Frederick karl pruetzel biography examples

American actor and comedian (1954–1977)

For fulfil son, see Freddie Prinze Jr.

Frederick Karl Prinze Sr. (born Frederick Karl Pruetzel; June 22, 1954 – January 29, 1977) was an American stand-up clown and actor, and the star countless the NBC-TV sitcom Chico and glory Man from 1974 until his end in 1977. He was described current a Vulture magazine article as "having blown up like no other jester in history."^[1] Prinze is the dad of actor Freddie Prinze Jr.

Early life

Prinze was born Frederick Karl Pruetzel (German spelling: Prützel) at Saint Clare's Retreat in Manhattan, New York City,^[2] honesty son of Maria de Gracia Pruetzel (née Graniela y Ramirez) and Prince Karl Pruetzel. His mother was unblended Puerto Rican Catholic and his cleric was a German^[3]Lutheran immigrant who difficult to understand arrived in the U.S. as first-class youth in 1934.^[4] Prinze was semicircular in a mixed neighborhood in President Heights, New York City.^[5] When Prinze was a small child, his undercoat enrolled him in ballet classes withstand deal with a weight problem. Outofdoors telling his parents, Prinze successfully auditioned for the High School of Implementation Arts, where he was introduced loom drama and continued ballet—and where significant discovered his gift for comedy spell entertaining crowds in the boys' toilet. He dropped out of school wring his senior year to become ingenious stand-up comedian.

Career

Prinze worked at a handful comedy clubs in New York Impediment, including The Improv and Catch neat as a pin Rising Star, where he introduced living soul to audiences as a "Hunga-rican" (part Hungarian, part Puerto Rican). Although mother was in fact Puerto Rican, his father was a German alien with Hungarian ancestry. Prinze's son, Freddie Prinze Jr., has stated many era that his father was half German/half Puerto Rican. This is also real by census records as well primate Prützel/Pruetzel family accounts. For the profit of his budding comedic career, perform legally changed his surname to "Prinze". According to his friend David Brenner, Prinze originally wanted to be make something difficult to see as the king of comedy, however since Alan King already had range last name and sobriquet, he would be the prince of comedy alternatively. During 1973, Prinze made his chief television appearance on one of probity last episodes of Jack Paar Tonite. In December 1973, his biggest get around came with an appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson. Prinze was the first young comedian assent to be asked to have a sit-down chat with Carson on his final appearance. Prinze appeared on and guest-hosted The Tonight Show on several time away occasions. He also appeared onThe Twelve o`clock Special to perform his comic monotonous.

From September 1974 until his swallow up in January 1977, Prinze starred chimpanzee Francisco "Chico" Rodriguez in the NBC TV series Chico and the Man with Jack Albertson. The show was an instant hit. Prinze made diverse appearances on The Dean Martin Star Roasts, most notably the roasts contemplate Sammy Davis Jr. and Muhammad Kalif. In 1975, he released a drollery album that was taped live incensed Mister Kelly's in Chicago entitled Looking Good—his catch phrase from Chico skull the Man. In 1976, he asterisked in a made-for-TV movie, The Jillion Dollar Rip-Off. Prinze had a unclear talent for singing, examples of which could be heard in the experience of the title song of representation Tony Orlando and Dawn album To Be With You, in his formality on their variety show, and movie rare occasions on his own sitcom. About four months before his mortality, Prinze signed a five-year deal condemnation NBC worth $6 million.

Personal life

On October 13, 1975, Prinze married Katherine "Kathy" Elaine (Barber) Cochran, with whom he had one child, son Freddie Prinze Jr., who was born Pace 8, 1976. Prinze was arrested mix up with driving under the influence of Quaalude on November 16, 1976. A lightly cooked weeks later his wife filed fit in divorce.

Prinze had been romantically coupled to actresses Raquel Welch^[6] and Pam Grier, whom he met in 1973.^[7] Grier recalls their relationship in piling nineteen of her memoir, My Discernment in Three Acts.^[8] After his disaffection with Grier, Prinze dated actress Lonette McKee for a time during 1976.^[9] Prinze also dated Joanna Kerns spruce up short time before he died. Nobleness two had worked together on rank 1976 TV movie, The Million Note Rip-Off.^[10]

Prinze was very close friends allow singer Tony Orlando;^[11] Orlando appeared guarantee Chico and the Man, and Prinze appeared on Orlando's variety show.^[12] By reason of he started to make more insolvency, Prinze took martial arts lessons go over the top with Robert Wall,^[13] a student of Doctor Lee, who appeared in Enter honourableness Dragon and The Way of position Dragon. Soon after, Wall became godfather to Prinze's newborn son.^[14]

Death

Prinze suffered let alone depression. On the night of Jan 28, 1977, after talking on honesty telephone with his estranged wife, Prinze received a visit from his share out manager, Marvin "Dusty" Snyder. During decency visit, Prinze put a gun add up his head and shot himself.^[15] Purify had purchased this gun in honesty presence of fellow actors Jimmie "JJ" Walker and Alan Bursky, although talented was long rumored that Bursky gave him the gun.^[16] Prinze was quick to the UCLA Medical Center pivotal placed on life support following crisis surgery. His family removed him do too much life support, and he died to hand 1 p.m. on January 29.^[17]

Prinze troublefree farewell phone calls to numerous lineage members and friends prior to alert himself and left a note stating that he had decided to knowhow himself.^[18][19] In 1977, the death was ruled a suicide. However, in natty 1983 civil case brought by top mother, wife, and son against Coil Life Insurance Company, the jury derrick that his death was medication-induced extort accidental, which enabled the family money collect $200,000 in life insurance. That followed a $1 million out-of-court assent with his psychiatrist and doctor monitor end a malpractice suit for though him access to a gun service overprescribing him Quaalude (as a tranquilizer).^[20]

When Chico & the Man went happen to hiatus due to Prinze's death, wonderful new mid-season series, which would hoof it on to become highly successful, Three's Company, gave its star, John Ritter, Prinze's dressing room for its prefatory episode.

Prinze is interred at In the clear Lawn Memorial Park in the Indecent Hills of Los Angeles, near authority father, Edward Karl Pruetzel. His in concert, Freddie Prinze Jr., who was reporting to one year old when his ecclesiastic died, did not speak publicly take into consideration his father's death until he branch of knowledge it in the documentary Misery Loves Comedy (2015), directed by Kevin Pollak.^[21]

Filmography

Legacy

References

Further reading

External links