Barry Blaustein, comedy writer known for 'Saturday Night Live' and 'Coming to America,' dies at 71

Barry Blaustein, the erstwhile “Saturday Night Live” writer down the beloved Eddie Murphy “Coming to America” films and the acclaimed documentary “Beyond the Mat,” died Tuesday. He was 71.

Blaustein’s decease was confirmed by Chapman University’s Dodge College of Film and Media Arts, wherever helium had been a screenwriting prof since 2012. Blaustein battled Parkinson’s illness for the past decennary and, according to the Hollywood Reporter, was told past period that helium had Stage 4 pancreatic cancer.

“Barry understood what made drama relation amended than anyone I know,” Stephen Galloway, the dean of Dodge College, told The Times successful an emailed statement. “He knew that it includes acheronian arsenic good arsenic light. And yet it was the airy that filled his past years. Even arsenic helium declined with Parkinson’s, helium showed a positivity that ever stunned me. He’ll beryllium remembered arsenic a fantastic writer, but an adjacent much fantastic quality being.”

Blaustein, alongside his longtime penning partner, David Sheffield, penned classical comedies including the 1988 movie “Coming to America” and its 2021 sequel, “Coming 2 America,” 1992’s “Boomerang,” arsenic good arsenic the 1996 movie “The Nutty Professor” and its 2000 sequel, “Nutty Professor II: The Klumps.”

Blaustein besides directed the 2010 diagnostic movie “Peep World,” which helium said was changeable successful 21 days for astir $1 million, and 2005’s “The Ringer,” starring Johnny Knoxville and Katherine Heigl.

Although his assertion to fame was contributing to galore drama projects crossed decades, it was the 1999 documentary “Beyond the Mat,” a behind-the-scenes chronicle of 3 celebrated pro wrestlers, that was Blaustein’s darling.

According to The Times, Imagine Entertainment partners Ron Howard and Brian Grazer and then-President Michael Rosenberg agreed to nutrient “Beyond the Mat” due to the fact that they valued their longtime narration with Blaustein.

Grazer told The Times successful 1999 that the drama writer had “accrued specified goodwill with Imagine and was truthful passionate astir the taxable matter” that the institution decided to backmost the task “for the narration with an creator we value.”

“This wasn’t the archetypal clip Barry asked maine to direct,” said Grazer, referring to the documentary. “And I’ve ever said no. I knew Barry arsenic a sheer sketch drama writer, truthful erstwhile I saw this, I was blown away. I had nary thought helium had this affectional storytelling broadside to him.”

The Times called “Beyond the Mat” 1 of the champion films of the year, and it was 1 of 12 finalists for Academy Award consideration.

Born connected Sept. 10, 1954, Barry Wayne Blaustein grew up connected Long Island, N.Y. He graduated from W.T. Clarke High School and went connected to gain a bachelor of arts grade from New York University earlier landing an internship astatine NBC News successful New York.

Although helium didn’t cognize helium wanted to beryllium a writer from the jump, Blaustein told TTFT podcast successful 2021 that helium ever knew helium wanted to beryllium successful amusement business. In the precocious ’70s, helium landed a gig moving successful Hollywood, but it wasn’t a consecutive changeable to the top. “All the typewriters were stolen; you couldn’t enactment for a much shady person,” helium told the podcast.

Paying his dues yet paid disconnected erstwhile Blaustein’s brag sent him to luncheon with a shaper who asked the young hopeful if helium could write. He said yes, due to the fact that helium learned to ever accidental yes if you wanted to enactment successful amusement business. Next happening helium knew, helium was a writer connected “The Mike Douglas Show,” a syndicated daytime programme that hosted guests including James Caan, Sonny Bono, Lucille Ball, David Letterman and Bob Hope.

“So I worked connected that show, and each occupation I had has someway led to different job,” helium told TTFT.

In 1980, Blaustein moved connected to “Saturday Night Live,” wherever helium was hired for the sketch show’s sixth season. There helium met the antheral who would go his penning partner, Sheffield, arsenic good arsenic Murphy. Together, they produced Murphy’s astir celebrated bits from the show, including Gumby, Buckwheat and Mr. Robinson.

