Tim Conway (1933–2019)
Author of What's So Funny?: My Hilarious Life
About the Author
Thomas Daniel "Tim" Conway (born December 15, 1933) is an Emmy Award-winning American comedian and actor, who has worked in sitcoms, comedy shows and film. Conway is best known for his role in the popular 1960s World War II situation comedy McHale's Navy as the inept Ensign Charles Parker, and for show more co-starring alongside Carol Burnett on The Carol Burnett Show. More recent, he is the voice of Barnacle Boy from the animated series SpongeBob SquarePants. Conway is the author of his memoir, What's So Funny? (Bowker Author Biography) show less
Works by Tim Conway
Dorf: Super Fan Collection 6 copies
Dorf Goes Fishing [VHS] 5 copies
Apple Dumpling Gang Rides 4 copies
Flo the Lyin' Fly 1 copy
Dorf on the Diamond [VHS] 1 copy
Long Shot [VHS] 1 copy
Dorf All 8 Classics 1 copy
Associated Works
2-Movie Collection: The Apple Dumpling Gang [and] The Apple Dumpling Gang Rides Again (2008) — Actor — 50 copies
Tagged
Common Knowledge
- Canonical name
- Conway, Tim
- Legal name
- Conway, Thomas Daniel
- Birthdate
- 1933-12-16
- Date of death
- 2019-05-14
- Gender
- male
- Education
- Bowling Green State University
Chagrin Falls High School - Occupations
- actor
comedian - Organizations
- United States Army
Don MacBeth Memorial Jockey Fund (co-founder)
United Leukodystrophy Foundation (spokesperson)
Chagrin Valley Little Theater (fundraiser) - Awards and honors
- Primetime Emmy Award, Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series (nominee, 1963)
Laurel Award, New Faces, Male (nominee, 1965)
Primetime Emmy Award, Outstanding Individual Performance in a Variety or Music Program (winner, 1973)
Primetime Emmy Award, Outstanding Individual Performance in a Variety or Music Program (nominee, 1974)
Primetime Emmy Award, Outstanding Individual Performance in a Variety or Music Program (nominee, 1975)
Primetime Emmy Award, Outstanding Individual Performance in a Variety or Music Program (nominee, 1976) (show all 24)
Golden Globe Award, Best Supporting Actor – Series, Miniseries or Television Film (winner, 1976)
Golden Globe Award, Best Supporting Actor – Series, Miniseries or Television Film (nominee, 1977)
Primetime Emmy Award, Outstanding Writing in a Comedy Series (nominee, 1977)
Primetime Emmy Award, Outstanding Individual Performance in a Variety or Music Program (winner, 1977)
Primetime Emmy Award, Outstanding Writing in a Comedy Series (winner, 1978)
Primetime Emmy Award, Outstanding Individual Performance in a Variety or Music Program (nominee, 1978)
Writers Guild of America Award, Outstanding Variety: Series or Special: Musical or Comedy (nominee, 1978)
Writers Guild of America Award, Variety Script, Musical or Comedy (nominee, 1979)
Primetime Emmy Award, Outstanding Writing in a Comedy Series (nominee, 1980)
Primetime Emmy Award, Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series (winner, 1996)
American Comedy Award, Funniest Supporting Actor in a Motion Picture (nominee, 1997)
Hollywood Walk of Fame (1999)
American Comedy Award, Funniest Male Guest Appearance in a TV Series (nominee, 2000)
Television Academy Hall of Fame (2002)
TV Land Award, Favorite Second Banana (nominee, 2003)
TV Land Award, Legend Award (winner, 2005)
Primetime Emmy Award, Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series (winner, 2008)
Horror Host Hall of Fame, Behind the Screams (winner, 2011) - Agent
- Bragman, Howard
- Relationships
- Conway, Kelly (daughter)
- Short biography
- [from Wikipedia]
Thomas Daniel "Tim" Conway (December 15, 1933 – May 14, 2019) was an American actor, comedian, writer, and director. Conway is perhaps best known as a regular cast member (1975–1978) on the TV comedy-variety series The Carol Burnett Show where he portrayed his recurrent iconic characters Mister Tudball and the Oldest Man. Conway was known for his physical comedy. Over his career he received numerous accolades, including five Primetime Emmy Awards and a Golden Globe Award. He received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1999 and was inducted into the Television Hall of Fame in 2002.
Conway started his career in local television in Cleveland as Ernie Anderson's collaborator. He gained national exposure on The Steve Allen Show, The Garry Moore Show and The Mike Douglas Show and then wider recognition for his role as the inept Ensign Parker in the World War II TV situation comedy McHale's Navy from 1962 to 1966. The role garnered him a nomination for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series. Conway starred on The Carol Burnett Show, where he was admired for his ability to depart from scripts with humorous ad libs and gestures, which frequently caused others in the skit to break character with laughter.
