Comedic actor Jonathan Winters died of natural causes Thursday in his Montecito, Calif. home, he was 87. He starred in over 50 movies, his role in the 1963 comedy It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World was one of his most notable. He also played a dual role in the film, The Loved One, a film adaptation of a book by Evelyn Waugh.
Winters also appeared on several television shows, starring opposite fellow comedian, Robin Williams on the hit sitcom Mork & Mindy, playing their older child who aged backwards, "Mearth". Williams, touched by the passing of his idol expressed himself through a post on Twitter. "First he was my idol, then he was my mentor and amazing friend. I'll miss him huge. He was my Comedy Buddha. Long live the Buddha," Williams tweeted on his official Twitter page, @robinwilliams.
Winters was also known for his appearances on the comedy variety shows Hee Haw, Rowan and Martin's Laugh-In and The Jonathan Winters Show. He also appeared on the Twilight Zone and was the voice of Papa Smurf on the animated cartoon series that in recent years became films. The Smurfs 2, set to be released in July was Winters' last film and will be dedicated to his memory.
Winters' gifted talent to make people laugh seemed to come naturally and his career in comedy began by chance. After being married to his wife Eileen for six months, he lost his watch and being a newlywed, was not able to afford a new one. Believing that her husband could win a local talent contest, his wife encouraged him to enter a talent contest where the first prize was a watch. As a result of the contest, he landed a gig as a disc jockey introducing songs and announcing the weather.
His antics, personas and ad libs were a hit. Winters got his big break working on the CBS weekend morning show, Omnibus. He performed a 15-minute routine in the first color TV broadcast in 1957. That exposure set the tone of his future successful career recording comedy albums and he was best known for his character "Maude Frickert". Winters would also often appear as characters on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson.
Many comedians were influenced by Winters in some way, he helped to raise the bar in the field of comedy. Winters achieved many accolades throughout his career and comedians such as Jim Carrey and Steve Martin took to social media to say a few words about the great loss. "Jonathan Winters was the worthy custodian of a sparkling and childish comedic genius. He did God's work. I was lucky 2 know him," Jim Carrey tweeted. "Goodbye, Jonathan Winters. You were not only one of the greats, but one of the great greats," Steve Martin tweeted.
