Who Is the Oldest Stand-Up Comic?

The stage at Comedyville Club has been graced by a diverse array of entertainers over the years as part of our English comedy shows. Anyone who has ever stopped in for a show or two at a Montreal club can see that there is a wide array of performers, young and old. This got us thinking, who is the oldest stand-up comic ever?

After all, many excellent stand-up comics are fairly up in age. It may surprise you to realize that Jerry Seinfeld is now 68 years old and Joan Rivers performed up until her death at 81. However, the oldest stand-up comic ever had an age even greater than these two performers. Let’s take a broader look at the answer to this question.

Herbert Falk

You’ve probably never heard the name Herbert Falk; however, he led an impressive life. He served in World War II as a combat engineer whose treacherous job was to remove land mines in front of a column of tanks, often under enemy fire. Injured by a mortar strike, he was awarded the Purple Heart, Silver Star, and Croix du Guerre.

Herb Falk at Helium Comedy Club, Buffalo at age, 100. From Wikimedia Commons, the free media repository.

After the war, Herbert Falk went on to have a long, distinguished career in civil engineering where he primarily focused on building bridges. While his life was incredibly interesting at that, he ventured into a new foray at the age of 99 when he performed at an open mic night in Atlanta, Georgia. An amateur comedian, he performed his second and final set at the age of 100 in Buffalo in late 2021. He would pass away in early 2022.

As far as we can tell, Herbert Falk is the oldest person ever to perform stand-up comedy. However, as an amateur comedian who performed twice, he is not the oldest person to make a career out of comedy. To find the answer to that question, a little more digging was required.

Lynn Ruth Miller

The oldest professional comedian ever is a bit of a difficult question to answer. However, there is one woman who was frequently adorned with the title of the world’s oldest comedian. This was Lynn Ruth Miller, a British stand-up comic who began performing at age 70 and had a career for nearly two decades before her death at age 87.

Lynn Ruth Miller found herself living alone with no family and only a few friends and decided to try comedy, ultimately finding that performing served as a lifeline that kept her connected to the world. Her jokes dealt with topics such as ageism, dating later in life, and other observations from society. As a former writer who loved news writing, she found ways to make her shows reflect social commentary.

America’s Got Talent and Britain’s Got Talent

Despite starting a career in stand-up late in age, she received a great deal of recognition. She participated in both America’s Got Talent and Britain’s Got Talent. Lynn Ruth Miller toured throughout the world, making the semi-finals of the San Francisco International Comedy Competition and the finals of Bill Word’s Funniest Female Contest. She also became an advocate for octogenarians, encouraging them to find ways to continue to enjoy their lives and be active as they aged.

Her success was particularly impressive due to the fact that Lynn Ruth Miller organized all of her own shows. It was incredibly difficult for her to get into comedy gigs. Private clubs were often dismissive and did not view her as a serious comic. In fact, the famed Los Angeles Comedy Store told her that she wasn’t a good comic because she only talked about getting old. Despite this, she worked to plan and organize her own shows, drawing a strong following. Her story is not only about an iconic comic but one about perseverance.

Final Thoughts

There is great diversity in comedy, and you can certainly see many different performers grace the stage at Comedyville Club. If you have never been to Montreal comedy clubs before, you are missing a good time. We would be happy to welcome you to our English shows in Montreal. Check out our upcoming shows!

Post by Eddie Case, exclusively for Comedyville.ca, All rights reserved.