We've lost another funny man. Most folks first knew of Avery Schreiber either as (a) half the comedy team of Burns and Schreiber or (b) the gregarious Captain Mancini in the legendary sitcom, My Mother, The Car. (The good Captain was an automotive fanatic always trying to wrest Jerry Van Dyke's 1928 Porter — i.e., his mother — away from him. It was ironic casting since Avery hated cars and driving.) And he was great in both those roles, and the hundreds of others he portrayed in a rich, full career.
But those who came near him also knew him as one of the best acting teachers — especially in the area of improvisational comedy, the specialty of his alma mater, Second City. One of the many routines he developed there was a Samurai Landlord that a later student, John Belushi, seized upon and made his own.
It was at Second City that Avery met Jack Burns and they developed the cab driver routine that soon made them famous. A lot of us fondly remember their TV appearances, including Our Place — a wonderful, short-lived variety series in which they starred in 1967 — and the 1973 Burns and Schreiber Comedy Hour. They remained teamed until the mid-seventies when Burns turned more to writing, Schreiber to acting and teaching. Within the community of actors who specialize in comedy, voiceover and improvisation, Avery was a much-loved, universally-respected presence. He passed away this morning and tonight, a lot of very fine improv actors, trained by him to think on their feet, don't know what to say.