Some sad news in the comedy world happened today as comedian Ralphie May has died of cardiac arrest at the age of 45.
May was in the middle of a weekend of shows at Harrah's Casino in Las Vegas last night. He was staying at a private residence where he was discovered this morning by someone on the residence. May had been battling pneumonia for the last week or so canceled a few shows but was still performing at scheduled Vegas shows.
May's stand-up comedy career boomed after finishing second in 2003's Last Comic Standing, he's had steady touring, television, and special work ever since.
Recently May's had some trouble, a messy separation with is wife and comic Lahana Turner whom he was in the midst of divorcing at the time of his passing (the couple has two children). This caused strain on his health as he would go on social media rants about comedians he admired vs. ones he doesn't, later to reveal that he was dealing with issues.
Regardless, May was a super funny comedian and loved by many, comics from all over the spectrum have taken to social media to profess their sadness. The official statement from his manager, Judi Marmel stated, "As his manager and his friend, I will miss his laugh, his generosity to fellow comedians, his trademark orneriness, and his enormous love of life. He left us entirely too soon - and we can only wonder where his comedy might have taken all of us. We send our love to his family, his fans, and all the comics who shared stages with him across the country."
On a personal note, one day a few years back we got to drive Ralphie around for a few hours as he did press for a local show, he was kind and funny as we talked about music. Rest in peace Ralphie.