Flip Wilson, who became the first successful black host of a television variety show with his turns as sassy Geraldine, the Rev. Leroy and other characters he mined for ethnic humor, died Wednesday night. He was 64.
Wilson died of liver cancer Wednesday night, said Angie Hill, the comedian's assistant. He had undergone surgery Oct. 2, 1998, at St. John's Hospital and Health Center in Santa Monica, for a malignant tumor that was close to his liver.NBC's hit "The Flip Wilson Show" showcased the comedian's talents and brought a rare black voice, if a sometimes stereotypical one, to TV during its 1970-74 run.
While breakthrough actors like Bill Cosby on "I Spy" and Diahann Carroll in "Julia" had roles that downplayed their racial identity, Wilson reveled in such characters as Leroy, pastor of the "Church of What's Happening Now," who Wilson said was based on a preacher he listened to as a child.
Geraldine, with Wilson in wig, high heels and a colorful mini-dress, was perhaps his most famous character. Her spunky catch phrases - "The devil made me do it" and "What you see is what you get!" - became part of the national language.
"The secret of my success with Geraldine is that she's not a putdown of women," he once said. "She's smart, she's trustful, she's loyal, she's sassy. Most drag impersonations are a drag. But women can like Geraldine, men can like Geraldine, everyone can like Geraldine."