You may remember him as Latka from the 80’s television series Taxi, or you may have seen his stand-up routine singing the Mighty Mouse theme song or, doing his Elvis impression or you may have seen him in the ring as a professional wrestler. In whatever venue, Andy Kaufman was a bright and shining talent that enjoyed a meteoric rise to the top that was ended far too soon.

Andrew Geoffrey Kaufman was born in New York City on January 17, 1949 to Janice and Stanley Kaufman. Growing up in a middle class community of Great Neck in Long Island, Andy began to have an appreciation for comedy. At a young age he started studying other comedians and performers, and at the age of 9 started performing for friends, family and anyone else that would listen.

After graduating from high school and community college, Kaufman started to work in many small comedy clubs up and down the east coast. During his time in the comedy clubs, Kaufman started to develop his act, which included the character of “Foreign Man”, who was a woeful comic that spoke in a thick accent. One bit of Foreign Man is him singing to the theme from Mighty Mouse. From Foreign Man, Kaufman would go into an impersonation of Elvis Presley, that was very good. The act was quite unique and over the course of time started to develop a following.

His work in the comedy club circuit was getting him noticed by talent scouts. From the comedy clubs, Kaufman began appearing on television. Starting in 1974 he had appearances on shows such as Dean Martin Comedy World, The Tonight Show and several memorable appearances on Saturday Night Live.

In 1978, Kaufman got his biggest break, when he was hired to portray Latka, the immigrant taxi mechanic in the hit TV show “Taxi”. The show allowed Kaufman to show his comic characters to millions of viewers each week. Taxi ran until 1983, and Kaufman with his odd speaking character was a perfect pair.

Entertainment and theatrics were a big part of the life of Andy Kaufman. Naturally, a perfect fit for Kaufman was the world of professional wrestling. Kaufman made many appearances at wrestling events and actually got in the ring several times. One of his gimmicks in wrestling was his gaining the fictitious title of Inter Gender Champion of the World, and in his bouts he would wrestle women, offering them money if they beat him. Also in his wrestling career, he had an on-going feud with real professional wrestler Jerry “The King” Lawler. Kaufman's antics in the wrestling ring made it must see television, and viewers needed to make sure tv repair was crossed off the to-do lists.

Unfortunately on May 16, 1984, Andy Kaufman’s brilliant and rising career came to an end, when the comedian passed away from a rare form of lung cancer. Kaufman, a non-smoker, was diagnosed with the ailment in late 1983, and continued to work until losing his battle with the disease. Almost as quickly as Kaufman came on the entertainment scene, he was taken away.

The world had the comedic genius of Andy Kaufman taken away too soon. However, he leaves behind a very good body of work that can be enjoyed for years to come. In addition, in 1999, Jim Carrey portrayed Kaufman in the movie “Man on the Moon”. This is another legacy that will be left behind for us to enjoy.