Jonathan Winters

He was a pretty good actor, honestly. His stand-up was funny but his more dramatic roles (and not the sitcom shlock) were great. He plays a dual role in THE LOVED ONE and is fantastic, especially as the sleazy preacher, and his episode of "Twilight Zone" is a classic.

One of the funniest and most underrated comedians of the 20th century. Brilliant in the same vein as Eddie Kovacs and at times crazy and over the top like Robin Williams. Just amazing.

he was delightful. I adored him and his characters. If you have access to On Demand, It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World is on and it features some of the classic comedians fro mthe 50's and even from the old slapstick comedies of the 30s and 40s. Great movie. A classic.

I always liked him, he seemed like such a teddy bear.

ERnie Kovacs, R2.

R5 You're right. So sorry.

Cheryl Crane (Lana Turner's daughter) wrote a biography that included her stay in a clinic in the country for the rich and crazy. Jonathan Winters was a fellow patient after having suffered a breakdown. I read this years ago, so I don't remember all the details, but she found her talks with Winter helpful and was fond of him.

Winters was bipolar and had a drinking problem (he was very open about the drinking before he opened up about the bipolar part). He was Institute of Living at least once. Place in the country sounds like Austen Riggs.

I LOVED his comedy character! It made millions, yes, millions, for me!

Originally from Dayton, Ohio, his family founded Winters National Bank, and I remember Jonathan doing television commercials for Winters. The former Winters Bank building is still the tallest in Dayton at 30 floors.

Winters was also a brilliant improv artist. He could be given a stick and instantly come up with different hilarious routines about it. You can find some the improvs on YouTube.

He wasn't a bad painter either. There's a story, probably apocryphal, about his painting a particular picture every time he was about to have a breakdown. I think it was one of his weirder clowns.

Despite being married with kids, he had a hilariously gay sensibility.

He had a show in syndication, the center of which was him in an attic picking up objects and riffing off them

Just jaw droppingly original.

I've always loved Jonathan Winters, who was different in a different way--at his best, demented and inspired. Unlike Robin Williams, who always struck me as desperate.

His late 60s show was my first favorite tv show. I was 5 and my parents would let me stay up late to watch it.