Our Inductees: Norm Crosby

Biography

Norman Lawrence Crosby (born September 15, 1927 in Boston) is an American comedian sometimes associated with the Borscht Belt who often appeared on television in the 1970s. He is known for his use of malapropisms and is often called “The Master of Malaprop”.

Crosby went solo as standup comedian, adopting a friendly, blue collar, guy-next-door persona in the 1950s. Crosby refined his standup monologues by interpolating malapropisms. He first appeared on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson in December 1964. In the fall of 1968, he co-starred on The Beautiful Phyllis Diller Show, an NBC twelve week series.

In 1974, he co-hosted a Canadian variety television series, Everything Goes. From 1974-84 he was on over half a dozen Dean Martin Celebrity Roasts including George Burns and two separate roasts of Redd Foxx.

From 1978-81, he hosted a nationally syndicated series, The Comedy Shop, in which a mix of up-and-coming stand-up comics and vaudeville legends presented their material. In the late 1970s and early 1980s, Crosby became a commercial pitchman for Anheuser-Busch Natural Light beer. During this time, he also appeared as a celebrity guest on a number of game shows, including Celebrity Bowling, Liar’s Club, Tattletales and Hollywood Squares. From 1983 until the program’s disassociation with Jerry Lewis, Crosby co-hosted and contributed to the annual Jerry Lewis MDA Labor Day Telethon. He has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6560 Hollywood Boulevard.

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