Herbert Buckingham Khaury (April 12, 1932 – November 30, 1996), better known by his stage name Tiny Tim, was an American singer, most of the time ukulele player, and musical archivist. He is best remembered for his hit "Tiptoe Through the Tulips" sung in a high falsetto/vibrato voice. At eleven years of age Khaury began learning to play the violin, and later picked up the mandolin, and what would be considered his signature instrument, the ukulele, and enjoyed performing at home for his parents. In a 1968 interview on The Tonight Show, he described the discovery of his ability to sing in an upper register: "I was listening to the radio and singing along; as I was singing I said 'Gee, it's strange. I can go up high as well.'" In a 1969 interview he said he was listening to Rudy Vallee sing in a falsetto, and "had something of a revelation--I never knew that I had another top register," describing it as a religious experience. Tiny Tim was married three times and had one daughter from his first marriage to Victoria Budinger (also known as "Miss Vicki"). Tiny Tim married Miss Vicki on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson on December 17, 1969, with 40 million people watching. Shortly after their marriage, Miss Vicki discovered she was pregnant, but the child was stillborn five months later. Khaury buried the child with a headstone that read "It". Daughter Tulip Victoria was born in 1971. According to Khaury's third wife, Sue, "Miss Vicki" was physically abusive toward her husband. Tiny Tim and Miss Vicki separated for good in 1974, and they divorced three years later in 1977. He married Jan Alweiss ("Miss Jan") in 1984, and Susan Marie Gardner ("Miss Sue") in 1995. When Tiny Tim first became well-known to the American public, pundits and journalists debated whether this character being presented was just an orchestrated act or the real thing. "It quickly became clear that he was genuine," however, and that he could probably be best described as "a lonely outcast intoxicated by fame" and "a romantic" always in pursuit of his ideal dream. On September 28, 1996, Tiny suffered a heart attack just as he began singing at a ukulele festival at the Montague Grange Hall in Montague, Massachusetts (this hall is often confused in accounts of the incident with the nearby Montague Bookmill, at which he had recorded a video interview earlier that same day). He was hospitalized at the nearby Franklin County Medical Center in Greenfield for approximately three weeks before being discharged with strong admonitions not to perform again because of his health, weight, and the dietary needs for his diabetic and heart conditions. Nevertheless, he ignored the advice. On November 30, 1996, he was playing at a gala benefit hosted by the Women's Club of Minneapolis. He had let his third wife ("Miss Sue") know before the performance that he was not feeling well, but did not want to disappoint the fans. By the end of his performance, most of the audience had left. While performing his last number of the evening, he suffered another heart attack on stage in the middle of a rendition of his hit, "Tiptoe Through the Tulips". His wife asked him if he was feeling all right, and he said he was not; she was helping him back to their table when he collapsed, and never regained consciousness. EMTs performed on-site CPR, and transported him to Hennepin County Medical Center, where, after many revival attempts at the hospital, Tiny Tim was pronounced dead nearly an hour later. His remains are entombed in a mausoleum in Lakewood Cemetery in Minneapolis. The above information courtesy of Wikipedia. See that site for more about his life and career. TooLooze: I worked with Tim in the late 80s when he was doing the "oldies" circuit. Other than looking like he had flour on his face and bright red streaked incredibly thin hair, he seemed genuine. He said he loved having fans come up and say hi. smellpickle: Adam the Woo did a video this morning, posted it on his channel The Daily Woo just minutes ago he goes to the graveyard where IT is buried in Houston TX. posted today. Ryan King: I had a buddy at high school called Jason Hingston who sadly died last year aged 45 God bless him and He was the spitting image of Tiny Tim. Tim used to make the two of us laugh till our sides ached so watching Tim reminds me of my late buddy that is why he is so special to me pika23: met him when I was 7 yrs. old! nice guy! he performed at a circus about 32 yrs. ago. he did roll out the barrel. tip toe through the tulips, etc...my grandma loved him! I owe my freaky taste in entertainment to her. tiny Tim and drag queens TheTVisions: I know of other wild characters of the entertainment and comedy world to die on stage; Tommy Cooper in England and Dirch Passer in Denmark. Tiny Tim also reminds me of a few odball artists; German performer Guildo Horn and Danish entertainer/comedian Jacob Haugaard.

• published: 13 May 2017
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