Former jazz musician turned comedian, whose comedy was based on
discussing intellectual topics in jazzman's slang. After several years
off the scene due to illness and drug abuse, he was just beginning a
promising comeback when he died of a heart attack on a film set.
Extremely popular in the late 1950s and early 1960s, with several
best-selling albums on RCA Victor and Capitol records, he's re-emerged
posthumously as something of a comedy cult figure in recent years.