COMEDIAN John Edward Szeles, the self-proclaimed Freddy Krueger of comedy, passed away on Tuesday after a long battle with heart disease.
Szeles‘ death was announced on Wednesday morning by fellow standup comic Penny Wiggins on Facebook. He was 63.
“Johnathan Szeles (Amazing Johnathan ) has passed away at around 11:30 pm 2/22/22,” Wiggins, 60, wrote on her FB post.
“My heart is broken. One of my best friends, one of the funniest humans I’ve ever met. I loved him so very much and will never forget this wonderful, amazing, kind, funny, great person.”
On Monday, the comic’s wife, Anatasia Synn – a magician in her own right, posted on Facebook that her husband was “completely unresponsive.”
“I am losing my honey beeps. I’m so sad and feel like this is carving a hole in my chest. He is COMPLETELY unresponsive. He is end-stage. Please give us peace at this time.
“His decline was fast, but it also wasn’t. He is so strong. He has beaten the odds for so long. I know you all love him so much and everyone wants to say goodbye,” Synn added.
She continued, “I don’t think we thought this day would ever come because he is so strong and has beaten it so many times.
“Thank you for all the well wishes, but as the news spreads it’s getting overwhelming and I’m going to have to take a step back. I love you and thank you for your support.”
Szeles gained mainstream fame in Las Vegas as a headliner for Criss Angel’s mid-2000s reality TV show Mindfreak.
His acts were composed of hijinks, interaction with one specific audience member, and a few legitimate magic tricks.
Szeles performed wearing his ever-present headband, and his shows frequently used gore, pretending to suck on his hanging eyeball, cutting his wrists, and piercing his tongue.
He performed his standup acts at several renowned Las Vegas venues, including the Golden Nugget, Riviera, Flamingo and Sahara.
According to the Las Vegas Journal, Szeles was diagnosed with a severe heart condition in 2007.
In 2014, he revealed doctors only gave him a year to live after his diagnosis.
“I was told I have a year to live,” he announced during a public appearance in 2014.
The audience, assuming the dark declaration was another of his pranks, started to laugh – but he stopped them: “Not a joke,” he declared as his voice cracked.
His official website later identified the illness as cardiomyopathy and announced that his health was improving thanks to a combination of weight loss and blood thinners.
The Amazing Johnathan Documentary was released on Hulu in 2019, documenting Szeles’ journey with his illness and his return to the stage.
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