Marty Feldman - ©Theda Bara

The name I bring to you in this post is that of the talented British actor and comedic screenwriter Marty Feldman, who acted in several films and comedy series on television and in the cinema, such as: “Young Frankenstein” (1974), where he played “Igor”, the hunchbacked assistant of “Dr. Frederick Frankenstein”, played by: Gene Wilder (1933-2016).

His face was distinguished by bulging eyes, a medical condition known as exophthalmos, caused by the thyroid, known as Graves’ disease.

Feldman was born in the East End of London, the son of Jewish immigrants from Kiev. He left school at 15 and worked at the Dreamland amusement park in Margate. He was initially drawn to jazz, playing the trumpet and spending time performing in jazz clubs in Soho. He found a parallel between comedy and jazz improvisation, until he realized he had no talent for it. At 20, he decided to pursue a career as a comedian.

His great idol and artistic reference was the American comedian, director, producer, screenwriter and stuntman, Buster Keaton (1895-1966).

Before leaving music behind, Marty Feldman recorded an LP: “Going Off” (1969), re-released as: “The Crazy World of Marty Feldman”. In 1976, Feldman ventured into Italian cinema, starring alongside Barbara Gutscher, known as Barbara Bouchet (1943-) in the film: “Sex with a Smile” (1976). Feldman appeared in several films by Mel Brooks (1926-). In 1966 he directed and starred in the remake of “Beau Geste” (1939). The artist was invited to appear in an episode set in “Arabian Nights” of “The Muppet Show”, with several characters from “Sesame Street”, where he appeared as: “Scheherazade” and compared his eyes to those of Elmo.

Awards were not Marty Feldman’s strong point, especially since he died so young. Marty received 2 BAFTAE Craft Awards: Best Screenwriter in 1968 and 1969. Being British, he does not have a star on the Los Angeles Walk of Fame.

Martin Alan “Marty” Feldman was born on July 8, 1934, in London, England, and died on December 2, 1982, in Mexico City, Mexico, at the age of 48, from a heart attack while filming the comedy: “The Rampant Yellowbeard Pirates”.

Marty Feldman was married to British TV producer Lauretta Sullivan Feldman (1935-2010) from 1959 to 1982. The couple had no children.