Man brings human skull to grocery store

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alas poor yorick i knew him well

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"It smelled like death."

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alas poor yorick i knew him well

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Del Close (March 9, 1934 - March 4, 1999) was an American actor, writer, and teacher who coached many of the best-known comedians and comic actors of the late twentieth century; he was closely associated with the Second City theatre of Chcago. In addition to a prolific acting career in television and film, he was considered a premier influence on modern improvisational theater. Close co-authored the book Truth in Comedy, which outlines techniques now common in longform improvisation

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In his will he bequeathed his skull to the Goodman Theatre, to be used in its productions of Hamlet, and specified that he be duly credited in the program as portraying Yorick. Charna Halpern, Close's long-time professional partner and the executor of his will, donated a skull, purportedly Close's, to the Goodman in a high-profile televised ceremony on July 1, 1999. A front-page article in the Chicago Tribune in July, 2006 questioned the authenticity of the skull, citing the presence of dentition (Close was edentulous at the time of his death) and autopsy marks (Close was not autopsied), among other problems. Halpern stood by her story at the time, but admitted in a New Yorker interview three months later that she had purchased the skull from a local medical supply company.

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