- Born
- Died
- Birth nameIsaiah Edwin Leopold
- Nickname
- The Perfect Fool
- Height1.83 m
- An old-fashioned comedian, who, by recommendation by his son Keenan Wynn, became one of the world's most beloved clowns, and one of the best actors of his time. He was born on November 9, 1886. He performed in the Ziegfeld Follies, and later had a son Keenan in 1916. He later wrote his own shows, then known as the Perfect Fool. In 1941 at age 54, he became a grandfather. He became popular for roles throughout the 1950s and 1960s, best remembered for The Ed Wynn Show (1949), and for Mary Poppins (1964) as Uncle Albert, who reflects his old style charm. He continued to perform, until he died in 1966 at age 79.- IMDb mini biography by: piccione2000
- SpousesDorothy Elizabeth Nesbitt(July 31, 1946 - March 1, 1955) (divorced)Frieda Mierse(June 15, 1937 - December 12, 1939) (divorced)Hilda Keenan(September 5, 1914 - May 13, 1937) (divorced, 1 child)
- Children
- RelativesTracy Keenan Wynn(Grandchild)Ned Wynn(Grandchild)Emily Wynn(Grandchild)Hilda Wynn(Grandchild)Jessica Keenan Wynn(Great Grandchild)
- Disney movies
- Unique whimsical voice
- Interred along with son Keenan Wynn at Forest Lawn Cemetery, Glendale, CA, in the Great Mausoleum, Holly entrance, Daffodil Corridor. The epitaph on his niche reads: "Dear God, Thank You.".
- At the end of the '30s, several of his business ventures collapsed, including a radio chain, and he suffered a severe nervous breakdown.
- The voice and character design of King Candy from Les Mondes de Ralph (2012) was based on him.
- Eventually he took his middle name of Edwin and adapted it into his stage moniker, "Ed Wynn," in order to save his European immigrant parents the embarrassment of having a low-style burlesque comedian as a relative. Running away from home at age 15, he first worked as a utility boy and eventual actor for a traveling stage company. The adventure was short-lived and he returned home to sell women's hats at his father's retail store until leaving again in five months.
- Was originally offered the title role in Le Magicien d'Oz (1939) but turned the part down, believing it was "way too small".
- A comedian says funny things. A comic says things funny.
- Wasn't it Whistler who said that a great painter was one who could hide the effort which he put into his work? The same thing goes for gags. It often takes hours to think up something that is said in seconds.
- I'll be back in a flash with more trash. - his famous exit line
- I can't give you a definition [of humor]. It is too subtle to be pinned down. I can say that it differs from wit, which exaggerates the truth, while humor presents the truth in an original way.
- [on performing in radio] If I go on the air I've got to have an audience. If I am to get 'raspberries' I want them immediately and not three weeks later, in the mail from Sioux City.
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