Bronze Mold of Phyllis Diller’s Hand

This statue is a bronze mold of Phyllis Diller’s right hand. The hand is outstretched as if to play the piano. Diller, while known for her stand-up comedy, was also an accomplished pianist. After graduating high school, Diller studied piano for three years at the Sherwood Conservatory of Music (at Columbia College Chicago), but eventually decided against a career in music. From 1971 to 1982 Diller performed with over 100 symphony orchestras across the United States and Canada in a show called The Symphonic Phyllis Diller. During these performances she would seriously perform pieces by Beethoven, Bach, and others as a solo pianist with an orchestra while integrating comedic elements.

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