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Freddie Prinze (June 22, 1954–January 29,
1977) was a United States|American Stand-up
comedy|stand-up comedian and actor.  In his short
career he was mostly widely known as the star of
Chico and the Man.  

His son, born less than a year before Prinze's
death, is the actor Freddie Prinze, Jr..

== Career ==
He worked at several comedy clubs in New York
City, including Catch A Rising Star and The
Improv.  For his budding career as a comedian, he
changed his name to Prinze. He chose that because,
according to his friend David Brenner, he wanted
to be known as the "King" of comedy, but Alan King
already had that last name, so he would be the
"Prince" of comedy instead.

In 1973 in television|1973, he made his first
television|TV appearance on one of the last
episodes of the Jack Paar Show. In December 1973,
he had his biggest break, an appearance on The
Tonight Show with Johnny Carson. Freddie was the
first young comedian to be asked to sit down and
chat with Carson on his first appearance. He was
to appear on, as well as guest host, The Tonight
Show on numerous occasions after that.

From 1974 in television|1974 to 1977 in
television|1977, he starred as Francisco "Chico"
Rodriguez in the NBC TV series Chico and the Man
with Jack Albertson. Both Prinze and the show were
an instant hit. 

Freddie Prinze made several appearances on the
Dean Martin Celebrity Roasts, most notably at the
roasts for Sammy Davis Jr. and Muhammad Ali. He
made a few other TV appearances as well, including
on the Tony Orlando and Dawn Show.

In 1976 in television|1976, he starred in a
television movie|made-for-TV movie, The Million
Dollar Rip-Off. Also in 1975, he released a comedy
album that was taped live at Mr. Kelly's in
Chicago, Illinois|Chicago titled Loooking
Goood—his catch phrase from Chico and the
Man.

Prinze had a little-known talent for singing,
examples of which were heard in the background of
the title song of the Tony Orlando and Dawn album
"To Be With You", in his appearances on their
variety show. and on rare occasions on his own
Situation comedy|sitcom.

== Personal life ==
He was born Frederick Karl Pruetzel at St. Clair's
Hospital in New York City|New York, New York, the
son of Karl and Maria Pruetzel.

Freddie was raised in the Washington Heights
section of New York. His father was of
Hungary|Hungarian Jew|Jewish descent and his
mother was Puerto Rico|Puerto Rican Catholic. Ever
the comic, Freddie would later design his
background as "Hungarican", though he considered
himself Puerto Rican. 

As a small child his mother enrolled him in ballet
classes because of his weight problem.

Freddie was educated first in a private Lutheran
school, in a religious compromise by his parents
(though his mother took him to Mass on Sundays). 
Then, without telling his parents, he auditioned
for and was accepted to Fiorello H. LaGuardia High
School of Music & Art and Performing Arts, where
among other subjects he was introduced to drama
and continued to study ballet. This was also where
he really found his gift for comedy — he
would entertain crowds in the boys' restroom
— and he quit school in his senior year to
become a stand-up comedian.

Popular with the ladies, he dated actresses Lisa
Farringer, and Pam Grier, among others. He was
also good friends with Kitty Bruce, daughter of
the late Lenny Bruce, whom Prinze admired.  He and
Kitty Bruce were reported to have been engaged to
be married at one time, but the rumor was never
substantiated.

He married Katherine Cochran in October 1975. They
had one son, Freddie Prinze, Jr.|Freddie James
Prinze, who later became an actor. The son's
middle name was in honor of James Komack, producer
of Chico and the Man.

In 1976, after his arrest for driving under the
influence of Quaaludes, his wife filed for divorce
on the grounds that his escalating dependence on
drugs was endangering her and their son.

== Untimely death ==
Because Prinze was juggling his TV show and
numerous guest appearances, including a successful
stand-up career in nightclubs, his doctors had
prescribed Quaaludes to help him cope with the
pressure.

On January 28, 1977, under the influence of
Quaaludes and despondent over his impending
divorce and a failing lawsuit with a former
manager, he put a gun to his head in the presence
of his business manager, Dusty Snyder, and pulled
the trigger. After 33 hours in a coma with
irreversible brain damage, Prinze's family chose
to take him off of life support. He died moments
later, at the age of 22.

He was buried in a crypt at Forest Lawn -
Hollywood Hills Cemetery.

== After his death ==
The death, initially ruled a suicide, was years
later re-ruled an "accidental shooting due to the
influence of Quaaludes"; his mother led the effort
to have the cause of death reworded. This change
was due in large part to the fact that Prinze had
a history of playing with guns, faking suicide
attempts to frighten his friends to his amusement.
 He had left a note stating that the decision to
take his life was his alone, but because he pulled
the trigger in the presence of a witness,
something suicides rarely do, it gave enough
weight to the argument that he really was not
planning on to take his own life that night.

In 2001, TV Land began showing reruns of Chico and
the Man. The show became popular once more and
gained a whole new generation of fans for Prinze
and the show, as well as rekindling the interest
of old fans.