Andy Kaufman
Late Night with David Letterman and other shows (late '70s-early '80s)

The man wrestled women, impersonated Elvis, pretended to be homeless, and talked about staging his own death. The late comedian was a pioneer absurdist who made audiences gasp, laugh, and pause at the same time, but the real Andy Kaufman was almost unknowable. His long-running feud with professional wrestler Jerry Lawler (which was later revealed to have been mostly fake) included a seemingly spontaneous, televised fight on Late Night with David Letterman that left the audience hooting.