Tuesday, June 30, 2009

Fred Travalena


They say "death comes in threes". This week, it came in two sets of three: McMahon, Farrah, Jacko, Gale "My Little Margie" Storm, Billy Mays, and now - Fred Travalena.* It's almost like the Grim Reaper is in a hurry to fill his second quarter projections.

Travalena - for the uninitiated - was an ubiquitous presence on '70s television, when impressionists were still welcome on variety and talk shows.

Not entirely untalented, he was always the poor man's Rich Little in my book. Although his material was lacking somewhat, he never lacked for chutzpah - which certainly helps when you're trying to put over a lackluster Sylvester Stallone impression.


* Philly-area readers are also still mourning the loss of Gary Papa and Irv Homer.