Martin Alan "Marty" Feldman (8 July 1934^[1] – 2 December 1982) was an English writer, comedian and BAFTA award winning actor, notable for his bulging eyes, which were the result of a thyroid condition known as Graves Disease. is the 189th day of the year (190th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1934 (MCMXXXIV) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display full 1934 calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... This article is about the capital of England and the United Kingdom. ... For other uses, see England (disambiguation). ... is the 336th day of the year (337th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1982 (MCMLXXXII) was a common year starting on Friday (link displays the 1982 Gregorian calendar). ... Nickname: Location of Mexico City Coordinates: , Country Federal entity Boroughs The 16 delegaciones Founded c. ... BAFTA Award The British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA), is a British organisation that hosts annual awards shows for film, television, childrens film and television, and interactive media. ... For other articles with the name Marty, check the Marty (disambiguation) page Marty is a British television sketch comedy series, with Marty Feldman, Tim Brooke-Taylor, John Junkin and Roland MacLeod, which was made in 1968. ... For other articles with the name Marty, check the Marty (disambiguation) page Marty is a British television sketch comedy series, with Marty Feldman, Tim Brooke-Taylor, John Junkin and Roland MacLeod, which was made in 1968. ... is the 189th day of the year (190th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1934 (MCMXXXIV) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display full 1934 calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 336th day of the year (337th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1982 (MCMLXXXII) was a common year starting on Friday (link displays the 1982 Gregorian calendar). ... For other uses, see England (disambiguation). ... The British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA), is a British organization that hosts annual awards shows for film, television, childrens film and television, and interactive media. ... For other uses, see Actor (disambiguation). ... Exophthalmos (or proptosis) is a bulging of the eye anteriorly out of the orbit. ... Graves disease is a thyroid disorder characterized by goiter, exophthalmos, orange-peel skin, and hyperthyroidism. ...

Youth

Feldman was born in London's East End, the son of Jewish Russian immigrants. Leaving school at 15, he joined a circus in Margate.^[2] By the age of 20 he had decided to pursue a career as a comedian. This article is about the capital of England and the United Kingdom. ... The East End of London, known locally as the East End, is an area, with no formal authority or boundaries, that spans a number of administative districts of London in England. ... For other uses, see Jew (disambiguation). ... Russians (Русские - Russkie) are an ethnic group of East Slavic people, which live primarily in Russia and neighboring countries. ... Margate is a town in Thanet, Kent, England (population about 60,000). ... For the documentary about Jerry Seinfeld, see Comedian (film). ...

Career

In 1954, Feldman formed a successful writing partnership with Barry Took. For British television, they wrote situation comedies such as The Army Game, Bootsie and Snudge, and most notably the ground-breaking BBC radio show Round the Horne, which starred Kenneth Horne and Kenneth Williams. Barry Took (June 19, 1928 – March 31, 2002) was an English comedian, writer and television presenter. ... British television broadcasting has a range of different broadcasters, broadcasting multiple channels over a variety of distribution media. ... This article is about a genre of comedy. ... The Army Game was a British television series about life in National Service broadcast between 1957 and 1961 by Granada Television . ... Bootsie and Snudge was a series written by Barry Took and Marty Feldman, also known for the BBC radio series Round the Horne. ... Not to be confused with Around the Horn, an American sports programme. ... Kenneth Horne Kenneth Horne (27 February 1907, London – 14 February 1969) was an English comedian and businessman. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ...

The television sketch comedy series At Last the 1948 Show featured Feldman's first on-screen performances. In one sketch first broadcast on 1 March 1967, Feldman harassed a patient shop assistant (John Cleese) for a series of fictitious books, finally achieving success with Ethel the Aardvark Goes Quantity Surveying. The sketch was revived as part of the Monty Python stage show repertoire, and on Monty Python's Contractual Obligation Album (both without Feldman). Sketch Show redirects here. ... At Last the 1948 Show was a satirical TV show made by David Frosts Paradine Productions (although they werent credited on the actual programmes) in association with Rediffusion London for Britains ITV network during 1967, bringing Cambridge Footlights type-humour to a broader audience. ... is the 60th day of the year (61st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1967 (MCMLXVII) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display full calendar) of the 1967 Gregorian calendar. ... Cleese redirects here. ... Monty Python, or The Pythons,[2][3] is the collective name of the creators of Monty Pythons Flying Circus, a British television comedy sketch show that first aired on the BBC on 5 October 1969. ...

