by Drue Allison
Comedic legend Don Rickles, better known by generation X in his role as Mr. Potato Head in the Toy Story trilogy, has died after kidney failure.
Rickles has been a main member of the Rat Pack since Frank Sinatra introduced him to the group in the late 1950s and early 1960s. The Rat Pack was long described as the best show business circle and members were seen as some of the most successful people of the century.
Though he is seen as one of the best insult comics of all time, Rickles did not really begin his career until 1965. Like many great comedians, he started off doing small shows without many people in the crowd. Rickles would take his insults to the next level; going after his wife, mother, and anyone in the general vicinity. After his career took off, he had a barrage of coverage from his frequent appearances on “The Tonight Show” with Johnny Carson and multiple television shows. In a New York Times article, it said, “A variety show in 1968 and a situation comedy in 1972, both called “The Don Rickles Show,” were short-lived, as was “Daddy Dearest,” a 1993 sitcom in which he and the comedian Richard Lewis played father and son. The closest thing to a hit show he had was “CPO Sharkey,” a Navy comedy, which aired from 1976 to 1978″.
Rickles’ wife and daughter are still living as are his two grandsons.