NORTH HOLLYWOOD, CA - MAY 19: Comedian Tom Dreesen performs on day five of the NOHO Comedy Festival at Ha Ha Cafe Comedy Club on May 19, 2018 in North Hollywood, California. (Photo by Michael S. Schwartz/Getty Images)
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Stand-up comedy great Tom Dreesen, who was an longtime opening act for Frank Sinatra and made hundreds of television appearances, has died.
Dreesen died on Tuesday at age 86. His family said in a statement (via People), “For more than five decades, Tom Dreesen brought laughter, heart, and humanity to audiences across America. A proud native of Harvey, Illinois, Tom built a remarkable career through perseverance, talent.”
Dreesen was an opening act for Sinatra for 14 years, according to The Hollywood Reporter. The comedian admitted that sometimes his commitment to Sinatra meant passing up other opportunities.
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“Every time networks came to me and said, ‘Do you want to do a series? What about a talk show?' it would mean I'd have to stop touring with Frank. How could I do that?” Dreesen told the Chicago Tribune in 2006.
Among Dreesen’s hundreds of appearances on television, there were dozens of turns on such TV staples as The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson and David Letterman’s late-night shows, according to THR. Many of Dreesen’s appearances came as part of the Tim and Tom comedy team, where he partnered with WKRP in Cincinnati star Tim Reid.
Born Sept. 11, 1939, in Harvey, Ill., Dreesen served in the U.S. Navy from 1956 to 1960, according to People. Dreesen remained committed to military causes through his longtime association with actor Gary Sinise, who founded the Gary Sinise Foundation to help out military veterans, first responders and their families.
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“This morning America lost one of our great comedians and patriots, and I lost a dear friend. Tom Dreesen died at 86 years old,” Sinise wrote on his X account. "He was a special person, a U.S. Navy veteran with a tremendously charitable heart. He served as a Gary Sinise Foundation ambassador for the past 14 years and was always there when I asked for his support.
“He loved our country and the men and women who serve and he loved supporting them through our foundation. Tom was hilarious, always could make us laugh, and such a good friend. I will miss him terribly. What a great long career he had in show business.”
In addition to his work as a comedian — he was especially committed to getting stand-up performers paid at The Comedy Store in Los Angeles (via THR) — Tom Dreesen occasionally appeared in roles in film and television series.
Dreesen appeared in guest roles on such hit TV series as WKRP in Cincinnati, The Facts of Life, Murder, She Wrote, Touched by an Angel and Gabriel’s Fire. He also appeared as himself in the 1998 TV movie The Rat Pack, in which Ray Liotta played Dreesen’s longtime colleague Frank Sinatra.
On the big screen, Dreesen played a bit roles Mel Brooks’ 1987 sci-fi spoof Spaceballs and the 1999 Andy Kaufman biopic Man on the Moon, starring Jim Carrey. Dreesen also appeared in Clint Eastwood’s 2012 baseball drama Trouble with the Curve. Dreesen’s last screen appearance was in the 2025 coming-of-age drama James the Second.
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