Famous Comedian, Don Adams 1923-2005

September 25^th marks the anniversary of the death of one of television's legendary comedians, Don Adams.

Born Donald James Yarmy on April 13, 1923 in New York, Don changed his name to Adams as a young man because whenever he would go for auditions, names were called in alphabetical order, and he was tired of being last in line. As a child Don hated school, but loved movies, often playing hooky in order to spend the day in a movie theater. He and his friends would do impressions of their favorite stars, and Don excelled at mimicking his favorites.

During World War 2, he finally left school at age 16 and joined the Marines, lying about his age to get in. He contracted blackwater fever, fatal 90 percent of the time, in Guadalcanal and nearly died, but sheer force of will kept him from succumbing to the disease. After spending two and a half years in hospitals, he was discharged from the Marines. Don headed to Florida and began a career as a stand-up comedian, doing his act in seedy nightclubs and bars. His club act was clean, with no dirty jokes or profanity. He wrote his club acts with the help of his friend, Bill Dana. Don won an Arthur Godfrey "Talent Scouts" competition in 1954, and afterwards got the attention of those who chose acts for some of the most popular television variety shows of that era. Don appeared on the Steve Allen Tonight Show, the Perry Como Show, the Ed Sullivan Show, and the Garry Moore Show.

Don began writing comedy material for Steve Allen and Garry Moore, along with his friend Bill Dana. Don had also created the character of Byron Glick, a bumbling house detective, and when Dana got his own comedy series, the Bill Dana Show, which ran from 1963 until 1965, he persuaded Don to appear as a regular on the show, portraying the Glick character. Byron Glick was a precursor to Maxwell Smart, Secret Agent 86, the character Don is most memorable for.

Adams was under contract with NBC when the pilot script for Get Smart came along. At first, he wasn't interested in even reading the script, but then asked his manager who wrote it. When he was given the names Mel Brooks and Buck Henry, he immediately agreed to shoot the pilot, and the rest is history. The program was an immediate success with the viewing public, as was Don Adams.

Get Smart changed Don's life in many ways. He won three Emmy awards for his portrayal of Maxwell Smart, but he was typecast for the rest of his life as a bumbling dimwit as a result of the show. Few realized that he was capable of serious dramatic acting, a fact that Don longed to prove, but was never given the chance to bring to reality. But, Get Smart also made Don a household name, and brought him much financial success. When he was offered a 33 percent piece of the show and a smaller salary, the gambler in him made him take a chance that the show would be a hit. He was right. Get Smart has been in syndicated reruns for decades, and Don received annuities from the show until his death. Get Smart ran from 1965 until 1969 on CBS. NBC picked up the show for a final year in 1970.

Once Get Smart was canceled, Don created, produced and starred in a comedy called The Partners from 1971 -1972. Unfortunately, it was nowhere near as successful as Get Smart had been, and the show was only on the air for a year. He hosted another show he created in 1975 called Don Adam's Screen Test. This brainchild show was ahead of its time in many ways. It ran for 26 episodes, and featured would-be actors and actresses who were paired with real-life stars in staged scenes from classic films. The person voted best actor or actress received a small part in a real production.

After Screen Test, Adams directed and appeared in many commercials for Aurora Toys and their "Skittle" line of games. He won the Clio Award for outstanding commercial direction in advertising in 1971. It was for his classic Aurora Skittle Pool commercial, in which he was also featured as the main character.

He also made many guest appearances on shows like "Love Boat", "Love American Style", and "Hollywood Squares". He had a very successful career doing voiceovers at this stage of his life. This talent was first recognized when he was the voice of Tennessee Tuxedo in the early 1960's. Don's voice was perfect for the cartoon character Inspector Gadget. In the late 1990s, he also provided voices for the ABC/Disney series, Pepper Ann.

In 1980, Don had the chance to return to the Maxwell Smart character in a Universal Studios move titled "The Nude Bomb". He had high hopes for the movie at first, but script changes turned it into a box office flop. Another movie, called "Get Smart, Again" fared much better at the box office. Don was reunited with his costar from the original Get Smart, Barbara Feldon, and their on-screen chemistry helped make this 1989 reunion a much better movie.

From 1985-1989, Adams starred in the syndicated Canadian comedy Check It Out, a series about a grocery store manager and his wacky employees.

In 1995, Adams and Feldon teamed up again for a Fox Network television series called "Get Smart 95". It did not fare well in the ratings, and only 9 episodes were filmed.

Don spent the time from the late 90s until around 2003 doing Get Smart promotions for the TV Land network, who at that time was showing reruns of the 60s classic. In 2001, he filmed a documentary for TV Land entitled "Inside TV Land : Get Smart." He filmed his A&E Television Biography which aired September 29^th, 2004.

Few people realize that Don Adams was a very intelligent and multi-talented man. He was a history buff, reading voraciously about his two favorite historical people, Abraham Lincoln and Adolph Hitler. He enjoyed painting and was known to give his own canvases as gifts to his friends. He also wrote poetry, and enjoyed golfing and tennis. Don adored gambling and was a frequent visitor to various racetracks in the Los Angeles area, or playing cards at the Playboy mansion with his friends, which included Hugh Hefner, James Caan, and Don Rickles, among others.

Adams was married three times. His first marriage was to Adelaide (Dell) Efantis, who was a nightclub singer in Florida when Don met her. They were married for nine years, and had three daughters together. Don and Dell divorced in 1958.

Don met his second wife, Dorothy, while doing summer stock in 1957 at Lake George, New York. Dorothy was a June Taylor dancer. Don and Dorothy married in 1960. They had two children, and their sixteen year marriage ended in divorce in 1976.

Adams married Judy Luciano, his third wife, on June 10^th, 1977. They had one daughter together before the marriage ended in divorce.

Don was known for being sentimental, superstitious, cautious, and absent-minded. He was described as being a Victorian romantic by those close to him. He was a brilliant, multi-talented, handsome comedic icon whose talent was appreciated by millions around the world.

Don battled lymphoma in his later years, but his health declined rapidly after he suffered a broken hip in 2003. He died of a lung infection at Cedar Sinai Hospital in Los Angeles in the early evening hours of September 25th. His family was with him at the time of his death. Don is buried at the Hollywood Forever Cemetery in Hollywood, California. He lives on in the hearts and minds of all who loved him.

Sources

http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0010915/

http://www.wouldyoubelieve.com