Richard Jeni Dead Of Apparent Suicide
We really don't have it in us to list the brutal and tragic circumstances surrounding stand-up Richard Jeni's death Saturday, so we'll let CNN.com's Story Hightlights box do the depressing work for us. Jeni's official bio lists the comedian as holding the record for most appearances on The Tonight Show, making Jay Leno the most obvious choice for Extra to turn to for the comforting sentiments we all search for after a beloved, veteran entertainer's sudden, violent death:
"Well I was totally shocked. He was a great comic. I think he had done the Tonight Show more than any other comic." He added, "This comes as a total surprise. I haven't talked to him in maybe two or three months, but like most everyone else in the comedy community I'm shocked by this." About Jeni, Leno continued, "Just a great comic... a great guy." As to Jeni's cause of death, Leno stated, "Hopefully the questions will be answered in the next few days."
In Andy Nulman's blog, coincidentally (and more than a little bit disturbingly, given these sad events) named Pow! Right Between the Eyes, the Just for Laughs festival founder and longtime Jeni friend writes that "Richard's curious and profound soul-searching soon led to depression," and that the last he heard from him was in a Christmas card telling him Jeni had made a large donation to charity. Jeni's own official site is currently down due to traffic overload, but a message reports a memorial guest book will be back up some time this evening.