Tom Davis, the beloved comedic writer from the early days of Saturday Night Live, died at the age of 59 on Thursday.

The cause of his death was throat and neck cancer, according to an extensive and adoring obituary for Davis in the New York Times.

Tom Davis made a name for himself as an improvisational comic, often alongside his better known comedic partner, one Al Franken, who went on to be a very famous comedian and is now a U.S. Senator representing Minnesota for the Democrats.

And in 1975, the pair, signed on as two of the first writers on SNL, which was then a brand-new show, and has been a late-night TV staple for the following 37 years.

Davis, who the Times said referred to his declining health and impending death as his inevitable deanimation, passed away at his house in Hudson, N.Y. His wife, Mimi Raleigh, confirmed that his death came about as a result of the two forms of cancer.

Davis and a crew of other writers including Franken created a number of enduring comedy sketches, including the Coneheads, Dan Aykroyd's famed parody of TV chef Julia Child, and many more.

Aykroyd discussed Tom Davis' massive contribution to SNL on Thursday during an interview with the Times, and said he was a very disciplined writer.

Davis -- born in Minneapolis as Thomas James Davis -- shared three Emmys for his writing work on SNL and earned another for working on The Paul Simon Special.

He and Franken became friends in high school, and Davis went on to the University of the Pacific in Stockton, Calif., and did a study abroad program in India, the Times reported.

Davis is survived by his wife, his brother Robert, and his mother, Jean Davis.

The New York Times India New York Cancer