Bud Abbott suffered from epilepsy throughout his life. In the early 1960s, he suffered the first in a series of strokes. In 1972, he broke his hip and shortly after that was diagnosed with prostate cancer. Abbott died of the disease at the age of 78 on April 24, 1974, at the Motion Picture & Television Country House and Hospital in Woodland Hills, California. He was cremated and his ashes were scattered in the Pacific Ocean. His wife Betty died in 1981.

When Groucho Marx was asked about Abbott shortly after his death, his response was that Abbott was "the greatest straight man ever."

:rip:

:rip: Bud, and thanks for a million laughs.