Long Island Comics Mourn Loss of Legend

"Humble," "loving" and "genuine" are words that came to mind when friends think of Vince Dantona.

The beloved ventriloquist passed away last Monday at the age of 62. Governor's Comedy Club in Levittown held a gathering of local comedians Monday evening to honor him.

Dantona made a name for himself and his sidekick, his ventriliquist dummy George, in the Long Island comedy scene after he returned from a 10-year stint in the Marine Corps. His career took off working with names like Eddie Murphy, Robert Bartlett, Kevin James and Bob Nelson.

"He loved to make people laugh and he was good at it," said Christopher Roach, an eight year comedy veteran who spent Dantona's last night with him doing a gig in Elmira. "Vince was the type of person who made you feel like you were his best friend, even if you just met him. I've been lucky enough to work with him for eight years and I'm heartbroken. I can only imagine how people who've known him for 20 or 30 years are feeling right now."

Christopher Monty first opened up for Dantona on his first paying comedy gig more than 15 years ago where they instantly became friends. Monty feels that the comedy world has lost a true legend and that he's lost a part of his family.

"In any kind of show business, you have your family at home and the family you're with every night on the road," said Monty. "Vince was my father, my older brother, my mentor. He was someone special to all of us."

"After I got out of a gig, I knew I could always call Vince and he'd be on the way home too, and we could talk and keep each other up," he added. "If we were ever performing together, I'd get a phone call to my hotel room from George in the middle of the night asking me if I'd want to go out and do something. I'm going to miss those things."

Though he never quite rose to superstardom, Dantona did what he loved every single day, and that was more than enough for him. Through his career, Dantona and George appeared on several television shows including America's Funniest People, Comedy Central, Good Morning America and The Joan Rivers Show.

"Vince always taught us to be nice to everyone," Monty explained. "If they don't want you at their club, it's okay, be nice to them anyways. That's why he was so successful. He's had heartbreak and struggles but he was never bitter. He was nice to every single person he met."