Sarah Silverman Lost Her Parents Days Apart — She Shares It All in Her Special, 'PostMortem'

Comedian and actor Sarah Silverman is sharing the sad but relatable story of her parents' deaths in her Netflix special, PostMortem. Sarah's father, Donald Silverman, and her stepmother, Janice, both passed away in 2023, per USA Today.

According to NPR, Janice and Donald are buried under one tombstone that reads, "Janice and Donald, who loved to laugh."

Sarah Silverman's parents are Donald Silverman and Beth Ann O'Hara. Donald was affectionately known as “Schleppy.” In her special PostMortem, Sarah details her parents' divorce when she was 6, and the death of her mother in 2015 at the age of 73. Sarah described her mother as a woman much like herself, a person known for her blunt honesty, attention to enunciation, her love of overalls with "no bra," and of wearing two different colored socks.

Beth Ann went back to college at the age of 42, and she was the founder of the New Thalian Players theatre group in New Hampshire, per NHPR.

Sarah described Donald as the person she got her sense of humor from, and a father who "came to every game." She also said her father and Janice were soulmates who were married for 40 years. She described Janice as “just the sweetest lady you could ever meet."

Donald and Janice both died in 2023. Donald died of kidney failure, just nine days after his wife died from Stage 4 pancreatic cancer. Sarah describes his death in her comedy special, which manages to be relatable, sad, and funny at the same time. She shared his death on Instagram and noted, "Ultimately, he wanted to be with his love, Janice, who we lost last Monday."

According to People, she was worried about talking about their deaths in her special at first, but ultimately, found it "extremely cathartic."

"At first I was dreading dredging it all up, but by the second half of the tour, I got excited each night to tell everybody about my parents,” she said. “It was extremely cathartic. ... It’s not sad, it’s really funny," she added of the special.

Sarah also shared with the outlet something she did not share in PostMortem.

“I don't say this in the special, but when my mom died, she was holding my dad and my stepmother’s hands,” she revealed, adding that her mom and dad became best friends who were happy after they each found their soulmates with other people. Sarah's stepdad, John, died in 2007.

Sarah and her sisters, Susan, Jodyne, and Laura took care of Donald and Janice as they lived their last days. The comedian also joked about her father's reaction after learning of Janice's cancer diagnosis.

"You just hear him go, ‘I’m alone!' Then he goes, ‘I’m a widow,'" said Sarah.

In PostMortem, Sarah also joked about her father and stepmother wanting her to make money from their deaths.

"My dad and my stepmom, Janice, both died last May, nine days apart," she said. "My dad was my best friend, and they both gave me so much, and most recently, about an hour of new material, so let's do this. This seems like a good time to mention I do have merch this tour. I just really feel like my parents would want me to monetize this."

PostMortem is currently available to stream on Netflix.