Judy Tenuta is dead to me...

😢

Poor Judy, I’m sorry.

WTH click on the article and the headline says she was 72. Wrong.

Too young, RIP.

I saw one of her shows where she pretended to be a mom in one of those "let's be sensitive" mom and daughter period commercials.

And Judy's take as the mom was to hand daughter a tampon and scream "stick this up your cunt".

I saw her at the Comedy Club in Atlanta back in the 80s. She was hilarious

Going to listen to Homecoming Queen’s Got A Gun for a thorough sob.

How many of you have ever started dating because you were too lazy to commit suicide?

There is something about the life force a good comedienne has that makes it very hard to picture them as dead. Especially when you watch them in a show on Youtube- Joan is one, and Judy is another.

Also she was doing videos as little as a month ago?

I loved her since I was a little kid. And remember staying at my cousins during Christmas vacation watching her on Comedy Central or something with my Uncle and we were laughing our asses off.

I listened to some of her podcasts recently, and she was clearly a very kind woman who really loved her family. She got really choked up during one of them and I could tell that she desperately wanted to live. It was really moving.

This cancer really seems to move fast and I don't know if she ever said Stage 4, but it was clearly Stage 4.

Thank you for the laughs Judy. Holy shit you were funny.

Love this video of her

Two funny comediennes.

The Joan Rivers show was absolutely outstanding. Let me see if its still around.

Thanks Pig, R10.

You were on my wavelength.

r6 That was Julie Brown

This makes me sad. She liked my tweet where I told her that she was a thing of beauty and a joy forever.

Oh, so very sad. I loved her, she was hilarious. I don't understand why she didn't achieve more fame than she did.

RIP dear, you always made me laugh.

Attention Butt Pirates and Lesbertarians

She seemed like such a kind soul on Instagram. How tragic. She could still do a spot on impersonation if Roseanne. She did a whole spoof of Roseanne with Howard Stern on tv back in the early 90s. RIP

Wow, really sad. Thank you for making me laugh, Judy.🙏

R8

Desperation Boulevard

[quote]Going to listen to Homecoming Queen’s Got A Gun for a thorough sob.

Why? That's Julie Brown.

Oh my god. We were semi-friends on Instagram. She said she was fighting cancer. She put up such a brave face.

I’ll miss her.

her career was dead; it was about time her body finally caught up.

Poor Judy. I always liked her. :(

I was poking around for photos and found this one, which cracks me up.

Suffer, Pope!

She made me happy just looking at her.

I hope she went to heaven. IT COULD HAPPEN!

I knew she was sick. She posted all the time and mostly all stupid and funny things. Inserting her face crudely into Pretty Woman or other unlikely films. Doing the Roseanne. Who gets away with claiming they were born in 1965 when they are 73 years old? Not Judy Tenuta. She was fucking funny and never let the self involved heartless feminist funny character slip. Or all the improbable situations....'it could happen'.

There really aren't many originals. Judy Tenuta was a bit too strange for mass acceptance. But her jokes were good too. We loved her.❤

[quote]There really aren't many originals. Judy Tenuta was a bit too strange for mass acceptance. But her jokes were good too. We loved her.❤

Perfect, r29.

I liked when she would say, "It could happen!"

RIP, Judy

Her network TV debut

She was 72.

Intelius uses public records and the census and has her as 72.

Still, it's too soon.

Oh no!! I loved Judy! (But she kinda bombed on her Letterman appearance, huh? I don't think the world was ready for her yet).

NO!!

I love that zany broad. To this day, every time I have occasion to say “pig”, I put her spin on it.

RIP, Judy.

I say that all the time R26.

Liars ger cancer.

She had to give up her nursing career when she ran out of milk.

65 or 72?

Earth girls are easy but their deaths aren't.

It looks like she'd been passing herself off as seven years younger than she was. Successfully, I might add, because she looked phenomenal until getting sick. She was born in 1949, not 1956, and considering she didn't begin her career until the late '70s, I totally get why she'd do that.

