A Different C

When I heard Robert Schimmel died, I figured it was cancer.  I bet most people did.  He'd beaten it a few years back, after all.  Instead, it was a car crash.  He was 60.  There are no guarantees.

A friend of mine created a sitcom for him (that didn't make it).  He was dirty, but funny--maybe "but" is the wrong word, since his raw style was central to his appeal.  Perhaps that's the reason you couldn't build a sitcom around him.  He was on TV pretty regularly, but was probably best on premium channels where he could let her rip.  He was also on Howard Stern's show a fair amount (like Sam Kinison, who died the same way).

So here's to you, Robert.  It was a nice run. Here he is talking about his illness (and cleaner than usual).