Marty Feldman was co-author, with John Cleese, Graham Chapman and Tim Brooke-Taylor, of the "Four Yorkshiremen" sketch, which was written for their television comedy series At Last the 1948 Show. The "Four Yorkshiremen" sketch was performed during Amnesty International concerts (by members of Monty Python — once including Rowan Atkinson in place of Python member Eric Idle), as well as during Monty Python Live at the Hollywood Bowl and other Monty Python shows and record albums. This has led to the "Four Yorkshiremen" sketch now being considered a Monty Python sketch, with the origin and co-authorship of the sketch by non-Monty Python writers Marty Feldman and Tim Brooke-Taylor being overlooked or forgotten by many people. Feldman was also a writer on The Frost Report with several future members of Monty Python. Dr. Graham Arthur Chapman (January 8, 1941 – October 4, 1989) was an English comedian, actor, writer, physician and one of the six members of the Monty Python comedy troupe. ... Tim Brooke-Taylor (April 2000) Timothy Julian Brooke-Taylor, (born 17 July 1940 in Buxton, Derbyshire, England) is a British comic actor most well known in Britain as a member of The Goodies comedy trio and in the comedy radio shows Im Sorry I Havent a Clue, and... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Amnesty international Amnesty International (commonly known as Amnesty or AI) is an international non-governmental organization which defines its mission as to undertake research and action focused on preventing and ending grave abuses of the rights to physical and mental integrity, freedom of conscience... Rowan Sebastian Atkinson (born 6 January 1955) is an English comedian, actor and writer, famous for his title roles in the British television comedies Blackadder and Mr. ... Eric Idle (born March 29, 1943) is an English comedian, actor, author and composer of comedic songs. ... Monty Python Live at the Hollywood Bowl is a 1982 film in which the Monty Python team perform many of their greatest sketches and skits in the Hollywood Bowl, including a couple of pre-Python ones. ... The Frost Report was a satirical television show hosted by Sir David Frost. ...

Following his success on At Last the 1948 Show, Feldman had a series of his own on the BBC called Marty (1968), which also featured Tim Brooke-Taylor, John Junkin and Roland MacLeod and for which he won two BAFTA awards. The second series (made in 1969) was renamed It's Marty (with the second title being retained for the DVD release of the show); in 1972 he switched to the ITV station ATV for one series before returning to the BBC. In 1974, Dennis Main Wilson (producer for the UK television show Till Death Us Do Part) produced a short sketch series for Feldman entitled Marty Back Together Again — a reference to reports about the star's health. But this series never recaptured the impact of the earlier series. The Marty series proved popular enough with an international audience (the first series won the Golden Rose Award at Montreaux) to launch a film career. His first feature role was in 1970's Every Home Should Have One. For other uses, see BBC (disambiguation). ... For other articles with the name Marty, check the Marty (disambiguation) page Marty is a British television sketch comedy series, with Marty Feldman, Tim Brooke-Taylor, John Junkin and Roland MacLeod, which was made in 1968. ... John Francis Junkin (January 29, 1930, Ealing, London - March 7, 2006, Aylesbury) was a British radio, television and film performer and scriptwriter. ... Roland MacLeod (born 1935 in London, England), was an actor of film and television. ... The British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA), is a British organization that hosts annual awards shows for film, television, childrens film and television, and interactive media. ... Year 1972 (MCMLXXII) was a leap year starting on Saturday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... For other uses, see ITV (disambiguation). ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... Dennis Main Wilson (born 1924, died 1997) was producer of The Goons and Hancocks Half Hour for BBC radio and Till Death Us Do Part for BBC television. ... This article is about the BBC TV series. ...

Marty Feldman's performances on American television included The Dean Martin Show and Marty Feldman's Comedy Machine. On film, he is best remembered for his role as Igor (pronounced "EYE-gore") in Young Frankenstein where, as usual, many of his lines were improvised. At one point, Dr. Frankenstein (Gene Wilder) scolds Igor with the phrase "Damn your eyes!" Feldman then turns to the camera, points to his already-misaligned eyes, grins and says, "Too late!" This article is about television in the United States, specifically its history, art, business and government regulation. ... The Dean Martin Show was a TV variety-comedy series that ran from 1965 to 1974, for 245 episodes. ... For the musical, see Young Frankenstein (musical). ... Gene Wilder (born Jerome Silberman on June 11, 1933) is an American actor who is best known for his role as Willy Wonka, his collaborations with Mel Brooks in Blazing Saddles, The Producers, and Young Frankenstein, and his four movies with Richard Pryor: Silver Streak, Stir Crazy, See No Evil...

