Louie Anderson, an actor and comedian who starred in Baskets and as Family Feud host, has died at age 68 after battling cancer, according to Variety.
What’s Happening:
- With a stand-up career spanning over three decades, Anderson broke through as a comedian in 1984 when he performed a set on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson.
- Anderson made regular TV appearances on late-night shows and appeared in movies such as Ferris Bueller’s Day Off in 1986 and Coming to America in 1988.
- In 1995, Anderson produced, created and starred in the Fox original animated series Life With Louie. Like much of Anderson’s stand-up, Life With Louie was based heavily on his experiences growing up in Saint Paul, Minnesota, in a large family of 11 children.
- In 1999, Anderson was the first host for the third revival of the hit syndicated game show Family Feud, leaving the show after four years in 2002.
- In recent years, Anderson garnered acclaim for his performance in the FX original comedy series Baskets. The show, which premiered in 2016 and ran until 2019. Anderson portrayed Chip’s overbearing mother Christine in all four seasons of the show, and he received an Emmy for outstanding supporting actor for his work in the first season. He would receive two further nominations in 2017 and 2018.
- Louie Anderson also voiced the role of Gory Agnes, a minor character from the Disney XD show Pickle and Peanut.
- Recently, Anderson reprised his Coming to America role in the 2021 sequel Coming 2 America and appeared in a guest role in Season 3 of the HBO Max original series Search Party. Since 2017, he has been a regular panelist on the game show Funny You Should Ask.