Lulu Roman death: Hee Haw comedian dies aged 78

A cause of death has yet to been determined for the Texas-born star

Lulu Roman was best known for her role in ‘Hee Haw’ (Getty Images)

Comedian and gospel singer Lulu Roman has died. She was 78.

The Dallas, Texas-born star — whose real name is Bertha Louise Hable — died on Wednesday in Bellingham, Washington, her son Damon Roman told The Hollywood Reporter.

Roman moved to Washington seven months ago in order to spend more time with her son. A cause of death has yet to be determined, according to THR.

The comedian was best known for her role in the classic variety show Hee Haw, which ran from June 1969 to June 1993. Throughout her time on the show, she transitioned into a gospel singer, releasing over a dozen albums, performing various concerts, and recording music alongside Dolly Parton.

Roman was born on May 6, 1946, spending most of her life in a Baptist orphanage after being abandoned at birth. She developed a thyroid condition that resulted in her being overweight and never being adopted.

She attended W.W. Samuell High School until her graduation in 1964, and started making a living by performing in a comedy act called “Lulu Roman, the World’s Biggest Go-Go Dancer.” She performed in nightclubs owned by Jack Ruby.

During this time, she became friends with the late country music singer Buck Owens. “He liked my sense of humor,” she recalled in a 2020 article for Florida Weekly.

“He told me once that he’d just sit and observe me. I said, ‘Lord have mercy!’ He said it was real interesting: ‘You’re a master at quick wit.’ I wasn’t sure what he was talking about, but I got hold of it later.

When Owens was scheduled to star in Hee Haw, an American television variety hour featuring country music and humor, he was quick to bring up Roman to the show’s producers.

“They needed one boy next door, one fat dumb man, one fat dumb woman,” Roman said in an interview last year with a local Nashville news outlet. “Buck said, ‘I got your girl! She’s in Dallas!’”

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Roman started out appearing in the background of Hee Haw episodes before eventually being given speaking roles in recurring segments such as “The Culhanes,” “Truck Stop,” and “The Jug Band.”

She left the show in March 1971 after being arrested for drug possession and receiving a four-year sentence. After converting to Christianity in 1973 and being rehired on Hee Haw, she asked the producers if she could sing. From there, her music career took off.

Her first album was released in 1974, and she received a Dove Award one year later for her LP “You Were Loving Me.”

The comedian went on to have two sons named Damon Eric and Justin Collin. Justin died in October 2017.

In 1999, she was inducted into the Country Gospel Music Hall of Fame, and her autobiography, This is My Story; This Is My Song, was published in 2019.