Thankfully Rip was appreciated again before he passed, namely his appearance on Last Week Tonight with John Oliver. He had a few laughs this year as people mistakenly thought he died when Rip Torn did.
Regardless of the decade, I loved watching him. Unlike other prop comics (Gallagher, Carrot Top), Rip was genuinely funny alongside his trademark confetti throwing. He was hilariously self-effacing too. He’d pull his toupee off to make a funny situation funnier be it John Oliver, Password or the Jerry Lewis telethon.
My favorite joke involving him was a Paul Provenza short in which certain tough realities were hitting his sidekick. The best one was…hard reality, the world doesn’t revolve around you…followed by, even worse reality…Rip Taylor revolves around you! There he was, circling the sidekick, throwing that confetti!
Thanks for everything Rip Taylor! Whenever you were on The Mike Douglas Show or The Tonight Show, you brought something for us Seventies kids to laugh at while the adults watched. I’m also glad, the comedians of my era helped bring you back to attention alongside Don Rickles. I have a feeling in person, you were a very sweet person who loved to bring people joy.