A trio who won’t be forgotten. Gilbert Gottfried paid tribute to his friends Bob Saget and Louie Anderson just months before his own death.
“This photo is very sad now,” the late comedian captioned a photo of himself with the Full House alum and the Baskets star shortly after their January deaths. “RIP Bob Saget and RIP Louie Anderson. Both good friends that will be missed.”
Gottfried’s family announced his death at age 67 on Tuesday, April 12. “We are heartbroken to announce the passing of our beloved Gilbert Gottfried after a long illness,” read their statement, shared via Twitter. “In addition to being the most iconic voice in comedy, Gilbert was a wonderful husband, brother, friend and father to his two young children. Although today is a sad day for all of us, please keep laughing as loud as possible in Gilbert’s honor.”
Saget died at age 65 on January 9 after an accidental fall in his hotel room in Orlando, Florida. Anderson died at age 68 on January 21 after a private battle with cancer.
Shortly after Saget’s death, Gottfried said that he initially thought the news of his passing was some kind of prank. “Jeffrey Ross called me and said Bob Saget had died,” the Saturday Night Live alum told Good Morning America in January. “And I remember I … thought it was a sick joke and I was waiting for the punch line, and then it didn’t come. I still feel right now like I’m waiting for the punch line to happen, that it was all a big joke, it was all a hoax.”
The duo appeared together in the 2005 documentary The Aristocrats, which focused on the history of the joke of the same name, which is famous among comedians. Gottfried referenced the film in a Twitter tribute to the Fuller House alum after his death.
“Still in shock. I just spoke with Bob a few days ago,” he wrote in January. “We stayed on the phone as usual making each other laugh. RIP to friend, comedian & fellow Aristocrat Bob Saget.”
Gottfried and Anderson both appeared as panelists on the Hollywood Squares reboot that premiered in 1998. Last year, they both guest starred on Saget’s “Here for You” podcast, where they discussed their early days in stand-up comedy.
After the announcement of Gottfried’s passing, the photo of him with his late colleagues began circulating on social media. “It’s even sadder now,” one fan commented via Instagram. “Up in heaven all 3 of you having some laughs and telling jokes,” added another.
Kathy Griffin reposted the photo via Twitter with a message about how the Aladdin star would react if he had the chance. “Gilbert would be the first one to make a joke about this picture today,” the Emmy winner, 61, wrote. “The first. And he would not hold back.”
