Murray Roman (March 8, 1929 – November 6, 1973) was an American stand-up comedian, whose career was cut short by a car crash. Many consider his style, and material, to be similar to Lenny Bruce. Roman was also a writer on

The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour ''The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour'' was an American comedy and variety show television series hosted by the Smothers Brothers and initially airing on CBS from 1967 to 1969. The series was a major success, especially considering it was sc ...

and, as part of the Comedy Hour writing team, won an Emmy for his work in 1969. His most noted sketch was "The Honey House," which mocked the 1968 hit song "

Honey Honey is a sweet and viscous substance made by several bees, the best-known of which are honey bees. Honey is made and stored to nourish bee colonies. Bees produce honey by gathering and then refining the sugary secretions of plants (primar ...

," by

Bobby Goldsboro Robert Charles Goldsboro (born January 18, 1941) is an American pop and country singer and songwriter. He had a string of pop and country hits in the 1960s and 1970s, including his signature No. 1 hit "Honey", which sold over 1 million copies in ...

. The skit featured a tour of house where the eponymous Honey had lived and died, conducted by her husband, played first by

Tom Smothers Thomas Bolyn Smothers III (born February 2, 1937) is an American comedian, composer and musician, best known as half of the musical comedy duo the Smothers Brothers, alongside his younger brother Dick. Early life Smothers was born in 1937 at ...

and then by

Dick Dick, Dicks, or Dick's may refer to: Media * ''Dicks'' (album), a 2004 album by Fila Brazillia * Dicks (band), a musical group * ''Dick'' (film), a 1999 American comedy film * "Dick" (song), a 2019 song by Starboi3 featuring Doja Cat Names ...

Biography

According to

Bob Einstein Stewart Robert Einstein (November 20, 1942 – January 2, 2019) was an American actor, comedy writer, and producer. He created and performed the satirical stuntman character Super Dave Osborne, and was also known for his roles as Marty Funkh ...

, Keith Moon was a "huge fan" of Roman. Moon helped Roman obtain a contract with

Track Records Track Record (a.k.a. Track Records) was founded in 1966 in London by Kit Lambert and Chris Stamp, then managers of the rock group The Who. It was one of the first British-owned independent record labels in the United Kingdom. The most succe ...

. Roman married three times and had three daughters.

Discography

* ''Out of Control'' * ''You Can't Beat People Up And Have Them Say I Love You'' * ''A Blind Man's Movie'' * ''Busted'' * ''Backtrack 13 (You Can't Beat People Up And Have Them Say I Love You)''

TV appearances

*''

The Rat Patrol ''The Rat Patrol'' is an American action and adventure television series that aired on ABC between 1966 and 1968. The show follows the exploits of four Allied soldiers — three Americans and one British — who are part of a long-range desert ...

'', "The Tug-of-War Raid": (March 4, 1968) As Lt. Pohl *''

The Monkees The Monkees were an American rock and pop band, formed in Los Angeles in 1966, whose lineup consisted of the American actor/musicians Micky Dolenz, Michael Nesmith and Peter Tork alongside English actor/singer Davy Jones. The group was con ...

'', "Fairytale" (January 8, 1968) as Harold *''

That Girl ''That Girl'' is an American sitcom that ran on ABC from September 8, 1966 to March 19, 1971. It starred Marlo Thomas as the title character Ann Marie, an aspiring (but only sporadically employed) actress, who moves from her hometown of Brewste ...

'', "This Little Piggy Had a Ball" (March 23, 1967) As Manager of Bowling Alley *''

ABC Stage 67 ''ABC Stage 67'' is the umbrella title for a series of 26 weekly American television shows that included dramas, variety shows, documentaries and original musicals. It premiered on ABC on September 14, 1966, with Murray Schisgal's ''The Love ...

'', "On The Flip Side" (December 7, 1966) As Hairy Eddie Popkin *'' Batman'', "Hizzonner the Penguin (1)" (November 2, 1966) and "Dizzonner the Penguin (2)" (November 3, 1966) as E.G. Trends *''

'', wrote and occasionally appeared.

Influence

DJ Shadow Joshua Paul Davis (born June 29, 1972), better known by his stage name DJ Shadow, is an American DJ, songwriter and record producer. His debut studio album, '' Endtroducing.....'' was released in 1996. Biography Early years (1989–1995) DJ Sh ...

sampled Roman's record ''Busted'' in "Stem/Long Stem/Transmission 2", a track on his 1996 album '' Endtroducing''. DJ Shadow also sampled ''Busted'' on his single "Lost and Found (S.F.L.)".

References

External links

The Forgotten Murray Roman @ WFMU
20th-century American comedians Primetime Emmy Award winners Road incident deaths in California 1973 deaths 1929 births {{US-comedian-stub