Rodney Dangerfield (November 22, 1921 ? October 5, 2004), born Jacob Cohen, was an American comedian and actor, best known for the catchphrase "I don't get no respect" and his monologues on that theme. Early life and career He was born on Long Island in the town of Babylon, the son of vaudevillian Phil Roy (Philip Cohen). He would later say that his father "was never home ? he was out looking to make other kids?, and that his mother "brought him up all wrong?. As a teenager, he got his start writing jokes for standup comics; he became one himself at 19 under the name Jack Roy. He struggled financially for nine years, at one point performing as a singing waiter (he was fired), before giving up show business to take a job selling aluminum siding to support his wife and family. He later said that he was so little known then that, "At the time I quit, I was the only one who knew I quit!"

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