Rip Taylor, wacky comedian and game-show regular, dead at 88

A story Oct. 6 about the death of comedian Rip Taylor, reported erroneously that he was 84. The age came from his publicist, who was relying on incorrect information from the comedian. According to U.S. Census records, Taylor was 88.

Exuberant comedian Rip Taylor, best known for his many energetic game-show appearances and self-described as the "King of Confetti," has died at 88.

Taylor died Sunday in Beverly Hills, his publicist Harlan Boll confirmed to USA TODAY. 

Charles Elmer Taylor was born in Washington, D.C. He was a Congressional page as a teenager, and served in the Army during the Korean War, where he started performing stand-up to entertain the troops. 

Taylor's start in showbiz began with spots on "The Ed Sullivan Show," where he was known as the "crying comedian." The moniker harked back to his time performing in the Catskills.

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"I sat on a stool telling jokes, and nobody was laughing," he told UPI in 1992. "In desperation, I pretended to cry as I begged them to laugh. That killed 'em."

The bit got him to Ed Sullivan, where the host – forgetting Taylor's name – would say "get me the crying comedian."

The man in the spiky blond toupee and bushy mustache made a name for himself by being outrageous. He was a favorite on everything from variety shows to talk shows to sitcoms, and had more than 2,000 small-screen credits during his career, according to RipTaylor.com. He was a regular on ''The Merv Griffin Show," ''The Tonight Show," ''Late Night With David Letterman," ''Hollywood Squares" and "The Gong Show."

In the late 1970s, Taylor teamed with Chuck Barris to host "The $1.98 Beauty Show." The campy "beauty and talent contest" featured winners who received a tacky plastic crown, a bouquet of rotten vegetables and $1.98 from a coin holder on Taylor's belt. 

Audiences at his shows knew they were in for over-the-top delivery, sharp sarcasm and self-deprecating humor. And they knew that by the end, they'd be doused with buckets of confetti. 

Taylor did voice work for animated films and television like "The Jetsons," "Tom and Jerry: The Movie" and "The Addams Family," as Uncle Fester.

He played himself in movies like "Wayne's World 2" and the "Jackass" franchise, appeared onstage in "Anything Goes," ''A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum," ''Sugar Babies" (where he took over for Mickey Rooney), as Fagin in "Oliver!" and Captain Hook in "Peter Pan." Taylor also wrote and performed an autobiographical one-man play called "It Ain't All Confetti."

Taylor is survived by his longtime partner, Robert Fortney.

Contributing: The Associated Press