Joe Alaskey- the Greatest Vocal Impressionist
Long forgotten, the great comic actor Joe Alaskey was one of the greatest impressionists of the last 25 years. Mostly doing voice over work for animated cartoons these days, Joe was pursuing a Stand Up Comedy career in the 1980′s and made it onto some noteworthy talk shows.
Like Frank Caliendo, his Girth made his superb imitations absurd, because he looked nothing like, Don Knotts, Walter Brennen, Art Carney, William Shatner, etc… With the exception of– The Great One himself, the inimitable, Jackie Gleason!
I defy anyone to find a better impersonation of Ralph Kramden. He looks exactly like him and has all the mannerisms down to a T. Nothing against Big Brad Garrett, But Joe should have done the role of Gleason in that TV movie a few years ago.
Interestingly, Jackie Gleason was still alive when this was taped in early 1987… One likes to imagine this classic homage was actually SEEN by the Great One himself!
Maybe we’ll get to see Alaskey in some more Character roles as he gets older. At almost 60 he could do the Buford T. Justice character Jackie played in “Smokey and the Bandit”.
Like his hero, Mel Blanc, he has been persuing that career, doing modern versions of Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Porky Pig, and Sylvester the cat, in Warner Bros “Tiny Toons”, showing the iconic charaters as babies.
If anyone has anymore clips of Joe’s stand up act I encourage you to share.
Duration : 0:2:9
Green Day Speed Painting by Stephen Quick.