One of the funniest women ever spawned died Sunday at the age of 92. Physical humor is lessened by her passing. I’m going to go watch the Nairobi Trio routine and cry into my beer now.
Yeah, she was great. One of the last things she did (and great casting) was playing Agnes DiPesto’s mom on “Moonlighting.” Well, now we have our Three:
• Arlene Francis
• Imogene Coca
• Anthony Quinn
I guess Kate Hepburn and Bob Hope can breathe easy, at least for another week or so.
P.S. Nairobi Trio? Aren’t you thinking of Ernie Kovaks?
She’ll be missed. I’m old enough to remember Your Show of Shows, and I really identified with that rather homely little lady. The faces she could make!
When I heard she died, the image that came to mind was from National Lampoon’s Vacation – Aunt Edna, on top of the station wagon.
Eve (hi, by the way!), there were so many comedians who performed in the Nairobi Trio at one time or another (according to Kovacs’ bio vidtape) that it’s easier to wonder who hasn’t been in a monkey suit. I’m pretty sure Imo did it several times, and I think I heard it from her own mouth in an interview on that tape. Of course, now I’m venturing into the realm of hearsay, so feel free to smack me down.
I was listening to a repsected radio guy talk about Imogen coca and the Your Show of Shows and I am too young to have seen this, but I did not know that it was done live every Saturday night for something like four years.
I guess because of the high quality humor they did then ( unlike SNL) and the pressure they put on themselves to perform, Sid Ceasar started drinking and pretty much didn’t remember the better part of the next two decades.
When I was little, I talked fast, like any kid. When I would meet new people, I would say, (IRL) " I’m Joan." I cannot tell you how many times people would say, " Imogene, like Coca?" Eventually I would just meekly nod, not correcting them.
So, that is my connection to her, and I will cherish it, that and the fact I had her on my Celebrity Dead Pool List.