09/17/2021
September 17, 1997 Richard Bernard Skelton (Red Skelton) passed away at the Eisenhower Medical Center in Rancho Mirage, California, at the age of 84, after what was described as "a long, undisclosed illness". He was born in Vincennes, Indiana in 1913. He was an American comedy entertainer. In the early years, he was performing on the vaudeville circuit, and in the late 1930s he found work in Broadway, radio, and film. He was best known for his national radio and television acts between 1937 and 1971, and as host of the television program The Red Skelton Show. He also appeared in burlesque, vaudeville, films, nightclubs, and casinos, all while he pursued an entirely separate career as an artist. In 1952, Skelton received Emmy Awards for Best Comedy Program and Best Comedian. He also received an Emmy nomination in 1957 for his non-comedic performance in Playhouse 90's presentation of "The Big Slide". Skelton and his writers won another Emmy in 1961 for Outstanding Writing Achievement In Comedy. He was named an honorary faculty member of Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Clown College in 1968 and 1969. Skelton's first major post-television recognition came in 1978, when the Golden Globe Awards named him as the recipient for their Cecil B. DeMille Award, which is given to honor outstanding contributions in entertainment. His excitement was so great upon receiving the award and a standing ovation, that he clutched it tightly enough to break the statuette. When he was presented with the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences' Governor's Award in 1986, Skelton received a standing ovation. "I want to thank you for sitting down", he said when the ovation subsided. "I thought you were pulling a CBS and walking out on me." The honor came 16 years after his television program left the airwaves. Skelton received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Screen Actors Guild in 1987, and in 1988, he was inducted into the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences' Television Hall of Fame. He was one of the International Clown Hall of Fame's first inductees in 1989. Skelton and Katharine Hepburn were honored with lifetime achievement awards by the American Comedy Awards in the same year. He was inducted into the National Radio Hall of Fame in 1994. Skelton also has two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for his radio and television work. Skelton was a member of Vincennes Lodge #1, Vincennes, Indiana. He also was a member of both the Scottish and York Rite. He was the recipient of the Gold Medal of the General Grand Chapter, Royal Arch Masons, for Distinguished Service in the Arts and Sciences. Red Skelton is interred in the Forest Lawn Memorial Park, Glendale, Los Angeles County, California, Great Mausoleum, Memorial Terrace, Sanctuary of Benediction, Distinguished Memorial – Private Family Mausoleum Room #40, Crypt A.
