Actor John Paragon, best known for his role as ‘Jambi The Genie’ in ‘The Pee-wee Herman Show’ passed away at the age of 66. Apparently, the actor had died in the month of April, but the news only came out tonight.
The news of John Paragon’s death was first announced by TMZ on Thursday, who were informed by the Riverside County Coroner. The coroner told that the 66-year-old actor had died ‘back in April’. Besides, the cause of Paragon’s death is unclear.
Born in 1954, Paragon began his acting career with a LA-based improvisation group called “The Groundlings”, where he was accompanied by Paul Reubens and Phil Hartman. He gave a memorable character as Jambi the Genie in the Pee-Wee’s Playhouse by acting as well writing for the role. Other than that, Paragon has also appeared as Cedric in “Seinfield”, and played the title role in the children’s movie “The Frog Prince”.
As the news of John’s demise came out, his fans shared their grief and paid tribute to the actor on social media. One of the users wrote, “RIP John Paragon, an absolute favorite of mine since childhood and probably one of the most quietly influential people on my sense of humor.”
RIP John Paragon, an absolute favorite of mine since childhood and probably one of the most quietly influential people on my sense of humor. pic.twitter.com/qunxvLq1R2
— Stephanie Crawford (@scrawfish) June 17, 2021
American screenwriter, columnist, and actor Michael Varrati tweeted, “Sad to hear that John Paragon, known for his role as Jambi the Genie, has passed. A cult filmmaker & figure in his own right, I was fortunate to have done a gig with him a while ago where he proved to be gracious and tolerant of my nerdy questions. Rest well, thanks for the magic.”
Sad to hear that John Paragon, known for his role as Jambi the Genie, has passed. A cult filmmaker & figure in his own right, I was fortunate to have done a gig w/ him awhile ago where he proved to be gracious and tolerant of my nerdy questions. Rest well, thanks for the magic. pic.twitter.com/pAU3VWlHve
— Michael Varrati (@MichaelVarrati) June 17, 2021
Comdian, actor and writer Phil LaMarr, known for playing voice roles in “The Incredibles” and “The Lion King” also took to Twitter to share a few words about the late actor. Phil tweeted, “Shocked and saddened to learn of the passing of the amazingly talented John Paragon. Ramon Azteca, Jambi the Genie, Mr. Excitement, The Breather, The Paragon of Comedy, Groundling, improviser, writer, performer, producer he did it all- and brilliantly.”
Shocked and saddened to learn of the passing of the amazingly talented John Paragon. Ramon Azteca, Jambi the Genie, Mr. Excitement, The Breather, The Paragon of Comedy, Groundling, improviser, writer, performer, producer he did it all – and brilliantly. https://t.co/caRuNXBtz3 pic.twitter.com/ehAcsWPWrP
— Phil LaMarr (@phillamarr) June 18, 2021
John also worked in “Eating Raoul”, “Pandemonium”, “Echo Park”, “Honey, I Blew Up the Kids”, “Red Riding Hood”, “Twin Sitters”, “Double Trouble” and others. Talking about his Television features, John Paragon worked in “Renegade”, “Pacific Blue”, “Star Trek: Deep Space Nine”, “Saturday Night Live”, “13 Night of Elvira” (in which he also worked as a producer and music supervisor).
Besides acting, John worked as a professional director work. Some of his directional works include movies such as “Every Breath” and “Cheech and Chong’s Next Movie.”