Editing Del Close (section)

===Early life===
Close was born on March 9, 1934, in [[Manhattan, Kansas]].<ref>"United States Social Security Death Index," index, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.1.1/J1RL-5M4 : accessed Mar 12, 2013), Del P Close, March 4, 1999.</ref> He ran away from home at the age of 17 to work in a traveling side show, but returned to attend [[Kansas State University]]. At age 19 he performed in summer stock with the [[Belfry Players]] at Lake Geneva, Wisconsin.<ref>Program, "The Belfry Players, Inc.," 1962, p. 23</ref> At age 23 he became  a member of the [[Compass Players]] in [[St. Louis, Missouri|St. Louis]].<ref name="Adler">{{cite web |last1=Adler |first1=Tony |title=Improvisational Theater |url=http://www.encyclopedia.chicagohistory.org/pages/631.html |website=The Electronic Encyclopedia of Chicago |publisher=Chicago Historical Society |access-date=18 February 2022}}</ref> When most of the cast—including [[Mike Nichols]] and [[Elaine May]]—moved to [[New York City]], Close followed.  He developed a [[stand-up comedy]] act, starred as the Yogi in the Broadway musical revue ''The Nervous Set'',<ref name="NervousSet">{{cite web |title=The Nervous Set |url=http://www.guidetomusicaltheatre.com/shows_n/nervousset.html |website=The Guide to Musical Theatre |access-date=18 February 2022}}</ref> and performed briefly with an improv company in [[Greenwich Village]] with fellow Compass alumni Mark and Barbara Gordon. Close also worked with [[John Brent (comedian)|John Brent]] to record the classic [[Beatnik]] satire album ''[[How to Speak Hip]]'', a parody of language-learning tools that purported to teach listeners the secret language of the "hipster".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://iotaillustration.posterous.com/how-to-speak-hip-mercury-records-1959|title='How to Speak Hip' – Mercury Records 1959|publisher=Iotaillustration.posterous.com|date=January 7, 2011|access-date=August 13, 2011|archive-date=April 15, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130415181609/http://iotaillustration.posterous.com/how-to-speak-hip-mercury-records-1959|url-status=dead}}</ref>