Let’s Celebrate the Life of James Avery with a Montage of Uncle Phil Fat Jokes

I'm not going to pretend you don't already know that James Avery, better known as Uncle Phil on The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, passed away at the age of 68 on Tuesday night. You've obviously got an internet connection, so you probably heard the sad news already, whether from TMZ, CNN, or some other reputable news organization.  I'm not going to pretend you didn't already learn that his death was the result of complications from open-heart surgery. I'm not going to pretend you haven't checked out his Wikipedia page and learned that he is from Atlantic City, New Jersey, or that he is a classically trained actor whose first film role was as a dancer in Blues Brothers. And I'm not going to try to write some touching tribute to the man, even though he almost certainly deserves it.

So what am I going to do? I'm going to pay tribute to the man the only way I really can: with this montage of Uncle Phil fat jokes I found on YouTube today.

Now, that may seem weird to you, but I think it's a fitting tribute. After all, we're talking about a man who let Will Smith make fun of him for years because he knew it was good comedy. It takes a big man to do that—both literally and metaphorically. If everyone made fun of themselves a little more the world would be a better place.

Well done, James Avery. Well done.