Prior to his sudden death at age 66 on Thursday, March 24, Garry Shandling revealed he had been diagnosed with a health issue during his final appearance on Jerry Seinfeld’s Comedians In Cars Getting Coffee.
“So it turns out I had a hyper parathyroid gland that was undiagnosed because the symptoms mirror the exact same symptoms an older Jewish man would have,” Shandling told Seinfeld, in his typical deadpan, in episode 4 of season 7, “which is lethargic, you get puffy, you get heavy, you think you kind of want a divorce but you’re not married.”
According to TMZ, Shandling died after suffering a massive heart attack.
In the episode — ironically titled “It’s Great That Garry Shandling Is Still Alive” — the two comedians discuss death. While talking about the late Robin Williams, Shandling expressed that he was stunned to learn that Williams’ committed suicide. The two also joked about dying in their 60s. “You have to die in your 60s for them to say he was young,” Seinfeld quipped of Williams, who was 63 when he died in 2014.
Shandling spent his final weekend hanging out with pal and funnywoman Kathy Griffin. On Sunday, the former Fashion Police host shared a photo with The Larry Sanders Show creator.
“Sunday, my longtime friend Garry Shandling was here, making every1 laugh,” Griffin tweeted on Thursday following the news. “I loved him. I’ll miss our talks the most.”
Judd Apatow, Steve Martin, Ellen DeGeneres, Ricky Gervais and more stars took to Twitter on Thursday to share their shock and condolences.
