Bob Newhart, a genteel but sharply satirical comedian, died at the age of 94 in Los Angeles. Newhart was the funniest guy in the room while playing unassuming characters who, in others' hands, would have been setting up somebody else's jokes. Much of his success, according to Newhart himself, came from one mannerism: his stammer. It showed up in his first hit album,“The Button-Down Mind of Bob Newhart”, which sold more than 100 million copies and was the first comedy album to sell more than 1 million copies. Both of these albums held the Billboard Nos. 1 and 2 spots simultaneously, a feat unequaled until Guns N' Roses did it with a pair of discs in 1991. Newhort was known for his TV shows ‘The Bob Newhart Show” and ‘Newhart”, which were hits throughout the 1970s and 1980s. He drew Emmy nominations for actor in a comedy three years running from 1985-87. Both shows ran for a total of 16 years between 1972 and 1990 on CBS. Newhart's first Emmy win came in 2013 for a guest acting spot on ‘The Big Bang Theory”. He ushered in a new style of comedy with his observational humor and psychology-based approach, paving the way for later comedians like Steve Martin. Newhart's debut album ‘The Button-Down Mind of Bob Newhart” was the first comedy album to hit the top of the Billboard charts, saving Warner Bros. Records in the process. His first two albums held the Billboard Nos. 1 and 2 spots simultaneously, a feat unequaled until Guns N' Roses did it with a pair of discs in 1991. George Robert Newhart was born in Oak Park, Ill., and studied at Loyola U. in Chicago before entering the US Army. After ending his military service, he entered Loyola's law school but flunked out and then worked odd jobs while performing in an Oak Park stock company. Newhart's comedy albums led to guest appearances on ‘The Jack Paar Show’ and ‘The Gary Moore Show’. He traveled the country doing one-night gigs, culminating at Carnegie Hall in 1961 which led to his movie debut in Paramount's comedy ‘Hell Is for Heroes’. Newhart worked in movies, guested regularly on television and appeared in Las Vegas for the next several years before his hit sitcoms. He tried series television again with less successful shows ‘Bob’ on CBS and ‘George and Leo’, also starring Judd Hirsch, in 1997-98. Newhart drew Emmy nominations for playing a librarian losing his eyesight on ER in 2003 and for the TV movie The Curse of the Judas Chalice in 2008. He hosted episodes of Saturday Night Live in 1980 and 1995, voiced himself on a Simpsons episode, appeared on The Tonight Show With Johnny Carson between 1966 and 1992 (guest hosting three times) and five on the Leno version between 1988 and 2004. Newhart was part of an elaborate gag at the 2006 Emmy Awards, hosted by Conan O'Brien, before co-presenting the award for comedy series. Newhart also did occasional bigscreen work in his later years, appearing in In & Out (1997), Legally Blonde 2: Red, White & Blonde (2003) and Elf (2003). The comic was still doing standup in his 70s, performing about 30 nights a year as of 2006. Newhart's book I Shouldn't Even Be Doing This was published in 2014. Newhart was inducted into the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences Hall of Fame in 1993 and won the second Mark Twain Prize for Humor, presented by the Kennedy Center, in 2002. In 2007 The Button-Down Mind of Bob Newhart was chosen as one of 25 entries into the National Recording Registry at the Library of Congress. Newhart is survived by his children Robert Jr., Timothy, Courtney and Jennifer, and 10 grandchildren.},
