[Argus]

I remember a similar fate befalling zany actor Dick Shawn (best known as LSD in THE PRODUCERS). He died during the intermission of his one man show, which he spent onstage under a pile of leaves in full view of the audience. When he didn't get up again after the break, the crowd thought it was all part of the act. Eventually, it dawned on people that even Dick Shawn wouldn't make the bit go on that long. The stage manager checked on him and he was dead.

[jocon307]

Wow, I never heard that story about Dick Shawn. I'll have to ask hubby if he knew this.

I remember reading about an opera premiere a few years ago where the opening scene has a man sitting on top of a ladder, the first line he sings is something like: life is so short...

The poor man who had the part sang the line and fell off the ladder, dead of a heart attack.

May they all rest in peace.

[dead]

I thought the Dick Shawn thing sounded like an urban legend, but according to Snopes, it's mostly true. The only difference in their version is that he fell (because of a heart attack) and hit his head during a performance. And the crowd did think it was a joke.

Snopes list: Actors who died on stage