American comedian, the first black comic to transcend race lines with his own TV variety show using material that was universal, funny to everyone regardless of race, gender or nationality. His nickname “Flip” came from his flippant humor. Wilson hosted TV’s first successful black variety show, “The Flip Wilson Show,” 1970-1974. winning two Emmys on 5/09/1971, and a Grammy.
Born into severe poverty, he was one of 13 kids of Clerow, a handyman and Cornelia, a housewife. When he was about seven his mom abandoned the family and Flip never forgave her, spending his early years in foster homes and reform schools. At 16 he lied about his age to enter the military for a four-year stint. While in the Air Force his knack for flipping people out with his clowning gave him his nickname.
Discharged in 1954 as an Airman First Class, he worked as a $40-a-week bellhop at a San Francisco hotel. He persuaded the manager to let him try out his comedy act at the in-house nightclub and was soon booking gigs and traveling cross-country. His professional career began in small clubs for pay as little as $1 per night, until he had a breakthrough with an appearance on the Tonight Show in 1965 with Johnny Carson after an on air endorsement by comedian Redd Foxx. It was followed by several other variety shows such as “Laugh-In” and “The Ed Sullivan Show,” leading up to his own show, “The Flip Wilson Show” which made its debut on 9/17/1970 on NBC. With a commitment to quality, he insisted the show produce five laughs per minute, each wink, smile and gesture carefully choreographed. Dressing in drag, he become the wisecracking sassy ghetto queen character, Geraldine Jones with her famous “The devil made me do it.” His character Reverend Leroy of the “Church of What’s Happening Now” was also a favorite. His guests were top names and his show ranked second only to “All In The Family,” placing first in his time slot six times. The show ended after the 1974 season, about the same time he divorced and received custody of his children. He made a strong commitment at that time to fatherhood and a personal life.
He married and divorced a dancer, Peaches, in 1957. A second marriage, to Cookie Mackenzie, lasted from 1979 to 1985. Blonell Pittman was his common-law wife the mother of their four kids throughout the ’60s, two sons and two daughters. Their eldest son, David, was a onetime golf pro who has been quadriplegic since a 1993 motorcycle accident, and the next oldest, Kevin, a golf-caddy. The third, Tamara, is an actress and the youngest, Stacey, a nurse. In his last years he was estranged from his two sons.
His first film, “Cancel My Reservation,” was in 1972 and his last was “The Fish That Saved Pittsburgh,” 1979. In 1981, following rumors of a drug habit, Wilson was arrested for cocaine possession. The charges were dropped after a judge ruled that the evidence was obtained illegally. Laughing it off, he immersed himself in his twin passions, riding Harley-Davidson motorcycles and piloting hot-air and helium balloons. By the mid-’80s Wilson’s career had taken a dive with his TV flops “People Are Funny,” 1984 and “Charlie & Co.,” 1985-86. In the ’90s he periodically played Caesar’s Palace in Las Vegas, NV. His Emmys were for Outstanding Variety Series Musical and for Outstanding Writing for a Variety or Music Series.
He had surgery on 10/02/1998 for a malignant tumor near his liver. He died in his sleep at home on 11/25/1998 with daughter Michelle at his side.
Link to Wikipedia biography