COMEDIAN HABEEB KHAN PASSES AWAY

For decades he made Guyana, the Caribbean and New York go into a fit of laughter with his jokes and skits about growing up in Guyana and being Guyanese, but on Tuesday, July 22, comedian Habeeb Khan passed away in his sleep at his family home at Friendship on the East Bank of Demerara.

Relatives said Khan had been ailing for a while from an asthma related illness. One of his nieces, Haleemah Khan, told News Source that her uncle lived life like a comedy show and enjoyed every moment of it. She said “for him everything was a comedy and maybe his comedic lifestyle is responsible for him naming all of his sons after him. He has about four or five sons and they are all Habeeb Khan Junior”, she related while sharing a soft giggle.

The 77-year-old Khan fathered 16 children on three continents with four women and was always proud to tell stories about them and about himself.

He would also tell stories about the big padlock he placed on his gate at this house although the yard had no fence. For generations, on radio and later on television  in Guyana, Habeeb Khan remained the most prominent and popular Guyanese comedian. His television ads and skits would roll off of the lips of anyone who would have seen them before, whether it was the Torginal paint advertisement or the KeiShars Christmas furniture advertisement.

He also starred in plays and many will never forget the role he played in the local movie “If wishes were horses”. Khan would reflect on that role in many press interviews.

Back in 2009, Khan told the Kaieteur News in an interview that he should have really gone on to become a lawyer but after he experimented with comedy, he got stuck and remained with that art form for the rest of his life.

In his later years, he complained that his cigarette smoking habit had caught up with him and was responsible for his many bouts with asthma related illnesses. He said too that as he grew older, appreciation for his ability dwindled and he struggled through his years doing small television commercials and radio spots for businesses.

Habeeb Khan always maintained that he was a proud Guyanese and his used his love of country and its people to share funny tales about the six races in Guyana, its leaders and all of its people. Many comedians today said he served as the influence on their lives. He was always original and his comedy wardrobe was always a show grabber, whether he was dressed in a military suit or diapers.

His relatives said, he lived a good life and enjoyed every moment of that life because he made people laugh.