What a truly sad day for the entertainment industry. Following news that musician and actor, Meat Loaf, had passed away, it’s just coming in that comedian Louie Anderson has died after a battle with blood cancer. He was 68.
Per “TMZ“, Anderson had been battling an aggressive form of blood cancer. It’s not really clear when Anderson was diagnosed but he was recently being treated for Diffuse large B-cell lymphoma in a Vegas hospital. Sadly, according to his publicist Glenn Schwartz, he lost his brave battle this morning.
Anderson was born on March 24, 1953, in Saint Paul, Minnesota. His career spanned over 30 years and he was a constant presence on stage and screen since the mid-1980s. He made his late night debut on November 20, 1984, in front of Johnny Carson on The Tonight Show and that would lead to the actor having half a dozen solo stand-up specials throughout the years, the most recent being 2018’s Louie Anderson: Big Underwear.
In film, Louie Anderson is probably best known for his role as Maurice, a McDowell’s employee in 1988’s Coming To America, starring Eddie Murphy. He reprised the role once again in the 2021 sequel, Coming 2 America. Anderson was also a big presence on TV and was a 3-time Emmy Award Winner. In 1995, Anderson debuted the Saturday morning animated series Life With Louie, based on his own childhood and life with his father. The animated series won three Humanitas Prizes for writing on a children’s animated series, making him the only three-time recipient of this prestigious award. The show was also nominated for Outstanding Special Class Animated Program and Anderson won two Emmys for Outstanding Performer in an Animated Program.
Anderson won an Emmy Award once again for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series in 2016 for his role as Christine Baskets, the mother of Zach Galifianakis portrayed Chip and Dale on the hit FX series, Baskets. Anderson was actually nominated in the category over three consecutive years beginning in 2016.
From 1999 to 2002, Anderson served as the host of Family Feud and he appeared on Celebrity Family Feud in 2017. The comedian and actor was also a regular panelist on the Jon Kelley fronted Funny You Should Ask since the game show’s launch five years ago. Other guest-starring roles included appearances on Touched By An Angel, Chicago Hope, and Grace Under Fire.
Anderson is survived by his two sisters, Lisa and Shanna Anderson. Our thoughts are with his family, friends, and fans during this difficult time.
Were YOU a fan of Louie Anderson? What are some of YOUR favorite memories of the comedian?