Among the routines Avery developed during his years at Second City was the "samurai landlord" that John Belushi later made famous on "Saturday Night Live" (1975).
Described himself as a "class clown" in school.
Has a small theatre named after him on Magnolia Blvd. in North Hollywood, California.
He was nominated for a 1979 Joseph Jefferson Award for Guest Artist for his performance in "A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum" at the Marriott Theatre in Chicago, Illinois.
His son Josh Schreiber is an actor and performs in his own band "Big Fat Jerome".
In 1951, he enlisted in the Army, where he was assigned to special services, the entertainment branch. By the end of his duty in Europe, he had directed 86 variety shows.
Was long-time spokesman for Doritos chips. Every commercial had him playing a character (chef, sultan, judge, pilot, etc.) and before he would perfect his job, someone would eat Doritos and mess him up.