From T. Rex's Guide to Life

blog found [here]

The World Sucks More Than It Used To

I'm a little tardy on these, but I couldn't let a couple of recent deaths pass without comment. Larry "Bud" Melman:

The balding, bespectacled nebbish who gained cult status as the oddball Larry "Bud" Melman on David Letterman's late night television shows has died after a long illness. The Brooklyn-born Calvert DeForest, who was 85, died Monday at a hospital on Long Island, the Letterman show announced Wednesday. He made dozens of appearances on Letterman's shows from 1982 through 2002, handling a variety of twisted duties: dueting with Sonny Bono on "I Got You, Babe," doing a Mary Tyler Moore impression during a visit to Minneapolis, handing out hot towels to arrivals at the Port Authority Bus Terminal.

I grew up watching Letterman and always loved DeForest as he was always one of the funniest aspects of the show. My family was so into his character, that for years I was called Kenny "Bud" Melman. He hadn't been active in a while, but I have many, many fond memories of him on Letterman.

Richard Jeni:

Reports have come in that stand-up comic Richard Jeni died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

I've always been really into stand-up comedy as long as I can remember. And one of the first comedians I can remember is Jeni. He wasn't groundbreaking, but he was always good. I put him in the Phil Hartman category. He never really got the fame he deserved and I wonder if that contributed to his death. I watched him do stand-up many times and was never disappointed.

Wherever they are, I want to thank Calvert and Jeni for the laughs and the memories.