David Brenner, 1936–2014

last updated 8 January 2015

After seeing David Brenner’s stand-up routine at a New York City nightclub in the late 1960s, a talent booker called it “vomit material” and declared that the comic would not only never be on The Tonight Show, but never even be allowed in the studio building. Brenner took that as a challenge, and after tailoring his act to meet Johnny Carson’s standards, went on to make more than 150 Tonight Show appearances over the ensuing decades—the most by any guest in the show’s history. “You couldn’t write a better scenario,” Brenner said of his 1971 Carson debut. “The next day I had $10,000 worth of job offers.”

“The gangly, toothy-grinned” Brenner was a pioneer of offbeat, observational humor, said People.com. While other comedians of his era were pushing the boundaries of acceptability in matters of sex, race, and profanity, Brenner remained focused on “the dumb things that we say or do.” Brenner’s style proved to be a significant influence on a generation of up-and-coming talents like Jerry Seinfeld and Jay Leno. His brand of humor also had staying power, said NYDailyNews.com, as Brenner continued to tour and perform well into his 70s. He based his successful book I Think There’s a Terrorist in My Soup: How to Survive Personal and World Problems With Laughter—Seriously on material from his post-9/11 tour, which was aimed at getting people laughing again in the wake of the 2001 terror attacks.

That mind-set inspired Brenner to get into comedy in the first place, said HollywoodReporter.com. The Philadelphia native started in stand-up in his early 30s after a successful career writing, producing, and directing TV documentaries. Discouraged that his films weren’t bringing about social change, he decided to go with comedy instead. “Rather than try to solve problems, I would help people forget ’em,” he said. And Brenner himself lived by that philosophy to the end. As a final request, he asked that his family put $100 in small bills into his left sock, “just in case tipping is recommended where I’m going.”