Shelley Berman
1925-2017 · Chicago, IL
Also known as Sheldon Leonard Berman
Compass Players alumnus and pioneer of 'sit-down' comedy — his improvised telephone monologues won the first Grammy for a spoken-word comedy album.
Known for
- Joined the Compass Players in 1955 alongside Nichols, May, and Barbara Harris.
- His 1959 album Inside Shelley Berman was the first comedy album to win a Grammy.
- Pioneered one-sided phone-call monologues that became a template for observational comedy.
- Later cast as Larry David's father on Curb Your Enthusiasm.
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