So many initial reports that just glanced at the birthdate on IMDb or Wikipedia had her as being 65. The wiki entry has since been corrected.

I hate when people lie about their age.

Loved her…this is sad.

R42, me too!

R34 Yes, that clip is rough. Quiet, inert audience.

[quote]I hate when people lie about their age.

[quote]—Charo

Yeah I don't get it either.

I remember her only vaguely. When I watch these clips, she makes me think how hard it must be to perform as a stand-up comedian. It’s also a little shocking to see the huge disparities in fame and wealth between those who build a mainstream media presence (Rosie, Ellen, Joan) and those who play clubs and book tours. It’s pretty fascinating to think about comedians who orbited fame (booked a pilot sitcom that never aired, performed a season or two on SNL or Madtv, things like that).

This gal had a presence and an interesting face (softer, prettier later in life). I’m sorry she’s gone. Ovarian cancer is a real bitch. We might see a lot of kind tributes to her. I think she was admired in the comedy community. There seems to be a code among those who hustle and orbit mainstream success for decades.

I saw her in Ann Arbor around 1989 in a small club that could not have seated more than 50. She killed.

We should all aspire to have obits that say things like this about us, cause this is some John Waters level shit right here, and it’s fabulous…

[quote] Tenuta also portrayed the dominatrix Samantha Rottweiler in Butch Camp and a former child star bent on a comeback in Desperation Boulevard in a film she also produced (and)co-starred with Bruce Vilanch

[quote]During her first solo stand-up performance, Tenuta shocked audiences by dressing up as the Virgin Mary (and) incorporated an accordion into her routine.

I can't believe R6 got 5 wit and wisdom votes for referencing a song famous for being by another artist. DL has really gone downhill.

The comment was upvoted precisely because the song is by another artists, dear...

*artist

We knew it was coming. RIP, funny lady.

I’ll add that as I sit here in my office this morning, with my 52 year old ass reminiscing about the late 80s and 90s, I realize not one of the friends I texted this morning really knew or cared much for her. I seem to have made it this far in life without having one friend or relative who “gets” my sense of humor, who appreciates the absurdity in works like those of Judy or John Waters. I still spit laugh when I see the words “pee pee poo poo”…. I don’t really want to get old and lose my love for saying or appreciating irreverent and/or inappropriate things. And yet, with all the people I know and love, I don’t seem to have one kindred spirit. (Well, the husbear. I shouldn’t dismiss him. But he’s the only one. And even he didn’t remember Judy Tenuta.) …sigh….

outrageous comical and entertaining! Also, loved that she always managed to snare a couple (or more!) handsome built studs in her appearances both on stage and on tv.... thanks JUDY!..

[quote] I seem to have made it this far in life without having one friend or relative who “gets” my sense of humor

Probably because you use the term “husbear”

I hung out with Judy in the mid-late 80s when she would come down to Tampa for appearances. We'd hit up the thrift stores and have lunch at Taco Bell chitchatting about her life and min.

I wish I'd saved the pieces of gum she spat at me when I sat on the front row. It was a small club and when she'd see me there, she'd break into a great big smile.

Once she pulled a friend of mine up on s.tage and road him like a bull while cracking a whip in front of many of his executive coworkers. Another time I was pulled up on stage with a straight guy. She then draped flowy dresses over our necks and hand us paper accordions. The song Da Do Run Run began blasing over the sound system and while the straight dude sorta moved about, I went into full on drag mode - bouncing about with perfect lip sync. Not expecting the performance I was giving, Judy just stood there with her mouth open. After the show, she told me no one had ever surprised her like that before.

She truly was a delicate flower.

[quote] I seem to have made it this far in life without having one friend or relative who “gets” my sense of humor

At least you’ve got us!

She looks like one of Madonna’s sisters.

Her petite flower face resembled Bernadette Peters' a bit in the 80s. The world needs more people like her.

"Once she pulled a friend of mine up on stage and road him like a bull..."

Oh, dear, R57! Are you a native Floridian?

I too appreiated get unique approach to humor. When she was younger (about thirty years ago), I think she resembled Bernadette Peters. Did she ever do an impression? I'd love to see that.

