Don Rickles, legendary insult comic, dead at 90

[Boris13c]

Don Rickles, legendary insult comic, dead at 90

(CNN)Don Rickles, a comedian and actor known for his abrasive humor, died Thursday from kidney failure at his Los Angeles home, according to his publicist Paul Shefrin. He was 90 years old.

Known as the world's greatest insult comic, Rickles enjoyed a career which spanned centuries and found him performing in everything from nightclubs to a Martin Scorsese film.
Rickles reveled in being the opposite of politically correct.

In a 1993 interview he told CNN's Larry King "I don't even know what the hell it means."
"I make fun of the world," Rickles said. "You know that. And if you know how to handle that and you treat people -- and you make fun of yourself, hey, it's not offensive."

Born in the Jackson Heights section of Queens in New York City, Rickles was the only child of an insurance salesman and housewife. After he graduated from high school in the 1940s he did a two year stint in the Navy before following in his father's footsteps as an insurance agent.

That career didn't take off and Rickles enrolled in the American Academy of Dramatic Arts.
He tried his hand at performing comedy in nightclubs in between acting gigs and it was there he found his true calling by taking on hecklers. Rickles was doing just that in the 1950s when Frank Sinatra and his entourage happened upon his performance in Miami Beach.

Sinatra took such a strong liking to the comic that Rickles became an honorary member of the Rat Pack and the singer helped to open doors for him and his caustic wit.

Rest in Peace, you hockey puck

[Otis Day]

Loved the guy, funny as hell on the Dean Martin Roast shows and he was the funny guy in Kelly's Heroes.