Jewish-American Comedian Jackie Mason passed away on Saturday at the age of 93.
Mason died at 6:00 p.m. ET at Mt. Sinai Hospital in Manhattan after being hospitalized for over two weeks, the celebrity lawyer Raul Felder told The Associated Press.
Mason was known for his sharp wit and piercing social commentary, often about the differences between Jews and gentiles, men and women and his own inadequacies.
He was born Jacob Maza, the son of a rabbi, on June 9, 1931. His three brothers became rabbis as did Mason, who at one time had congregations in Pennsylvania and North Carolina.
Mason started in show business as a social director at a resort in the Catskills and, in 1961, got his big break with an appearance on Steve Allen’s weekly television variety show. His success brought him to “The Ed Sullivan Show” and other programs.
Mason’s act even carried him to Broadway, where he put on several one-man shows, including “Freshly Squeezed” in 2005, “Love Thy Neighbor” in 1996 and “The World According to Me” in 1988, for which he received a special Tony Award.
On TV, Mason had cameos on such shows as “30 Rock” and “The Simpsons” and was a guest on late night chat shows. He performed in front of Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II and his show “Fearless” played London’s West End in 2012.
Mason is survived by his wife, producer Jyll Rosenfeld, and a daughter, Sheba.