Re: Henry Gibson, original "Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In" regular, dies at 73
From what I read, he was IRL a very kind, gentle, and lovable fellow -- the sort that you can't imagine ever having an enemy. That may be why he enjoyed playing some of the roles cited -- actors love the chance to do a part where they can go 180 degrees from their real-life personality. It often works out well that way -- an actor can observe and exaggerate things in a personality type that someone actually of that type would be blissfully unaware of. (It's also why you usually have to be sober to really play a convincing drunk...) <s>
In that vein, I remember reading that when they were starting production on the sitcom Double Trouble, the Sagal twins, who had very different personalities IRL, started out to more or less play themselves. But they soon found the results were better and funnier when they swapped roles, because each could play a more overt, exaggerated caricature of the other.