Lord Buckley

US comedian, and raconteur.

Born: 5 April 1906 in Toulumne, California, USA.
Died: 12 November 1960 in Columbus Hospital, New York, USA (aged 54).

Ground-breaking American hip comedian, raconteur & stand-up, who recounted his view of incidents from history and mythology with a patois that blended scat-singing, black jive-talk, and the King's English. All this whilst often wearing a pith helmet, robes, or dinner suit, and chain-smoking or preening his waxed Dali-esque moustache.

A self-proclaimed 'Lord' and six-foot-six, larger-than-life funster, who had a great time with other people's money, drunk like he had a thirst you could photograph and courted anything that owned a handbag.

Buckley worked the San Francisco club circuits like "The Hungry I" and "Purple Onion", which also featured such talent as Mort Saul, [a=Dick Gregory], and [a=Lenny Bruce]. He also performed at "The [l=Gate Of Horn]" in Chicago.

He never really made the grade into films, but did appear in "We're Not Married" (1952), starring [a=Fred Allen], [a=Ginger Rogers], and [a=Marilyn Monroe]. He also had a walk-on part in [a=Stanley Kubrick]'s "Spartacus" (1960).

Buckley died shortly after having his 'Cabaret Card' permit confiscated by the vice squad on a raid of the "[l=Jazz Gallery]" in New York in October 1960. Stress, caused by the loss and his penurious state, apparently led to a stroke and kidney-failure.