Writer and comedian Bob Smith has died from complications from ALS, a rep confirmed with the Hollywood Reporter. He was 59 years old.
Smith was best known for being a pioneer in the comedy world, being the first openly gay male comedian to not only star in a 30-minute HBO special (the "Netflix special" of the '90s), as well as the first gay comedian to perform on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno.
Smith's partner Michael Zam posted to Facebook announcing his passing, "with great sadness, but also a lifetime of happy memories... after a remarkable 12-year battle with ALS".
"He was the funniest and most optimistic person I've ever known, as well as the most committed and stubborn (I'm convinced this last trait kept him going so well for so long)."
Smith was also a celebrated writer, with three collections of autobiographical essays, Openly Bob (1997), Way to Go, Smith (1999) and Treehab: Tales from my Natural Wild Life (2016) where he wrote about his battle with ALS. He also wrote several novels, Selfish & Perverse (2007) and Remembrance of Things I Forgot (2011).
The comedian wrote for several TV shows including The MTV Video Movie Awards, Roseanne and MADtv as well as performed stand-up for years, joining with fellow gay comedians Danny McWilliams and Jaffe Cohen to create the Funny Gay Males.
In his last published works, Treehab, Smith wrote, "I definitely want to teach Maddie and Xander that being angry about other people's selfishness and lack of compassion is actually a virtue."
"I'm afraid I'll die before they are old enough to know -- or even remember -- me, and I'm immodest enough to think that people who don't know me are missing out on something terrific."
