Del Close

Del Close (March 9, 1934 – March 4, 1999) was considered one of the premier influences on modern improvisational theater. An actor, improviser, writer, and teacher, Close had a prolific career, appearing in a number of films and television shows. He was a co-author of the book Truth in Comedy, which outlines techniques now common to improvisation and describes the overall structure of the Harold, which remains a common frame for longer improvisational scenes. His favorite framework for comedic storytelling was the structures of Richard Wagner’s Ring Cycle.

Life and career

Early life

Close was born and raised in Manhattan, Kansas, the son of an inattentive, alcoholic father. He ran away from home at the age of 17 to work on a traveling side show, but returned to attend college at Kansas State University|Kansas State. At the age of 23, he became a member of the Compass Players in St. Louis, Missouri|St. Louis. When most of the cast -- including Mike Nichols and Elaine May -- moved to New York, Close followed to perform stand-up comedy, appear in the Broadway musical revue "The Nervous Set," and perform briefly with an improv company in the Village with Mark and Barbara Gordon, who had appeared with the Compass Players in Chicago.

Around this time, Close also worked with John Brent to record the classic beatnik satire album How to Speak Hip. The album became a prized record for DJs worldwide, and was one of Brian Wilson’s favorite comedy albums.Template:Citation needed

Chicago Years

In 1960, Close moved to Chicago – which was to be his home base for much of the rest of his life – to perform and direct with Second City. Close was fired from Second City due to his substance abuse and spent the latter half of the 1960s in San Francisco, where he was the House Director of The Committee theater, toured with the Merry Pranksters, and made light images for Grateful Dead shows.

After returning to Chicago in the early 1970s, Close was hired again to direct at Second City. He also performed and directed the Second City show in Toronto in 1977. Over the next decade he helped develop many of today’s leading comedians. Many of his protégés have gained prominence in the field of comedy; at any given time, roughly a quarter of Saturday Night Live’s cast has been composed of his former trainees.

Close spent the early 1980s in New York, as "House Metaphysician" at Saturday Night Live, coaching the cast in the wake of producer Lorne Michaels' departure. He spent the mid-to-late 1980s and 1990s teaching improv, collaborating with Charna Halpern in Yes And Productions and Improv Olympic. Despite suffering from emphysema, he continued to consume pot brownies, and use various tobacco supplements. During this period, Close acted in several movies, including portraying a corrupt alderman in The Untouchables and an English teacher in Ferris Bueller's Day Off. He also co-authored the graphic horror anthology Wasteland for DC Comics with John Ostrander, and co-wrote several installments of Grimjack's backup feature Munden's Bar. Close joined Charna Halpern at the ImprovOlympic Theater, which she had founded and briefly run with Compass Players producer David Shepherd.

Among Close's last words to those visiting him in his hospital room were, "I’m tired of being the funniest person in the room."

After Life

Before he died, Close requested that his skull be given to the Goodman Theatre for use in Hamlet productions, with him being duly credited in the program as portraying Yorick. A former roommate of his, who had worked as a forensic pathologist while attending law school in Chicago, flew in from Hawaii to perform the procedure, and Halpern, named by Close as the executor of his will, began plans for the procedure. Northwestern Memorial Hospital, however, despite the legality of the proceedings, being became concerned about violations of Illinois law and prohibited its conclusion. The erstwhile pathologist provided this information to Close’s student/protege Les Golden at Close's memorial gathering at Second City along with the observation that the actual skull lacked Close’s open-spaced front teeth and had a patina indicating it was not a fresh skull. This substitution of skulls was in fact commonly known among associates of Close, but was allowed to be perpetuated for the dramatic effect.

In a 2006 article in the Chicago Tribune, Robert K. Elder had written a general piece in which the legend was propagated as one of several other strange-but-true Chicago-area news bits, but to set the record straight Golden called Elder at the Tribune to advise him that in fact the skull that was donated to the Goodman by Halpern was not that of Close. That tip led to a front-page Chicago Tribune article by Elder that the donation of Close’s skull was a hoax, a fact which was then publicized nationwide. In fact, the skull was cremated with the rest of Close's body.

To memorialize Close, his former students the Upright Citizens Brigade created The Del Close Marathon. Del's voice can be heard narrating in the opening credits for the first two seasons of the television show Upright Citizens Brigade, which features a group of his former students.

