Comedic actor and chef Dom DeLuise, born Dominick DeLuise in New York on August 1, 1933, passed away in his sleep on Monday evening, May 4. Hospitalized in Los Angeles, California, the 75-year-old apparently succumbed to complications from kidney failure and/or respiratory problems he had suffered from for a long time.

In addition to writing two cookbooks — Eat This - It Will Make You Feel Better! in 1988 and Eat This Too! It’ll Also Make You Feel Good in 1997 — the popular character actor with a quirky sense of humor was well-known for his work in films. Some of his more high-profile roles were in several Mel Brooks movies, such as 1974’s Blazing Saddles, and in flicks starring Burt Reynolds, such as 1981’s The Cannonball Run.

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Celebrated actress Bea Arthur, born Bernice Frankel, a star of both television and stage, passed away from cancer early in the morning on Saturday, April 25, at her Los Angeles home. She was just weeks away from her 87th birthday on May 13.

The tall thespian known for her distinctive deep voice played two pivotal characters on long-running television comedies, for which she received two Best Actress Emmys and nine Emmy nominations, in addition to the two nods for Best Guest Comedy Actress for an episode of Malcolm in the Middle and Best Supporting Variety Actress for Laugh-In.

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Soul singer, self-taught musician, and actor Isaac Hayes passed away on Sunday afternoon, August 10, at Baptist East Hospital in Memphis, Tennessee.

No official cause of death has been released yet, but the 65-year-old entertainer’s wife found him unconscious on his bedroom floor next to a treadmill that was still on. Local law enforcement speculated that his passing was related to an unspecified medical condition.

Raised in Covington, Tennessee, Hayes got his start in music early when he won a talent contest in ninth grade. He began working for legendary Memphis-based Stax Records in 1964 as a pianist and saxophone player, and his music career flourished from there.

He wrote hits like “Soul Man” for Sam and Dave with his writing partner David Porter, earned his own recording contract, and won a Best Original Song Grammy Award in 1972 for composing the “Theme from Shaft,” still one of the most loved and instantly recognizable tunes in the world.

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The comedy field suffered a huge loss today upon the passing of popular standup comic and actor Bernie Mac.

Born Bernard Jeffrey McCullough and a native of Chicago’s South Side, the 50-year-old entertainer died from complications related to pneumonia at Northwestern Memorial Hospital in his hometown. His death came two weeks after his hospitalization on July 24 (not August 1, as widely misreported) for the illness and the numerous rumors about his health that began spreading at the beginning of August.

Mac first became well-known to the masses through his collaboration with fellow comedians Cedric the Entertainer, Steve Harvey, and D.L. Hughley, who were collectively the Original Kings of Comedy in the standup comedy film of the same name. The tagline for the project was “We Got Jokes,” and did they ever, to the tune of almost $40 million raked in at the box office after the comedy showcase’s 2000 release.

Although Mac starred in numerous feature films — Ocean’s Eleven and its two sequels, Mr 3000, and Bad Santa, just to name a few — he’ll probably always be best remembered for his hit Fox sitcom The Bernie Mac Show. Mac’s immense talent allowed him to transform a basic family comedy into a show that resonated with a diverse range of people from all walks of life.

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On Tuesday morning, June 22, 84-year-old Golden Girls star Estelle Getty passed away from natural causes in her California home. She had battled Lewy Body Dementia for many years, and her death occurred just three days shy of her 85th birthday.

Best known for her role as sarcastic and outspoken Sophia Petrillo on the hit 1985–1992 sitcom The Golden Girls, Getty was in fact over a year younger than actress Beatrice Arthur, who played her daughter on the show. The illusion of advanced age was achieved through makeup.

Getty was born in New York City on July 25, 1923 as Estelle Scher, and she began her lengthy entertainment career as a stage actress and comedienne. She was married to Arthur Gettleman for 58 years, until his death in 2004, and had two sons named Carl and Barry who survive her.

Last night, NBC paid tribute to George Carlin, who passed away on June 22, by broadcasting the first-ever episode of Saturday Night Live. The comedian hosted the premiere on October 11, 1975 and delivered a memorable monologue to kick the long-running series off properly.

Take a look at excerpts from Carlin’s opening performance below. Instead of doing the right thing and producing a single clip of the entire piece, NBC has chosen to capitalize on the footage by creating shorter sections preceded by advertising. I know many believe fans should just be grateful the network is offering Carlin’s work online. However, I think NBC Universal is disrespectful for trying to make money off of it.

