Jonathan Winters

Jonathan Winters (November 11, 1925 - April 11, 2013) was an American comedian, actor, author, television host, and artist. Born in Dayton, Ohio, he served in the U.S. Marine Corps in the Pacific Theater during World War II and later studied at Kenyon College and the Dayton Art Institute. He began as a stand-up comedian, performing in New York nightclubs, and made television history in 1956 when RCA broadcast the first public demonstration of color videotape on The Jonathan Winters Show. Known for improvised characters such as Maude Frickert, he appeared on programs including The Steve Allen Show, Mork & Mindy, and The Tonight Show, and in films such as It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World. He later voiced Papa Smurf in The Smurfs films. Winters received two Grammy Awards, a Primetime Emmy Award for Davis Rules in 1991, a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, and the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor in 1999.