Iconic Emmy-winning comedian, actor and game show host Louis Anderson died in Las Vegas on Friday after battling cancer, his publicist confirmed to Variety. He was 68 years old.
A veteran stand-up with a career spanning more than four decades, Anderson debuted as a comedian in 1984, when he performed a set on "The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson." From there, he landed a comedy special on Showtime in 1987, made regular TV appearances on late night shows, and appeared in films such as "Ferris Bueller's Day Off" in 1986 and "Coming to America" in 1988.
In 1995, Anderson created, produced, and starred in the Fox original animated series Life with Louie. Like most of Anderson's stand-up, "Life with Louie" was based on his experiences growing up in St. Paul, Minn., in a large family of 11 children. The comic voiced a fictionalized version of his eight-year-old self on the show, winning two Daytime Emmys for Artist in an Animated Program. The show ran from 1995-1998. In 1996, he created and starred in a short-lived sitcom "The Louie Show" on CBS, which was canceled after six episodes. 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 has received praise for his performance in the FX original comedy series "Basket". The show, which premiered in 2016 and ran through 2019, starred co-creator Zack Galifianakis as professional clown Chip Baskett, who worked at the local rodeo in Bakersfield, Calif. 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 will receive two more nominations in 2017 and 2018.
Most recently, Anderson reprized his “Coming to America” role in the 2021 sequel “Coming 2 America” and made a guest appearance on 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".