Farewell, possum! Barry Humphries<\/a><\/strong>, the comedian best known for his character Dame Edna Everage<\/a><\/strong> who blossomed from an Australian suburban housewife into a self-described \u201cgigastar,\u201d died today, the Sydney Morning Herald<\/a><\/em> reported. He was 89.<\/p>\n The paper said Humphries died at St Vincent\u2019s Hospital in Sydney, where he had been treated for various health issues.<\/p>\n With coiffed lilac hair, oversized diamant\u00e9 glasses, and an outlandish wardrobe, the instantly recognizable Dame Edna would greet audiences with her trademark \u201cHello possums!\u201d.<\/p>\n Describing her shows somewhat accurately as a \u201cmonologue interrupted by strangers\u201d and herself as blessed with \u201cthe ability to laugh at the misfortune of others,\u201d Edna would warmly skewer celebrities and audience members alike.<\/p>\n Born and raised in Melbourne, John Barry Humphries was the son of a well-to-do builder who persuaded his parents to buy him an assortment of theatrical costumes to play dress-up in.<\/p>\n Sent to a conservative high school, he was described by a friend as a \u201cspectacular misfit\u201d who would turn his back on school football matches to knit.<\/p>\n The creation that would define his career came early: at 21, he was part of a traveling repertory company when he came up with a character of a snobbish, inadvertently offensive housewife.<\/p>\n In 1955, he stepped onstage for the first time as Mrs. Norm Everage from Moonee Ponds, admitting only decades later that she was based on his mother.<\/p>\n He developed a host of other Australian caricatures, including the repulsive drunkard diplomat Les Patterson and the more subtle Sandy Stone, a decrepit rambling senior. Humphries was also an actor, painter, author, and Dadaist performer of pranks.<\/p>\n Humphries moved to Britain in 1959, part of a wave of creative expatriates showcasing the Australian voice: earthy and irreverent but superficially polite.<\/p>\n Although a household name in Britain, Ireland, and Australia, the US market proved hard to crack despite several attempts.<\/p>\n![\"Dame](\"https:\/\/socialitelife.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/dame-edna-photos-04222023--1160x1740.jpg\")
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