Taylor had been referred to as "openly gay"
in a 2009 interview for "Ask the Flying Monkey",
Brent Hartinger
Brent Hartinger (born 1971) is an American author, playwright, and screenwriter, best known for his novels about gay teenagers.
Early life
Hartinger was born in 1971 in Washington state and grew up in Tacoma, Washington. He earned a bachelor's ...
recalled receiving an email from Taylor stating, "You don't know me to summarize I am openly gay. I don't know you're not an open heroin user. You see how that works? Think before you write." Taylor was married for a number of years to Las Vegas showgirl Rusty Rowe, whom he divorced in the early 1960s.
Taylor was a close friend of entertainer
Liberace
Władziu Valentino Liberace (May 16, 1919 – February 4, 1987) was an American pianist, singer, and actor. A child prodigy born in Wisconsin to parents of Italian and Polish origin, he enjoyed a career spanning four decades of concerts, recordi ...
. Taylor cut the ribbon at the Las Vegas estate auction of Liberace's belongings and personal effects in 1988.
According to his publicist, at the time of Taylor's death he was in a long-term relationship with Robert Fortney.
Taylor died on October 6, 2019, at
Cedars-Sinai Medical Center
Cedars-Sinai Medical Center is a nonprofit, tertiary, 886-bed teaching hospital and multi-specialty academic health science center located in Los Angeles, California. Part of the Cedars-Sinai Health System, the hospital employs a staff of over 2 ...
in
Los Angeles
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...
, having been hospitalized for an
epileptic seizure
An epileptic seizure, informally known as a seizure, is a period of symptoms due to abnormally excessive or synchronous neuronal activity in the brain. Outward effects vary from uncontrolled shaking movements involving much of the body with los ...
the week prior.
His death certificate listed
heart failure
Heart failure (HF), also known as congestive heart failure (CHF), is a syndrome, a group of signs and symptoms caused by an impairment of the heart's blood pumping function. Symptoms typically include shortness of breath, excessive fatigue, a ...
as a contributing cause.
While Taylor often gave his birth year as 1935, his death certificate and census records confirm he was born in 1931.
His ashes were scattered at sea in Hawaii.[
]
Notes
References
Sources
*
*
*
*
External links
*
*
*
An interview with Rip Taylor
at ''Classic Showbiz'' blog, May 2011
{{DEFAULTSORT:Taylor, Rip
1931 births
2019 deaths
20th-century American comedians
20th-century American male actors
21st-century American comedians
21st-century American male actors
United States Army personnel of the Korean War
American male comedians
American male film actors
American male television actors
American male voice actors
Bisexual male actors
Bisexual comedians
LGBT people from Washington, D.C.
Male actors from Washington, D.C.
Military personnel from Washington, D.C.
Prop comics
Neurological disease deaths in California
Deaths from epilepsy