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1[[quoteright:280:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/buddy_hackett_7224.jpg]]
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3->''"If you have the right voice and the right delivery, you're cocky enough, and you pound down on the punch line, you can say anything and make people laugh maybe three times before they realize you're not telling jokes."''
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5Buddy Hackett (born Leonard Hacker; August 31, 1924 – June 30, 2003) was an American actor and comedian.
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7Hackett grew up in [[UsefulNotes/NewYorkCity Brooklyn]], living next door to future Dodgers pitcher and Baseball Hall of Famer Sandy Koufax. He served in the U.S. Army during UsefulNotes/WorldWarII as part of an anti-aircraft battery.
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9His career as a comedian began after the war, when he performed at a nightclub in Brooklyn and on the Catskills BorschtBelt circuit. It was there that he officially changed his name from Leonard Hacker to Buddy Hackett.
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11Over the span of five decades, Hackett appeared on Platform/{{Broadway}}, performed stand-up comedy on stage, and starred in several movies and television shows. He also made guest appearances on talk shows, like those of Creator/JackPaar, Creator/ArthurGodfrey, and Creator/JohnnyCarson, and appeared on the game shows ''Series/WhatsMyLine'' and ''Series/TheHollywoodSquares''. He was the second host of ''Series/YouBetYourLife''.
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13Hackett died at his beach house in Malibu, California, on June 30, 2003, due to complications from diabetes. His son, Sandy Hackett, has been starring in film and television after his father's death.
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15----
16!!His roles in film and TV include:
17* ''Film/TheWonderfulWorldOfTheBrothersGrimm'': as Hans
18* ''Theatre/TheMusicMan'': as Marcellus Washburn
19* ''Film/ItsAMadMadMadMadWorld'': as Benjy Benjamin
20* ''Film/TheLoveBug'': as Tennessee Steinmetz
21* ''WesternAnimation/RankinBassJackFrost'': as Pardon-Me Pete, the groundhog
22* ''Bud and Lou'' (1978 TV movie): as Lou Costello, with Creator/HarveyKorman as Bud Abbott
23* ''Film/{{Scrooged}}'': AsHimself as [[ShowWithinAShow Ebeneezer]] [[Literature/AChristmasCarol Scrooge]]
24* ''WesternAnimation/TheLittleMermaid1989'': as Scuttle
25* ''Film/{{Paulie}}'': as Artie, the pawnbroker
26* ''Series/{{Action}}'': as Uncle Lonny
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28!!Buddy Hackett is associated with these tropes:
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31* AsianSpeekeeEngrish: One of his more famous (and problematic) routines had him doing this while portraying a Chinese waiter.
32* DirtyOldMan: He hit his senior years as broadcasting standards grew more lax, and he spent the last couple decades of his life gleefully doing the talk-show circuit with the filthiest material he had.
33* LargeHam: Even in his Tuscan ice cream commercials circa 1980.
34* WhatCouldHaveBeen:
35** Was set to appear in the documentary ''Film/TheAristocrats'' (as was Creator/RodneyDangerfield), but died before his parts could be filmed.
36** He was approached to replace Curly Howard in Film/TheThreeStooges following Curly's stroke, but he declined.
37** He has also gone on record saying he regretted turning down the [[Film/TheLoveBug Herbie]] sequels.
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