Phil Foster (born Fivel Feldman; March 29, 1913 – July 8, 1985) was an American actor and performer, best known for his portrayal of Frank DeFazio in Laverne & Shirley.
Early life
Foster was born Fivel Feldman in Brooklyn, New York City on March 29, 1913, the son of immigrants from Russia who had changed their name from Vishnodosky. [1]
Foster took his stage name from Foster Avenue in Brooklyn. His first taste of performing came as a child, when he and his friends began singing and dancing in front of movie theaters. He then began appearing in amateur shows, competing for prizes. With him on occasion was another beginner named Jackie Gleason.[2]
At the height of the Great Depression, Foster started in the dramatic field, playing in halls, back rooms and wherever possible during a period when theaters weren't available. "We did all sorts of plays, including all of Clifford Odets' early works — for $28 to $35 a week, living three in a room eating — if there was any food around", he recalled.
Foster made his debut as a nightclub comic in Chicago in the late 1930s when he was pushed out on the floor suddenly to fill in for a stand-up comic. "I just got up and talked", he says. "I didn't know you were supposed to have an act. But I was offered the job at $125 a week." Foster had intended to return to acting, but reportedly found himself in constant demand in nightclubs across the country.
Post-war
During World War II, Foster served in the United States Army. Upon his discharge, he returned to New York and became a variety-show favorite with an act comprising stories based on his curious childhood in Brooklyn. During the 1950s, Foster made several comedy short subjects for Universal-International as "Brooklyn's Ambassador to the World". Because of his popularity, he was chosen by George Pal as one of the military space crewmen on a trip to Mars in Conquest of Space.
It was Garry Marshall, an old friend whom he helped get started as a comedy writer for Joey Bishop and other entertainers, who lured Foster again to Hollywood, first to appear in The Odd Couple and then to co-star in Laverne & Shirley, at which time he was living in Fort Lee, New Jersey.[3]
His later TV appearances included Fantasy Island in 1978, and on The Love Boat in 1979, where he played an aging, out-of-touch, boorish comedian.
Personal life and death
Foster appeared on an episode of Tattletales with his wife Barbara Gold. The couple had two sons, Michael and Danny. Foster died of a heart attack in Rancho Mirage, California, on July 8, 1985, at the age of 72.[1]
^Kraushar, Jonathan P. "Bergen: Comics' Haven", The New York Times, March 21, 1976. Accessed December 17, 2012. "In the view of Phil Foster, a star of the television comedy Laverne and Shirley, there is no such thing as New Jersey humor. If it exists, said Mr. Foster, who lives in Fort Lee, it is like Staten Island humor -- that is, simply a question of speaking slower."(subscription required)