Conway helmed his own series twice, The Tim Conway Comedy Hour (1970) and The Tim Conway Show (1980–1981). He also co-starred with Don Knotts in several films including The Apple Dumpling Gang (1975), its 1979 sequel, Gus (1976), and The Private Eyes (1980). He played Dorf in eight films from 1987 to 1996, and voiced Barnacle Boy in SpongeBob SquarePants (1999–2012). He received two Primetime Emmy Awards for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series for his roles in the ABC comedy series Coach in 1996 and the NBC sitcom 30 Rock in 2008. - Cause of death
- normal pressure hydrocephalus
- Nationality
- USA
- Birthplace
- Willoughby, Ohio, USA
- Places of residence
- Chagrin Falls, Ohio, USA
- Place of death
- Los Angeles, California, USA
- Burial location
- Pierce Brothers Westwood Village Memorial Park, Westwood, Los Angeles County, California, USA (Sanctuary of Prayer, South/East corner of building)
- Associated Place (for map)
- USA
Members
Reviews
Reading this book was like sitting down with an old friend and catching up. Conway is down to earth, very humble and just an all round nice guy... with a wicked sense of humor. He touches on his childhood, his wonderfully quirky parents, his hometown. Learning about his youth makes it obvious why he is such a wonderful comedian. He talks about his career, the people he's known and with whom he's worked. He is a happy man and has had a happy life. He obviously enjoys making people laugh and show more his stories are hilarious. I was sorry to see this one end. Absolutely delightful. show less
A delightfully goofy autobiography (written with Jane Scovell, because Conway is severely dyslexic) that makes it clear Conway is exactly what he appears, which is to say zany, unassuming, off-kilter, and darling. One of my favorite comic actors ever, Conway was responsible for the Dentist sketch with Harvey Korman on the Carol Burnett show, and just reading about it again made me helpless with laughter. A fast, light read.
I used to hate it when, while still living at home, one of my sisters would come to me with a question and preface it with the words "you're smart." It seemed to raise the stakes somehow. I didn't mind taking a stab at answering a question, but the "you're smart" comment seemed to turn the pressure on. I imagine it's like public speakers who receive such a glowing introduction they may wonder how they can ever give a speech that will live up to it.
That's a bit how a feel about Tim Conway's show more autobiography "What's So Funny? My Hilarious Life." The title raises the stakes. How can the book ever live up to its title?
It is, in fact, a very funny book. Conway tells some great stories about his pranks at the expense of Harvey Korman, his college days at Bowling Green State University, his early career on a Cleveland television station (that he was reluctant to leave when invited to Hollywood), his experiences on "McHale's Navy," his failed sitcoms, his movies with Don Knotts and, of course, his long relationship with Carol Burnett. I enjoyed the tale about the time he and two show business friends dressed up in Hollywood lion costumes to sneak into a football game featuring the Detroit Lions, then found the costumes too hot to actually enjoy the game. My favorite story is about the time when Conway was in his third year on the hit TV comedy "McHale's Navy" and he got a call from his mother telling him about a job opening at the Chagrin Falls, Ohio, hardware story. He pointed out he was on a successful show in Hollywood, but she, sounding very much like a mother, said, "You got a chance to get a good steady job. You should take it."
I am a big Tim Conway fan and have been since I knew him as Ensign Parker. I enjoyed the book very much. Yet every time I picked it up I would notice the cover and wonder if the book was really living up to the title. The novel Philip Roth called "The Great American Novel" is not among those held in highest regard by his fans and critics. Coincidence? I wonder. show less
That's a bit how a feel about Tim Conway's show more autobiography "What's So Funny? My Hilarious Life." The title raises the stakes. How can the book ever live up to its title?
It is, in fact, a very funny book. Conway tells some great stories about his pranks at the expense of Harvey Korman, his college days at Bowling Green State University, his early career on a Cleveland television station (that he was reluctant to leave when invited to Hollywood), his experiences on "McHale's Navy," his failed sitcoms, his movies with Don Knotts and, of course, his long relationship with Carol Burnett. I enjoyed the tale about the time he and two show business friends dressed up in Hollywood lion costumes to sneak into a football game featuring the Detroit Lions, then found the costumes too hot to actually enjoy the game. My favorite story is about the time when Conway was in his third year on the hit TV comedy "McHale's Navy" and he got a call from his mother telling him about a job opening at the Chagrin Falls, Ohio, hardware story. He pointed out he was on a successful show in Hollywood, but she, sounding very much like a mother, said, "You got a chance to get a good steady job. You should take it."
I am a big Tim Conway fan and have been since I knew him as Ensign Parker. I enjoyed the book very much. Yet every time I picked it up I would notice the cover and wonder if the book was really living up to the title. The novel Philip Roth called "The Great American Novel" is not among those held in highest regard by his fans and critics. Coincidence? I wonder. show less
It's not unusual to me to read of a comedian burdened by the strain and pressure to always be "on". Indeed, Conway appears to be the other way; always on and wouldn't have it any other way. His on, apparently, is about pranking friends and family, sometimes in elaborate ways. He relates these tales as seeming his chief contributions through making people laugh, but I came away thinking I would feel he was being a jerk. Indeed, if someone would not speak to him "for weeks" after such a prank show more or otherwise demonstrably give evidence of being embarrassed or angered, that seems only to increase his "score" by how 'sore' they are.
I loved his appearances on the The Carol Burnett Show and watching him crack up Harvey Korman. Carol Burnett narrates her own lauding Introduction here and Korman is extensively recalled and eulogized by Conway. Well, Conway is of course entitled to all his depth and personality, and I'll recall the Show episodes and leave it at that.
Narrator Dick Hill does a great job, diving into voices and comedic emphasis with gusto. show less
I loved his appearances on the The Carol Burnett Show and watching him crack up Harvey Korman. Carol Burnett narrates her own lauding Introduction here and Korman is extensively recalled and eulogized by Conway. Well, Conway is of course entitled to all his depth and personality, and I'll recall the Show episodes and leave it at that.
Narrator Dick Hill does a great job, diving into voices and comedic emphasis with gusto. show less
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Statistics
- Works
- 29
- Also by
- 45
- Members
- 372
- Popularity
- #64,809
- Rating
- 3.8
- Reviews
- 17
- ISBNs
- 23
- Favorited
- 1