I love watching female standup from the late 80s & early 90s late at night, when I can't sleep. In a sea of women performing before brick walls, in sportcoats, there was Judy Tenuta. A unique talent too unique for the greatest of mainstream popularity, she was a warm human being who found a following. I admire her greatly for that.

[quote] "get unique approach to humor."

*HER unique approach to humor.

Why yes, I am, R61. Though I moved away many years ago.

R40, again, that was Julie Brown, not Judy Tenuta. I'm hoping that was deliberate and sly, in which case, bravo.

R54, I was very lucky to somehow find a friend who was a kindred spirit in high school. (Not easy as we were both weirdos in the 1980s rural south.)

We loved Judy.

We ended up drifting apart (truth be told I was a bad friend at times, and she was a bad friend at times.)

She later went full MAGAT anti- vaxxer. She later died of COVID.

Even though we were both only 50, she was / is the only person I have known personally to die of covid.

Anyway, I’m mourning Judy but also mourning the “death” of my old friendship and also my former friend’s actual death.

So I guess I’m saying I know how you feel. Some of us bond powerfully over comedy and those offbeat performers are such treasures.

Get a blog, r66.

Get a vibrator, r67.

Go dilate, r68.

She wasn't 72. She was 65.

Anyone seen a pic of her partner Vern Pang?

I always thought her last name sounded japanese. I was shocked to hear it was an Italian name.

Nobody mentioned Butch Camp yet? “it’s an ass eat ass jungle out there, bash or be bashed”

Is Vern Pang male or female?

She had such joy within her downright surreal humor. I loved that. Her stand up brought joy to others as well as herself I guess you could say. Beautiful in the face she was!

R74 I think he's a gentleman. Vern is just not a ladies name. No offense.

That ovarian cancer is silent and deadly like pancreatic cancer. It's crazy. Almost symptom free until its sadly to late. Poor lady fought the good fight from how her Twitter looked at least.

Judy's dear friend, comedian Elaine Boosler, wrote a lovely appreciation article in the Los Angeles Times.

Bobcat Goldthwait and Tom Kinney must be quaking in their boots. I saw Judy in SF in the 80's and she was hilarious- I would like to believe that the gum bit started with our show (she was genuinely shocked when the guy ate her gum). RIP funny lady.

Thanks for linking that, r76.

I missed this earlier this month.

I’d absolutely watch a documentary on her life, or maybe one on her and the other female comics from the eighties era who found success, but also found limits because they were women.

Judy Tenuta seemed like a raunchy, kind soul.

Love these posts about interactions with her.

Elaine Boosler's lovely and funny recollections of her friend Judy from Elaine's "Celebration of Life" on Judy's birthday (November 7th).

66th OR 73rd!?

Was Judy really in a relationship with Emo Philips?! Emo came across as asexual.

Loved her. Sorry she died but hope she's in a happy place.

Ohhh I liked her. Damn.

Never forget!! Support our troops!!

r82, they were married.

I wish we had some of the genuine eccentrics we had in the 80s/90s now. I suppose they get their 15 minutes on TikTok now.

I loved this lady so much: RIP Petite Flower Goddess.

Prostate?

Judy would have been great in a Madonna biography film, of course, it would be a comedy, but Madonna lacks humor. It would have been a great film.

I wish women, who don't want kids or already have them, would ask for a preventative hysterectomy, especially after menopause.

I had two relatives die from ovarian cancer. One already had two kids, the other never wanted any. If they had hysterectomies awhile ago, they'd still be alive.

There is no test for this type of cancer and, sadly, it's usually always discovered when it's advanced. One of my relatives thought her side pain was from exercising too much. It wasn't, she had ovarian cancer and the tumor was already advanced. My relative lived two years after the diagnosis.

RIP Judy.

I don’t think anyone should Judge Judy

R89 My understanding is this ... After undergoing a hysterectomy, looks-wise, you age faster. I think that alone would be enough to keep most women from electing to have the procedure done.