COMEDIAN PHYLLIS DILLER has died aged 95 in her Los Angeles home.
Diller, who was found by her son Perry, was considered a pioneering female comic – the template for Joan Rivers, Sarah Silverman and many others.
“We lost a comedy legend today,” Ellen DeGeneres tweeted. “Phyllis Diller was the queen of the one-liners. She was a pioneer.”
Here are four classic moments:
1. On the Ed Sullivan Show
Describing her husband, who she called Fang: “The last time there was a gleam in Fang’s eye, there was a short in his electric blanket.”
YouTube/TheEdSullivanShow
2. Playing a duet with Liberace
We’re guessing it was in his contract that he had to have the more fabulous outfit and the bigger piano.
YouTube/showmanlee
3. Roasting Ronald Reagan
“He started out as an underweight, inexperienced, untalented dishwasher. Unfortunately, he never lived up to this early promise.”
YouTube/LaffTherapy
4. Me and my bird legs
YouTube/CraigSD
5. Being identified by Sammy Davis Jr
When Sammy Davis Jr picks you out blindfolded, you know you’ve made it.
YouTube/NorbertR33
- Additional reporting from AP
