He was one of those gifted comedians who could take tearful tragedy and make it into a hilarious event. His material came from the misfortunes, tragedies and struggles that painfully erupted from within his brief life span. He had gone through the financial and emotional torture of divorce and endured incapacitating effects of a heart attack. When the doctors discovered stage III lymphoma cancer, they gave him six months to live. Nine years after that fatal diagnosis, he still have audiences rolling in the aisles – and not because he was performing at epilepsy conventions.
His comedy wasn't for the faint hearted or those easily offended by rough language. But his brilliant routines weren't vulgar for the sake of vulgarity as seems to be the trend of late. There is a reason why he was named as one of Comedy Central's 100 Greatest Comics. No bribes were involved, just talent. He just had a way of putting unpleasant situations into side-splitting perspective --- something *I* need to being doing more of.
Rest In Peace, Mr. Schimmel. You will be missed ...
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