Funnyman Harvey Korman passed away yesterday afternoon in Los Angeles after suffering complications from the rupture of an abdominal aortic aneurysm four months ago. He was 81.
Korman won four Emmys for his work on the long running Carol Burnett Show. But it was his role as the fiendishly plotting politician Hedley Lamarr in Mel Brooks western spoof Blazing Saddles that is probably best remembered by film fans. Saddled with keeping the running gag about his character’s name’s proximity to actress Hedy Lamarr alive through the film, Korman brought an energy to every joke given to him by the script, delivering laugh after laugh. It’s a shame that he didn’t receive the Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor that Lamarr thought he deserved.
Korman would go on to work with Brooks on several more films including the Hitchcock parody High Anxiety and History Of The World, Part 1.
Korman also had numerous television and animation voice over roles to his credit.
