Comedy legend Shecky Greene dead at 97

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Comedy legend Shecky Greene has died at age 97.

Howard Rapp, Greene's long-time manager, confirmed the news in a statement to Fox News Digital, writing, "Shecky Greene has pas[sed] away today. [He was] one of the GREATEST performers who made people laugh all the time." 

Rapp continued, recalling Greene’s early career. "I met him when I was 17 and he work[ed] for my Uncle, Charlie Rapp in the Catskills. Shecky quit the business for 7 Years and couldn’t go on stage. After seven years off stage he made his return at Kutsher Hotel in The Catskills, where [he] started.  From there he worked all his old venues and new ones where he developed a new audience." 

He concluded, "I spoke to him last week and we had a GREAT TALK about every from politics to comedy. He finished by singing to me an origins made up song adding name in it," adding emphatically "Shecky Greene will be missed by everyone."

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Shecky Greene, with wife Marie Musso Greene, passed away on Dec 31 at age 97 of natural causes.  (Denise Truscello/WireImage)

Greene’s widow, Marie Musso Greene, also confirmed to the Las Vegas Review-Journal that Greene died at 3:21 a.m Sunday at his Las Vegas home of natural causes.

Musso Greene stated there would be no celebration of life ceremony for Greene, per his wishes.

She told the Las Vegas Review-Journal that being married to the comedian for 41 years, "was fun. He always made humor out of whatever he could. He made you laugh and feel good. It was a happy time."

Greene was best known for his decades of stand-up comedy performances in Las Vegas and frequent appearances on "The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson."

Born Fred Sheldon Greenfield in Chicago in 1926, Greene’s Las Vegas career kicked off when he performed on the same bill as singer Dorothy Shay at the new Frontier Casino.

At that same hotel, Greene encountered a young Elvis Presley.

He told the L.A. Times in 2005, "I didn’t even know who Elvis Presley was. The kid should never have been in there. He came out in a baseball jacket. Four or five musicians behind him had baseball jackets on. It looked like a picnic. After the first show they switched the billing, and I headlined."

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Elvis Presley opened for Shecky Greene early in his career (Getty Images)

Greene also became part of the extended Rat Pack circle, opening for Frank Sinatra, who he admitted he had a "love/hate" relationship with.

Per the Las Vegas Review-Journal, Greene said, "He loved me and we hated each other. I didn’t love him. I far from loved him. But I (expletive) respected him for what he was."

He also often related a tale of being saved by Sinatra after some of his associates were in a fight with the comedian.

"Frank Sinatra saved my life. Five guys were beating me up and Frank said, ‘Okay, he’s had enough,’" Greene told Carson, according to the Las Vegas Review-Journal.

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Greene said he had a contentious relationship with Frank Sinatra (Getty Images)

Greene's name became synonymous with comedy, but despite his natural stage presence and performance, he struggled with stage fright and mental health.

He told the Review-Journal in 2009, "I was a manic depressive. Then I developed panic attacks, and I worked with people who never knew it. I’d get a standing ovation, then I’d burst out crying as soon as I left the stage. I wanted to get out of show business so bad at that time. But when you’re making $100,000 a week and supporting 12 bookies and a wife — it’s difficult."

The comedy legend also battled alcoholism, leading to an infamous incident in 1968 when he crashed his Oldsmobile into the fountains outside Caesars Palace in Las Vegas. As water sprayed all over the car, police approached, prompting Greene to roll down the windows and quip, "No spray wax?"

Greene was a frequent guest on "The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson," where he also related the Caesars Palace incident. (Paul W. Bailey/NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via Getty Images via Getty Images)

He spoke about the accident in the Los Angeles Times Magazine in 2005, saying, "I had a bad habit when I got drunk, and I think it must have been a death wish: To get in my car and just drive. One night I drove 90 miles an hour down the Strip — which you couldn’t do now, crowded as the Strip is — and I hit this breakaway lamp at the entrance to Caesars. It went shearing across Las Vegas Boulevard, and I went right over the curb and into the water. The cops came, and I went. I told Buddy Hackett about it. He gave me the line about the spray wax, and I put it in my act."

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Greene also appeared in film and television, and concluded his legendary Las Vegas career in 2011. (Dave Kotinsky/Getty Images)

Apart from comedy, Greene also appeared in several movies, including "History of the World: Part I," "Splash," and "Tony Rome," as well as TV series like "The Love Boat," "Fantasy Island," and "The A-Team."

After decades of working in Las Vegas, Greene delivered his final performances in 2011.

Greene is survived by his wife, Musso Greene, and his children.