Larry Storch was a comedian and actor known best for playing the bumbling Cpl. Agarn on TV’s “F Troop.”
- Died: July 8, 2022 (Who else died on July 8?)
- Details of death: Died at his home in Manhattan at the age of 99.
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“F Troop”
Born Jan. 8, 1923, in New York City, Storch had a long-established comedy career when “F Troop” debuted in 1965. But the slapstick TV show made him a household name, playing a dippy and corrupt cavalry officer at a post-Civil War military outpost. Storch took point on a number of the show’s running gags, including one that traded on his character’s reputation for being slow on the uptake. Forrest Tucker’s character, Sgt. O’Rourke, would tell Storch’s character, “Agarn, I don’t know why everyone says you’re so dumb!” Not until the beginning of the next scene – hours or days later in the show’s narrative – would Storch’s Agarn respond, “Who says I’m dumb?” Storch received a 1967 Emmy nomination for his performance as Cpl. Agarn.
Early career
Storch’s entry into show business came thanks to his proficiency with impressions and accents. He began entertaining his friends with impressions as a child, perfecting his craft by listening to immigrants from all over the world, as he told The Wall Street Journal. “My mother ran a rooming house on West 77th Street in the 1920s. Many of the tenants were immigrants, and the communal telephone was right outside our apartment. I listened to those accents for hours through our door.”
After dropping out of high school, Storch became a stand-up comic, though his career was interrupted by World War II, during which he served in the U.S. Navy. After returning home, Storch was hitchhiking, intending to travel from California to New York. That plan was derailed when, as he told the Los Angeles Times, he was given a ride by bandleader Phil Harris, who listened to Storch’s impressions as they drove and loved what he heard.
“When we got to Palm Springs, he turned the car around and said we’re going back to Hollywood,” Storch told the Times. “He takes me to Ciro’s nightclub, and sitting in an empty room was Lucille Ball listening to her husband, Desi Arnaz, rehearse the band for tomorrow evening’s opening. He said do a couple of voices for Lucille. I did Frank Morgan and various actors. She said lose the sailor suit, get into a blue suit and be here tomorrow at 8 p.m. You will lead off, and Desi will follow you onstage. That’s the way it worked out.”
TV and movie roles
That early break as a stand-up led to appearances on TV shows, including a recurring role on “Car 54, Where Are You?” and guest spots on shows including “Get Smart,” “That Girl,” and “The Phil Silvers Show.” Storch’s movie roles included “Sex and the Single Girl,” “Airport 1975,” and “The Aristocrats.” He performed on Broadway and off-Broadway in plays including “Porgy and Bess” and “Arsenic and Old Lace.”
Storch’s skill with impressions led to voice-over work as well. He was the first voice of the Joker in the 1960s “The Adventures of Batman” cartoons, and he voiced Mr. Whoopee on “Tennessee Tuxedo and His Tales.” Other animated series for which Storch provided voices include “The Pink Panther Show” and “Scooby-Doo.”
Tributes to Larry Storch
Full obituary: Deadline
