Mickey Rose, a longtime friend of Woody Allen, has died. He was 77 years old.

According to a Los Angeles Times report, Rose died on Sunday, April 7. His daughter, Jennifer, informed the publication that he had been diagnosed with cancer in January.

Rose was a childhood friend of famed director Woody Allen. Rose helped Allen write two of his early films, Bananas and Take the Money and Run. Though he did not collaborate with Allen further, Rose went on to write for television. The L.A. Times report states that he was a comedy writer who wrote jokes for Johnny Carson, Sid Caesar, and “other top comedians and show of his era.” He also reportedly wrote for TV shows that include The Smothers Brothers, All in the Family, The Odd Couple, and The Tonight Show.

Allen has released a statement on Rose’s death through his biographer, stating:

“Mickey was one of the funniest humans I know, a true original and a total eccentric and a wonderful first baseman. We played a lot of baseball together. Once, when I asked him what death meant to him he said, ‘no more malteds.'”

(Image courtesy the L.A. Times)