Norm Crosby | |
|---|---|
 Crosby in 1965 | |
| Born | Norman Lawrence Crosby[1] September 15, 1927 Boston, Massachusetts, U.S. |
| Died | November 7, 2020 (aged 93) Los Angeles, California, U.S. |
| Resting place | Hillside Memorial Park Cemetery |
| Occupation | Comedian |
| Spouse |
Joan Crane Foley (m. 1966) |
| Children | 2 |
Norman Lawrence Crosby (September 15, 1927 – November 7, 2020) was an American comedian born in Boston, Massachusetts. He was often referred to as "The Master of Malaprop".
Crosby went solo as a stand-up comedian, adopting a friendly, blue collar, guy-next-door persona in the 1950s. Crosby refined his standup monologues by interpolating malapropisms. He first appeared on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson in December 1964. In late-1968, he co-starred on The Beautiful Phyllis Diller Show, an NBC twelve-week series.[2]
In 1974, he co-hosted a Canadian variety television series, Everything Goes.[3] From 1974 through 1984 he was on over half a dozen Dean Martin Celebrity Roasts including one of George Burns and two separate ones of Redd Foxx. From 1978 through 1981, he hosted a nationally syndicated series, The Comedy Shop, in which a mix of up-and-coming stand-up comics and vaudeville legends presented their material.[4]
In the late 1970s and early 1980s, Crosby became a commercial pitchman for Anheuser-Busch Natural Light beer. During this time, he also appeared as a celebrity guest on a number of game shows, including Celebrity Bowling, Liar's Club, Tattletales, and Hollywood Squares.
From 1983 until the program's dissociation from Jerry Lewis in 2010, Crosby co-hosted and contributed to the annual Jerry Lewis MDA Labor Day Telethon.
He has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6560 Hollywood Boulevard.[5]
He appeared in two films with Adam Sandler – Eight Crazy Nights (2002).[1], and Grown Ups 2 (2013)
Crosby was born to a Jewish family[6] and was raised in Dorchester, Boston,[7] the son of Ann (née Lansky) and John Crosby.[1]
During World War II, he served aboard a Coast Guard submarine chaser in the North Atlantic. He suffered permanent damage of his hearing from a concussion he received from the depth charges that exploded while he was on anti-submarine patrol. He did not notice hearing problems until long after he had returned home and wore a hearing aid onstage.[8]
In 1966, Crosby married Joan Crane Foley. They had two children. He became a Freemason in 1956, and served as Master of at least one lodge and participated in many charitable activities. He was a member of Ionic Composite Lodge #520 in Los Angeles, California.[9][10]
On November 7, 2020, Crosby died of heart failure at his home in Los Angeles, California, at the age of 93.[11]