The 3 had a potent chemistry that would past decades, and Blaustein joked that his much than 40-year concern with Sheffield and Murphy was the “longest matrimony successful showbiz history.”

In 1987, the 3 — positive Arsenio Hall — teamed up for “Coming to America,” successful which Murphy played a affluent African prince who comes to America to flight an arranged matrimony and finds his existent love. Murphy pitched the task to the penning duo with astir 20 pages of handwritten ideas.

“I didn’t realize, possibly it’s due to the fact that I’m unsighted oregon something, but I didn’t recognize however sociologically important the movie would be,” Blaustein told the TTFT podcast. “The movie was beloved, and it’s successful the Smithsonian and it was the biggest thrill erstwhile I went to the Museum of African American History, and it’s successful determination successful 2 antithetic places successful the museum. And I was like, ‘Oh my God, what a compliment.’”

After a dependable tally of penning, producing and directing assorted projects, Blaustein made a vocation pivot successful 2012. He’d precocious divorced aft 28 years of marriage, his narration with Hollywood was moving connected fumes, and helium needed a alteration of pace. He joined Chapman University’s Dodge College of Film and Media Arts, 1 of the apical movie schools successful the country, and dedicated himself to teaching budding screenwriters.

“He was a hellhole of a writer,” said screenwriter and erstwhile pupil Brianna Brown successful an emailed connection to The Times. “But helium was the implicit champion teacher. What I learned from him has been monumental creatively. What I learned from him extracurricular the schoolroom has been transformative. These things I cherish truthful deeply. Needless to say, his beingness rapidly became a beingness changing portion of who I am. I’m arrogant to person bits of these things, bits of the writer helium was profoundly ingrained successful maine … his talent, confidence, and humility.

“Beyond his teaching, the idiosyncratic helium was has genuinely shaped me. How I was welcomed into his family. The mode helium showed his love. The mode I ever felt it unconditionally … these peculiar parts of him … that volition unrecorded connected done maine successful thing I ever thatch and everything I ever write. He taught maine however to unrecorded a imagination worthy living.”

Around 2017, Blaustein was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease. The seasoned writer said that, erstwhile helium received the diagnosis, the archetypal happening that helium thought of was an speech he’d had with Muhammad Ali, who publically battled the illness for decades earlier his decease successful 2016.

“Don King was connected ‘Saturday Night Live’ and invited maine to spell to the fights successful Las Vegas,” helium said. “There was a meal enactment the nighttime before, and helium said, ‘Sit astatine this table.’ I was with Muhammad Ali, who was successful the depths of his Parkinson’s, and I’m talking to him and trying to prosecute successful conversation, and I couldn’t recognize what helium was saying.”

Blaustein admitted that helium thought, “How bash I get retired of this?”

“And erstwhile they diagnosed maine with Parkinson’s, I thought, ‘Oh, my God, who’s going to privation to speech to me?’ Because I didn’t privation to speech to Muhammad Ali, and Muhammad Ali is 1 of the top radical that ever lived.”

Blaustein said the information changed his beingness and told TFTT podcast that helium wrote the 2021 sequel “Coming 2 America” portion grappling with the disease. “I’m precise arrogant that I wrote the movie, having Parkinson’s, of course, I didn’t archer the studio, but present they know.”

Blaustein traveled the state speaking for the Parkinson’s Foundation. “You can’t fto the illness decision you, it wants you to enactment home, it wants you to spell into your shell,” helium told a Parkinson’s Foundation podcast successful 2022. “That’s not a mode to unrecorded a life, you’ve got to combat it.”

Blaustein interspersed his contented with immoderate humor, “I’ve got disabled parking which is great, ‘I don’t consciousness similar going to your sister’s I’ve got Parkinson’s.’” He said he’d adjacent utilized it to get bumped up a people astatine the airport.

Blaustein is survived by his wife, Debra, whom helium joined successful 2021; his children, Corey and Kasey; and his granddaughter, Daisy.

A memorial work volition beryllium held astatine Chapman University.