Quotes

"It is easy to become deluded by the audience, because they laugh. Don't let them make you buy the lie that what you're doing is for the laughter. Is what we're doing comedy? Probably not. Is it funny? Probably yes. Where do the really best laughs come from? Terrific connections made intellectually, or terrific revelations made emotionally." -Del Close (Truth in Comedy 25)

"What we do is too enchanting to be quantified" - Del Close

"Del Close is my biggest influence in comedy" - John Belushi [1]

Notable students

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• Dan Aykroyd
• James Belushi
• John Belushi
• Matt Besser
• Heather Anne Campbell
• John Candy
• Stephen Colbert
• Andy Dick
• Brian Doyle-Murray
• Rachel Dratch
• Chris Farley
• Tina Fey
• Neil Flynn
• Aaron Freeman
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• Les Golden
• Jon Glaser
• Tim Kazurinsky
• David Koechner
• Shelley Long
• Adam McKay
• Tim Meadows
• Susan Messing
• Jerry Minor
• Bill Murray
• Joel Murray
• Mike Myers (actor)|Mike Myers
• Bob Odenkirk
• Tim O'Malley (actor)|Tim O'Malley
• David Pasquesi

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• Amy Poehler
• Gilda Radner
• Harold Ramis
• Ian Roberts (actor)|Ian Roberts
• Andy Richter
• Mitch Rouse
• Horatio Sanz
• Amy Sedaris
• Brian Stack
• Eric Stonestreet
• Miles Stroth
• Dave Thomas (actor)|Dave Thomas
• Matt Walsh (comedian)|Matt Walsh
• Stephnie Weir
• George Wendt

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The Delmonic Interviews

In 2002, Cesar Jaime and Jeff Pacocha produced and directed a film composed of interviews with former students, friends, and collaborators of Del Close. The film documented not only Del's life and history, but the impact he had on the people in his life and the art form he helped to create. It is not sold on DVD and was made as a thank you and a tribute to Del, "as a way to allow those that never got to meet or study with him, a chance to understand what he was like."

The Delmonic Interviews includes interviews with: Charna Halpern (co-founder of Chicago's iO), Matt Besser (iO's The Family; Upright Citizens Brigade), Rachel Dratch (iO; Second City; Saturday Night Live), Neil Flynn (iO's The Family; NBC's Scrubs), Susan Messing (iO; Second City; Annoyance Productions), Amy Poehler (Upright Citizens Brigade, Saturday Night Live), and Miles Stroth (iO's The Family; Del's "Warchief"). The film was shown at several national improv festivals, including the 2004 Chicago Improv Festival, the 2004 Phoenix Improv Festival, the 2002 Del Close Marathon in New York City, and the 2006 LA Improv Festival.

Close in Print

Close is featured in an extensive interview in Something Wonderful Right Away, a book about the members of the Compass Players and Second City written by Jeffrey Sweet. Originally published in 1978 by Avon, it is currently available from Limelight Editions.

In 1982, Close's student Les Golden was asked by Close to perform a surrogate interview with Spring magazine discussing Close's improvisation techniques.

In 2005, Jeff Griggs published Guru, a book detailing his friendship with Close during the last two years of his life. Due to Close’s poor health (in part caused by long-term alcohol and drug use), Halpern suggested that Griggs run errands with Close. Guru gives a particularly detailed and complete picture of Close based on those shared hours. At the beginning of their relationship, Griggs was a student of Del’s, and the book includes several chapters in which Griggs depicts Close as a teacher.

The book has been adapted into a screenplay, and as of 2006 Harold Ramis was attached to direct the script, although it does not appear that the movie will soon be made. Ramis would like Bill Murray to play Close.

In 2007, Eric Spitznagel wrote an article in the September issue of The Believer magazine reflecting on Close's life and his propensity for story-telling.

In 2008, Kim "Howard" Johnson's full-length biography of Close, The Funniest One in the Room: The Lives and Legends of Del Close was published. Johnson himself was a student of Close, and remained friends with Close until his death.

External links

• Audio Interview with Griggs on The Sound of Young America: MP3 Link
• Del Close at Improv/Comedy
• Del Close Improv Marathon
• "As Del Lay Dying," an account of Del Close's final days (w/ video)
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