Mark Anderson, the owner of the DC Improv comedy club, was found dead in a hotel room in Buckeye, Ariz., Wednesday morning after being reported missing more than three weeks ago, according to the Arizona Republic.
Anderson, 60, was discovered after housekeepers at a Days Inn entered his room, the Republic reported. It is unclear how long Anderson had been staying at the hotel. Local police also told the Republic that Anderson’s cause of death is still unknown. An autopsy is scheduled for Friday. A press release from DC Improv stated that Anderson was first reported missing by his wife in Oklahoma City, Okla. on May 12, and was last seen in San Diego on May 15. He had also recently been spotted in Dallas.
According to the Republic, Anderson had been experiencing business problems relating to Tempe Improv, a second comedy club he owned in metropolitan Phoenix prior to his disappearance. On May 8, he announced that the club, which had presented comedians such as Jerry Seinfeld and George Lopez during its two-decade history, would be closing. Anderson blamed the club’s troubles on a nearby competitor.
During his career, Anderson encountered a who’s who of up-and-coming comedians. In addition to Seinfeld and Lopez, he had also worked with Kevin Nealon, Paula Poundstone, Judd Apatow, and Aziz Ansari, who, according to DC Improv, had been assisting in the search for Anderson.
"I've known Mark since we both started out in stand up comedy in the early 80s,” Nealon, who has starred on “Saturday Night Live” and “Weeds,” said in the DC Improv release. “I've always been grateful for his friendship, sense of humor and admire his business savvy."
