Comic Kahane Dies

By Stephen M. Silverman

09/09/1997 at 12:00 AM EDT

Comic Jackie Kahane, 79, who was the opening act for Elvis Presley during the King's Las Vegas Hilton performances from 1972 until Presley's death in 1977, died of cancer in Los Angeles on Monday. Besides Elvis, Kahane (who, in 1961, was chosen along with Bill Cosby as one of Time magazine's outstanding young comedians) performed with Wayne Newton, Tina Turner, Tony Bennett, Dionne Warwick and the legendary Sophie Tucker over his six-decade career. He was also no stranger to Ed Sullivan and Johnny Carson.