LOS ANGELES (AP) – Phyllis Diller, the housewife turned humorist
who aimed some of her sharpest barbs at herself, has died at age 95
in Los Angeles.
     Her longtime manager, Milton Suchin, says Diller died Monday
morning in her sleep.

She had survived a near-fatal heart attack in 1999.
Diller was a staple of nightclubs and television from the 1950s
until her retirement in 2002.

She was famous for her distinctive laugh and portrayed herself as a bizarre housewife with a husband named “Fang.”

She would tell audiences that “I bury a lot of my ironing in
the back yard.”
Diller was nearly 40 when she began performing, with five
children and a successful career as an advertising copywriter.

At the time, women were a rarity in the world of stand-up comedy.