Who was The Unknown Comic and whatever happened to him?

Spectre_of_Pithecanthropus · October 14, 2003, 4:03pm

If you watched TV in the 1980s you might remember The Unknown Comic, who initially appeared as a contestant on The Gong Show, but later could be seen in various late night TV venues, as well as on the stand-up circuit. As well as I can remember, he had a grating voice, and performed wearing a slightly too-small sport jacket fastened with a safety pin where the button should be, and a paper bag over his head. The Bania character on Seinfeld reminds me of him, to the point that I’m wondering if it could be him.

Does anyone else here remember him, or know what became of him?

Max_Torque · October 14, 2003, 4:53pm

Apparently, his real name is Murray Langston.

Like everyone else in the world, he has a website.

Zenster · October 14, 2003, 6:04pm

During his performance he would introduce a second paper bag by stating, “I have here, an empty paper bag.” At this point, any of the more waggish members in the audience would shout back, “That makes two of them!”

Quack · October 14, 2003, 11:54pm

He had an interview with The Onion’s AV Club that was really fun to read:

http://www.theonionavclub.com/avclub3714/avfeature_3714.html

This part always gets me…

O: What was the cause of that?

ML: That was, ah, Make Me Laugh. I did Make Me Laugh, and I was doing a bunch of jokes. It wasn’t as The Unknown Comic; it was as me, because I did it both as me and as The Unknown Comic. And I did a joke where I was reading things out of a newspaper, because you’re trying to make somebody laugh. I never did Sinatra jokes in my act, but I did one joke where I said, “Sinatra’s gonna open up a halfway house for girls who don’t go all the way.” It wasn’t a hard joke. I totally forgot about it. So I guess Sinatra saw a rerun six months later and he literally… I’m shaving, and he calls me on the phone. Of course, you don’t think Sinatra’s calling you. So I pick up the phone, and he goes, “Is this Murray Langston?” I go, “Yeah.” He says, “This is Sinatra, you cocksucker,” and he starts cursing at me. “You ever mention my name, I’m gonna break your fucking legs,” and all this shit, you know.