Feldman met American comedy writer Alan Spencer on the set of Young Frankenstein when Spencer was a teenager. Spencer was a devout fan of Feldman as both a writer and performer. Feldman took Spencer under his wing and offered him key guidance that eventually led the young scribe to create the offbeat, critically-acclaimed television show Sledge Hammer!.^[3] Alan Spencer is an American television writer and producer, best known for creating the 1980s satirical police series Sledge Hammer!. He began writing for television at the age of fifteen, and was one of the youngest people ever to join the Writers Guild of America. ... Sledge Hammer! was a satirical police sitcom produced by New World Television that ran for two seasons on ABC from 1986 to 1988. ...

He also released one long-playing record called I Feel a Song Going Off (1969), re-released as The Crazy World of Marty Feldman. The songs were written by Dennis King, John Junkin and Bill Solly (a writer for Max Bygraves and The Two Ronnies).^[4] Max Bygraves - CD cover Max Bygraves OBE (born 16 October 1922 in Rotherhithe, London as Walter William Bygraves) is an English singer songwriter, famous for his waving hands. ... The Two Ronnies was a British sketch show that aired on BBC One from 1971 to 1987. ...

In 1976, Marty Feldman ventured into Italian cinema, starring with Barbara Bouchet in 40 gradi all'ombra del lenzuolo, (Sex with a Smile), a farcical sex comedy. The history of Italian cinema began just a few months after the Lumière brothers had discovered the medium, when Pope Leo XIII was filmed for a few seconds in the act of blessing the camera. ... Barbara Bouchet, born Barbara Goutscher on August 15, 1943 in Reichenberg, (now Liberec), Sudetenland, Czechoslovakia (now Czech Republic]. She has acted in more than 80 films and television episodes. ... Look up farce in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Sex Comedy is a comedy using many elements of pornographic films. ...

Feldman appeared in The Adventure of Sherlock Holmes' Smarter Brother and Mel Brooks' Silent Movie, as well as directing and starring in The Last Remake of Beau Geste. He guest-starred in the "Arabian Nights" episode of The Muppet Show. The Adventure of Sherlock Holmes Smarter Brother is a 1975 comedy with Gene Wilder, Marty Feldman, Madeline Kahn, Dom De Luise and Leo McKern. ... Mel Brooks (born June 28, 1926) is an Academy Award-winning American director, writer, comedian, actor and producer best known as a creator of broad film farces and comedy parodies. ... This article is about the comedy film. ... The Last Remake of Beau Geste is a 1977 comedy film starring, directed and co-written by Marty Feldman. ... The Muppet Show was a television program featuring a cast of Muppets (diverse hand-operated puppets, typically with oversized eyes and large moving mouths) produced by Jim Henson and his team from 1976 to 1981. ...

Personal life

Feldman married Lauretta Sullivan in January, 1959. She had proposed to him when he made no move to do so, after nine months of daily dating. They would remain married until his death in 1982.^[5]

He had one younger sister, Pamela.^[6]

Death

Feldman died from a heart attack in a hotel room in Mexico City, Mexico during the making of the film Yellowbeard. The famous cartoonist Sergio Aragones was filming a movie nearby and when he introduced himself to Feldman earlier that night, he frightened Feldman and possibly induced his heart attack. Aragones was dressed for his role in the film as an armed police officer. He ran up to Feldman, apparently startling him. He has told the story with the punchline "I killed Marty Feldman". The story was converted into a strip in Aragones' issue of DC Comics' Solo.^[7] Heart attack redirects here. ... Nickname: Location of Mexico City Coordinates: , Country Federal entity Boroughs The 16 delegaciones Founded c. ... Yellowbeard poster Yellowbeard is a 1983 comedy film, that was co-written and acted by Monty Python member Graham Chapman and David Sherlock, and directed by Mel Damski. ... Sergio Aragonés (born 1937) is a cartoonist and writer. ... DC Comics is an American comic book and related media company. ... Cover to Solo #5, featuring Slam Bradley. ...

