Greatest/Comedian/Actor in our History

[trisham]

Housesitter? I love that movie. :)

[chajin]

Since you said “comic actor,” the answer is Buster Keaton, with Charles Chaplin a close second.

After movies became talkies, the spoken joke became as important as the acted joke, and comedians shifted accordingly. The top three would be, in no particular order, Groucho Marx, Robin Williams, and Steve Martin.

[Cincinnatus.45-70]

I say it’s a tie between Jonathan Winters and Redd Foxx. If I have to pick one, it would be Redd Foxx.

[gigster]

Aside from being a spectacularly talented juggler( see yoube-theoldfashioned way7.WMV) he was hilariously funny as the put-upon everyman. Some of his aliases include Filthy NcNasty, T. Frothingill Bellows, Elmer Prettywillie, J. Effingham Bellweather, Mr. Muckle, and Professor Eustace P. McGargle. Watch him in The Dentist, The Fatal Glass of Beer, and Never give a Sucker an even Break. No current actor or actress( They're Actors and actresses in my book) can come close with physical comedy or funny hand/eye coordination

[Liberty Valance]

I'm starting to appreciate William Powell and Myrna Loy more as I get older.
Asta too. ;o)

[trisham]

Arsenic and Old Lace! A classic!

[KevinB]

Laz!

[henkster]

Peter Sellers. Inspector Clouseau and three roles in “Dr. Strangelove.”

[Moonman62]

I’m going to go with four and not say that one was better than the other:

Bob Hope
Jackie Gleason
Bill Murray
Steve Martin

Funny how three of the four were really into golf.

[trisham]

Get it? Got it! Good! Love that movie.

[clearcarbon]

Jack Lemmon

[anton]

Jack. No doubt about it.

[fhayek]

Groucho Marx could do physical comedy, word comedy. He could make you laugh by mugging the camera. He could ad lib. He could tell stories. Just the best. He delivery was so quick that sometimes you missed it. My best example of this was a line of his from Animal Crackers. "We went to Africa to take some photos of the native girls, but they were undeveloped. So we are going back in a couple of weeks".

[gigster]

Can Judge Reinhold juggle? I doubt it. Watch Fields Juggle.

[trisham]

Time to milk the elk!

[chajin]

Now, since you didn’t ask :-) comic actress: Myrna Loy, Lucille Ball, Whoopi Goldberg. Laura Linney hasn’t done enough to make the list, but she has the ability and has shown it.

[Kickass Conservative]

Barack Hussein Obama (1), Hillary Rodham Clinton (2), William Jefferson Clinton (3), any Democrat Politician (4).

[Uncle Miltie]

I’m 83, and I feel like a 20-year-old, but unfortunately there’s never one around.

[KevinB]

Al Franken!

[trisham]

“The Honeymooners”. Great show.