Now that I’m finished griping, on to the three clips…

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Versatile actress Dody Goodman, born Delores Goodman, passed away in New Jersey on Sunday, June 22, at the age of 93 (although some reports claim she was 92) following a battle with illness. For the last eight months, she had resided in the Actors Fund Home located in Englewood, New Jersey.

Younger people probably know the talented entertainer with the distinctive comportment best for her role as Blanche Hodel, the principal’s assistant, in the movies Grease and Grease 2. Older fans will recall her larger body of work, however, which included the mother character Martha Shumway on the mid-1970s soap-opera parody Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman and numerous memorable guest appearances on talk shows, ranging from The Jack Paar Tonight Show to The Merv Griffin Show. A formally trained dancer, she also performed regularly in Broadway musicals, such as Something for the Boys and Wonderful Town.

Goodman, who never married, is survived by seven nieces and nephews, eleven great nieces and nephews, and fifteen great-great nieces and nephews, according to family friend Joan Adams.

A video clip from the 1978 film musical Grease follows. Goodman is the actress at the very beginning, wearing the black-and-white polka-dot dress.

Counterculture comedian George Carlin passed away on Sunday, June 22, at the age of 71 due to heart failure.

Idolized by legions for his brutally honest and sarcastic comedy that cut through the crap of society and politics, Carlin was also well-known for his dexterity with words, as evidenced by his (in)famous monologue “Seven Words You Can Never Say on Television” from the 1972 album Class Clown.

The native New Yorker, a four-time Grammy winner for his spoken comedy albums and five-time Emmy nominee for his comedy concerts, was also the author of three books, as well as the first host of Saturday Night Live and the star of an impressive fourteen comedy specials on cable’s HBO.

Survived by his second wife Sally Wade, and one daughter, Kelly Carlin McCall, Carlin will be sorely missed for his obvious talent, originality, and cutting sense of black humor.

A video of his groundbreaking monologue “Seven Words” follows.

Another celebrated comedy entertainer has died this week. On Thursday, multiple Emmy winner Harvey Korman, probably best known for his hilarious work on CBS’ The Carol Burnett Show, passed away at the age of 81 following complications due to a ruptured abdominal aortic aneurysm suffered four months ago.

On Carol Burnett’s self-titled sketch-comedy television series, which aired for an impressive eleven seasons on CBS from 1967 to 1978, Korman portrayed a multitude of mostly normal characters alongside the wacky personalities played by his fellow regulars Burnett, Vicki Lawrence, Tim Conway, and Lyle Waggoner. Korman departed the show prior to the final season and was replaced by another beloved comedy legend, Dick Van Dyke.

During a career that began in the early 1960s, the actor also contributed his talents to numerous feature films and television series, including the Academy Award-nominated Mel Brooks Western parody Blazing Saddles and the classic Hanna-Barbera cartoon The Flinstones, on which he provided the voice of the Great Gazoo. All seven of Korman’s Emmy nominations were for his work on The Carol Burnett Show, however, and he was victorious four times.

Korman is survived by his second wife Deborah Fritz, their two daughters Katherine and Laura, and his son and daughter from his first marriage to Donna Ehlert, Maria and Christopher.

Take a look at a CBS news tribute to Harvey Korman after the jump, a segment that contains several clips of his memorable work on television and in movies.

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Today brings news of yet another death in the entertainment industry. Director, producer, and actor Sydney Pollack passed away of cancer on Monday, Memorial Day, at the age of 73.

Most prominent as a director of such multi-genre films as The Interpreter (2005), The Firm (1993), Out of Africa (1985), Tootsie (1982), Three Days of the Condor (1975), The Way We Were (1973), and They Shoot Horses, Don’t They? (1969), Pollack also acted in numerous movies and television shows.

His TV-comedy appearances alone include Will & Grace (2000, 2001, 2002, 2006), King of the Hill (2000), Mad About You (1998), and Frasier (1994). The Academy Award and Emmy winner also lent his presence to other series, ranging from The Sopranos to the classic version of The Twilight Zone to Alfred Hitchcock Presents.

Pollack was reportedly surrounded by family and friends at his death Monday afternoon in Los Angeles, and he’s survived by his wife Claire, two daughters named Rebecca and Rachel, his brother Bernie, and six grandchildren. A son named Steven died in 1993 in a plane crash in California.