Art Carney of "The Honeymooners" Dead At 85
 

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Art Carney, who paired with Jackie Gleason in the classic series "The Honeymooners" and won an Oscar for his role as a retired teacher traveling through America in the 1974 film "Harry and Tonto," has died. He was 85.

Carney passed away Sunday at his home in Connecticut, according to a spokesman for a Connecticut funeral home, and was buried in a private ceremony Tuesday.

"The family is very private, and that's why no one was notified until after the funeral," said Philip Appell, a spokesman for Swan Funeral Home in Clinton, Connecticut.

Though he appeared in more than 25 films -- and created the role of Felix Unger in the original Broadway version of "The Odd Couple" -- Carney, a veteran of the World War II invasion of Normandy, became famous playing sewer worker Ed Norton, Jackie Gleason's foil on the 1950s television comedy "The Honeymooners."

With Gleason, who played the blustery bus driver Ralph Kramden, the two embarked on get-rich-quick schemes and other tomfoolery in an effort to get ahead in life. Their wives -- Norton's wife Trixie (Joyce Randolph) and Ralph's wife Alice (Audrey Meadows) -- were endlessly patient with their husbands.

The role earned Carney three consecutive Emmy awards.

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There is also an excellent obit in The New York Times, but probably too long to post here.

Carney was a true comedic genius...

Aw man...it's so bad to lose such a class act.

It lived a good life...and I always enjoyed his work.

Truly a great loss. He made anything he appeared in better, no matter how small a part he might play.

I loved Ed Norton's character. I'll have to go up to the 48th floor where they have the original Honeymooners set for a moment of silence.

Very sad... The Honeymooners was possibly the funniest pure comedy on TV ever, and Art Carney was brilliant in it. :(