(1946-1994)
Wikipedia Entry
Wolfberg grew up on Long Island* and started out as a teacher in the south Bronx. That gave him plenty of material, and he soon moved into standup, eventually doing it full time in 1979, with hilarious results.
He achieved great success, appearing on The Tonight Show, Late Night with David Letterman and having his standup act on TV and HBO specials.
Wolfberg had a unique style. He would speak rapidly, setting up the joke, and then punch it home. The jokes were funny, no doubt, but his delivery of them is what made them really work. He always knew exactly what word to stress in order to get the most of a line. He also looked funny, with bulging eyes** and a way of holding his mic in two hands as though he were praying.
Here is an example (Wolfberg appears 30 seconds in).
But these sort of appearances are just too ephemeral to develop a lasting reputation. Wolfberg didn't do a comedy album, since no one did comedy albums in the 80s. He didn't have his own sitcom (though he tried). The only non-standup TV role of note was the character of Gushie in Quantum Leap, a role that really gave him nothing to do.
Wolfberg kept trying. He came close with a pilot about a teacher, but nothing came of it. Then, sadly, he was diagnosed with cancer in the early 90s. Though he continued to work, both on stage and developing TV pilots, he died in 1994.
Wolfberg is highly regarded in the world of comedians, and it's sad that there is so little of his work available. But all of it is first class.
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*As a native Long Islander myself, two things always irritate me when Long Island is mentioned. First is the "Lon Guyland" accent, which was not at all how anyone spoke where I grew up. Second is related: Long Island is a big place -- 80 miles long. Yet no one differentiates between Nassau County and Suffolk, between Huntington and Valley Stream and Southampton and Southold, all quite different. Saying someone came from Long Island is like saying he came from Connecticut. Where?
**Not up to Marty Feldman level, but still impressive, partly because he would often shut his eyes, letting them bulge out at the punch line.
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