Andy Kaufman

Andrew Geoffrey Kaufman (January 17, 1949 – May 16, 1984) was a New York-born American self-described "song and dance man." Though many refer to him as a comedian, Andy himself hated this, saying "I never told a joke in my life." He is one of the most famous practitioners of anti-humor. He was also a composer. He graduated in 1971 from a now-defunct Grahm Junior College where he studied television and completed projects that informed his later work.

Kaufman's death, rebirth and legacy

Kaufman died on May 16, 1984 at the age of 35 of lung cancer and was interred in the Beth David Cemetery, Elmont, New York (Long Island). Over the years, many people doubted Kaufman's death, thinking that he staged it as the ultimate Andy Kaufman stunt. For one thing, friends and family said that Andy never smoked, didn't drink regularly, and was also a vegetarian. Lung cancer is rare in non-smokers, and it is also rare in people under 50. Many people assume that his cancer was the result of his nightclub days, meaning that he spent a lot of time breathing in secondhand smoke from comedy club audiences for nearly fifteen years. For another, Kaufman himself even said that were he to fake his death, he would return 20 years later, on May 16, 2004, a claim which has become an urban legend.

Related Topics:
May 16 - 1984 - Lung cancer - Elmont, New York - Vegetarian - Secondhand smoke - 2004 - Urban legend

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Since the passing of this date, there have been unsubstantiated reports claiming that Kaufman is back from the dead and has a blog apparently chronicling his comeback. However, these claims are highly questionable and are even self-contradictory in places (on the blog he contradicts the, now suspended, press release which he apparently wrote and paid for himself). Potentially dozens of fake Kaufmans were expected to appear around this time and this appears to be another example of urban legends inspiring real events.

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Another partly facetious theory making the rounds on the Internet is that Kaufman got plastic surgery to dramatically alter his appearance and is a current-day comedian or celebrity. Usually the celebrity mentioned is Jim Carrey, who starred in Man on the Moon, the 1999 film about Kaufman's life that was directed by Milos Forman, and inspired by the 1992 R.E.M. song of the same name. Carrey is a long-time fan of Kaufman's and fought hard for the role, and even owns Kaufman's conga drums. (Also interestingly, he and Kaufman share the same birthday: January 17th.) Additionally, Carrey's acting was considered uncannily close to the way Kaufman was normally, even according to Kaufman's friend Bob Zmuda. (Incidentally, Zmuda was in Batman Forever, which co-starred Carrey.) To "support" this theory, parallels are often drawn from Kaufman's life to Carrey's movies, which include The Majestic, in which Carrey plays a man who loses his memory and lives another person's life, and Me, Myself and Irene, in which Carrey plays the white father of three African-American males. However, even if one were to discount Carrey's childhood as a fabrication, he first emerged as an actor in 1983, which is a year too early. More likely is that Carrey's sense of humor was influenced by and is similar to Kaufman's.

Related Topics:
Plastic surgery - Jim Carrey - Man on the Moon - 1999 - Milos Forman - 1992 - R.E.M. - Bob Zmuda - Batman Forever - The Majestic - Me, Myself and Irene - 1983

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The rock band R.E.M. wrote and recorded a song about Kaufman, "Man on the Moon", for their 1992 album Automatic for the People. The lyrics refer to the conversation in his 1983 movie with wrestler Fred Blassie, "My Breakfast with Blassie". The song was also used as the title track for the film of the same name. The band also composed the song "The Great Beyond" for the film.

Related Topics:
Rock band - R.E.M. - Man on the Moon - 1992 - Automatic for the People - The film - The Great Beyond

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