Floyd Vivino, a beloved New Jersey actor and comedian best known to TV-loving kids of the 1970s and ’80s for starring in “Uncle Floyd Show,” has died, his family said. He was 74.
“With a heavy heart, I am sad to announce the passing of my brother and everybody’s favorite uncle, Floyd Vivino,” his brother, musician Jerry Vivino, said Friday in a Facebook post. “After a 2½-year battle with ongoing health issues, his curtain peacefully closed at 6:05 p.m. on Thursday, Jan. 22. Rest in peace, big brother. You will be missed but always remembered by friends, family and your loving fans.”
In 2022, Floyd Vivino revealed he had been diagnosed with two cancers — bladder and prostate — which he discovered while at a hospital being treated for COVID-19.
Born in Paterson, N.J., on Oct. 19, 1951, Vivino got his start in show business as a teenager in 1968.
A prolific entertainer — comedian, actor and gifted piano player — Vivino became a local television legend after creating and starring in the children-friendly, adult-coded puppet show “Uncle Floyd Show,” which went on to welcome pop culture icons including Bon Jovi, Peter Tork and Cyndi Lauper at the height of her “Girls Just Want to Have Fun” era. In 1981, “Uncle Floyd shows on the TV” was a line in The Ramones’ “It’s Not My Place (In the 9 to 5 World)” song.
The show, which aired in New Jersey and New York from 1974 to 1998, including a three-year run on PBS stations statewide, has been described as a cross between “Pee-wee’s Playhouse” and “The Soupy Sales Show.”
In 2002, The New York Times called the program a “cult favorite, a faux children’s show [that] has been broadcast in one form or another since 1974.”
His greatest talent was his versatility, a rep for Vivino told the Daily News Friday. His comedy transcended all age groups, ethnicities and demographics.
Besides delighting kids and adults alike by brightening their television sets with humor, music and puppets, Vivino also appeared in several television shows, including NBC’s “Law & Order”” and CBS’ “Cosby,” as well as in big-budget movies such as “Good Morning, Vietnam” and “Crazy People.”
But perhaps his most notable recognition came from the late David Bowie, who wrote the song “Slip Away” — originally titled “Uncle Floyd” and containing the verse “Twinkle, Twinkle, Uncle Floyd” — for his 23rd studio album, “Heathen.”
According to Vivino, Bowie told him he was a fan of the program after attending a live “Uncle Floyd Show” at the Bottom Line in Manhattan in 1981.
“He said John Lennon told him about it,” Vivino told The Times.
