Tom Smothers, of the Comedy Greats the Smothers Brothers, Dead at 86

Tom Smothers, one-half of the famed Smothers Brothers comedy duo, who brought a revolutionary hit of music and political satire to late Sixties television, has died, The New York Times reports. He was 86. 

Smothers died at his home in Santa Rosa, California, following a “recent battle with cancer,” according to a spokesman for the National Comedy Center, on behalf of the family. No additional details were shared.

Tom and his younger brother, Dick, broke through with an act that combined folk music and comedy: Tom played guitar, as well as the goofball, while Dick balanced him out as the straight-man with a stand-up bass. Their famed show, The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour, premiered in 1967 and became a counterculture staple with pointed bits and sly references to everything from recreational drug use to the Vietnam War.

Recalling the show’s origins in a 2015 interview with Rolling Stone, Smothers said, “I said I didn’t want to do the standard bullshit. We wanted the sketches to be more relevant. You couldn’t help but reflect what was going on.”

But while that kind of cavalier comedy earned wide praise, a devoted audience, and even an Emmy for Outstanding Writing for a Comedy, Variety or Music, its also caused controversy and led to friction with the censors at CBS. The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour was canceled in 1969 after just three seasons (Tom and Dick successfully sued the network for breach of contract after their cancellation).

Still, the show’s impact and influence was vast. Tom and Dick assembled a writing and performing staff filled with future comedy luminaries, including Steve Martin and Rob Reiner. They also featured an array of major musical acts, including George Harrison, Pete Seeger, and, maybe most famously, the Who, whose rendition of “My Generation” was punctuated by Keith Moon’s exploding drum kit. 

This story is developing…

Tom Smothers, one-half of the famed Smothers Brothers comedy duo, who brought a revolutionary hit of music and political satire to late Sixties television, has died, The New York Times reports. He was 86. 

Smothers died at his home in Santa Rosa, California, following a “recent battle with cancer,” according to a spokesman for the National Comedy Center, on behalf of the family. No additional details were shared.

Tom and his younger brother, Dick, broke through with an act that combined folk music and comedy: Tom played guitar, as well as the goofball, while Dick balanced him out as the straight-man with a stand-up bass. Their famed show, The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour, premiered in 1967 and became a counterculture staple with pointed bits and sly references to everything from recreational drug use to the Vietnam War.

Recalling the show’s origins in a 2015 interview with Rolling Stone, Smothers said, “I said I didn’t want to do the standard bullshit. We wanted the sketches to be more relevant. You couldn’t help but reflect what was going on.”

But while that kind of cavalier comedy earned wide praise, a devoted audience, and even an Emmy for Outstanding Writing for a Comedy, Variety or Music, its also caused controversy and led to friction with the censors at CBS. The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour was canceled in 1969 after just three seasons (Tom and Dick successfully sued the network for breach of contract after their cancellation).

Still, the show’s impact and influence was vast. Tom and Dick assembled a writing and performing staff filled with future comedy luminaries, including Steve Martin and Rob Reiner. They also featured an array of major musical acts, including George Harrison, Pete Seeger, and, maybe most famously, the Who, whose rendition of “My Generation” was punctuated by Keith Moon’s exploding drum kit. 

This story is developing…