As a result of his death, Feldman's character "Gilbert" suddenly and inexplicably dies towards the end of the movie Yellowbeard by falling into a pit of acid.

Mel Brooks on the DVD commentary of Young Frankenstein, cites a number of factors that may have contributed to Feldman's early death from a heart attack. He was a very heavy smoker (sometimes smoking as many as six packets of cigarettes in a day), drank copious amounts of coffee and, although a vegetarian, ate a diet high in eggs and dairy products. The increased stress placed upon his body by the high altitude environment of Mexico City (it is located at an altitude of 2,300m where the air is thinner than at sea level PMID 3132039) may also have been a factor in his sudden death. Mel Brooks (born June 28, 1926) is an Academy Award-winning American director, writer, comedian, actor and producer best known as a creator of broad film farces and comedy parodies. ...

He is buried in Forest Lawn Memorial Park, Los Angeles, California near his idol, Buster Keaton, in the Garden of Heritage. Forest Lawn - Hollywood Hills Cemetery is located at 6300 Forest Lawn Drive in Los Angeles, California, on the south edge of the San Fernando Valley by Burbank (and on the north side of the Santa Monica Mountains from Hollywood). ... Flag Seal Nickname: City of Angels Location Location within Los Angeles County in the state of California Coordinates , Government State County California Los Angeles County Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa (D) Geographical characteristics Area     City 1,290. ... This article is about the U.S. state. ... Joseph Francis Kieran Keaton (October 4, 1895 – February 1, 1966) was an Academy Award-winning American silent film comic actor and filmmaker. ...

Filmography

• Yellowbeard (1983)
• Slapstick (of Another Kind) (1982)
• In God We Tru$t (1980)
• The Last Remake of Beau Geste (1977)
• Silent Movie (1976)
• 40 gradi all'ombra del lenzuolo (Sex With a Smile) (1976)
• The Adventure of Sherlock Holmes' Smarter Brother (1975)
• Young Frankenstein (1974)
• Every Home Should Have One (1970)
• The Bed-Sitting Room (1969)

Yellowbeard poster Yellowbeard is a 1983 comedy film, that was co-written and acted by Monty Python member Graham Chapman and David Sherlock, and directed by Mel Damski. ... In God We Tru$t is a comedy film starring Marty Feldman and Peter Boyle. ... The Last Remake of Beau Geste is a 1977 comedy film starring, directed and co-written by Marty Feldman. ... This article is about the comedy film. ... The Adventure of Sherlock Holmes Smarter Brother is a 1975 comedy with Gene Wilder, Marty Feldman, Madeline Kahn, Dom De Luise and Leo McKern. ... For the musical, see Young Frankenstein (musical). ... The Bed-Sitting Room is a satirical play by Spike Milligan and John Antrobus. ...

Television series

• Marty Back Together Again (1974)
• The Marty Feldman Comedy Machine (1971-1972)
• The Marty Feldman Show (1972)
• Marty Abroad (1971)
• Marty Amok (1970)
• Marty (1968)
• At Last the 1948 Show (1967)

For other articles with the name Marty, check the Marty (disambiguation) page Marty is a British television sketch comedy series, with Marty Feldman, Tim Brooke-Taylor, John Junkin and Roland MacLeod, which was made in 1968. ... At Last the 1948 Show was a satirical TV show made by David Frosts Paradine Productions (although they werent credited on the actual programmes) in association with Rediffusion London for Britains ITV network during 1967, bringing Cambridge Footlights type-humour to a broader audience. ...

Notes

NNDB, ostensibly standing for Notable Names Database, produced by Soylent Communications, is an online database of biographical details of notable people. ... The Dictionary of National Biography (or DNB) is a standard work of reference on notable figures from British history. ...

References

• From Fringe to Flying Circus -- Celebrating a Unique Generation of Comedy 1960-1980 — Roger Wilmut, Eyre Methuen Ltd, 1980.

External links

• Marty Feldman at the Internet Movie Database
• Marty Feldman - Comedy Zone
• Marty Feldman's Gravesite
• Laughterlog.com - article with complete list of television series and discography
• Angels Don't Swear - a tribute to Marty Feldman presented by Gene Wilder - requires RealPlayer
• MySpace Tribute Page