Tom Dreesen, Stand-Up Comedian Who Opened for Frank Sinatra, Dies at 86
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- Tom Dreesen died Wednesday at age 86, with his family announcing the news on his official Facebook page and sharing his parting message to fans: "he loved you all."
- Dreesen toured as Frank Sinatra's opening act for 13 years, one of the longest such partnerships in the legendary singer's touring history.
- Dreesen began his career in the comedy duo "Tim and Tom" with Tim Reid, the first biracial stand-up duo in the United States, before launching a solo career in the mid-70s.
- Dreesen's final TV appearance aired on CBS's "Comics Unleashed With Byron Allen" just one week before his death — his fourth stint on the show since its 2006 launch, and a continuation of a mentorship with Allen that dated back to 1975.
- Gary Sinise paid tribute to Dreesen as a 14-year Gary Sinise Foundation ambassador, calling him "hilarious" and "such a good friend" who "loved our country and the men and women who serve."
- Dreesen's film and TV credits spanned "Spaceballs," "Columbo: Murder in Malibu," "Man on the Moon," "Murder, She Wrote," "WKRP in Cincinnati," "The Facts of Life" and "Touched by an Angel," with frequent guest spots on David Letterman's show.
Why it matters: Dreesen represented a vanishing era of stand-up built on the road with headliners like Sinatra, Sammy Davis Jr. and Liza Minnelli, not on social-media clips. His 50-plus-year career — bookended by the 1976 debut on "Good Heavens" and a final CBS appearance days before his death — shows a comedian who never stopped working. For the Gary Sinise Foundation, losing a 14-year ambassador with deep military-support ties creates both an institutional gap and a moment to honor that work publicly.
