American pop singer-actor Ed Ames dies at 95

WASHINGTON: Ed Ames, an Ames Brothers singing group member and a star of the 1960s television series 'Daniel Boone', passed away at his Los Angeles home. Ames breathed his last on Sunday. He was 95.

According to Variety, a US-based media house, Ed Ames and his brothers Vic, Joe and Gene had a hit with their version of Rag Mop' in 1950. As a solo artist, he had hits with 'Who Will Answer?', 'My Cup Runneth Over' and 'Try to Remember'. In the 1950s, they had a syndicated TV program, 'The Ames Brothers Show', and 49 songs that charted before they broke up in 1963. Born on July 9, 1927, in Malden, Massachusetts, United States to Jewish parents Sarah (Zaslavskaya) and David Urick (aka Eurich), Ed Ames began his acting career, appearing in 'The Fantasticks', 'The Crucible', and 'Carnival', which was on Broadway.

In the Broadway production of 'One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest', he starred alongside William Daniels, Kirk Douglas, and Gene Wilder. Ames gained some proficiency in throwing a tomahawk while portraying Mingo on television. As a result, he made one of the most iconic appearances of his career on 'The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson' on April 27, 1965.

As per Variety, he demonstrated his skill for Johnny Carson on a wood panel with an outline of a cowboy. When Ames hit the figure squarely in the groin, Carson ad-libbed: "I didn't even know you were Jewish!" and then "Welcome to Frontier Bris." The saucy response caused the studio audience to laugh for four minutes, which has been reported to be the longest laugh by a studio audience in television history. Despite having a Russian Jewish heritage, Ames was frequently cast as a Native American. He also made guest appearances on shows including 'The Rifleman', 'McCloud', 'Murder She Wrote', 'It's Garry Shandling's Show' and 'Jake and the Fatman'. Ed Ames is survived by his wife Jeanne; two children, Ronald and Sonya, seven grandchildren; five great-grandchildren; and stepson Stephen Saviano. Another daughter, Marcella, predeceased him, as reported by Variety.