Pittman, an openly LGBTQ+ standup comic, radio host, performer, talent consultant, and coach for National Public Radio (NPR) stations, died on March 28, 2026, while in hospice care in Millbrae. The news was shared by Pittman’s partner of 25 years, Deb McDonald.
McDonald posted via Pittman’s Facebook page (https://bit.ly/3Q5INb5): “Although her ability to speak was extremely limited, she retained her comic chops; her last audible words were a perfectly timed ‘ar ar ar’ dropped during a lull in the conversation that cracked up the small audience gathered in her room. Stay tuned for information on her memorial (tba). If you have anecdotes, stories, tall tales, photos, or memories you’d like to share, we’re gathering them for a tribute befitting the absolute legend that she was.”
Pittman gained prominence during the AIDS crisis, performing comedy as an openly LGBTQ+ individual during a time when, as she later reflected, “we needed to laugh.” She performed at the 1993 March on Washington and in the first gay standup comedy video All Out Comedy.
In 1997, tragedy struck when her father murdered her mother and then killed himself. As for during the AIDS crisis, Pittman faced the situation, and the resolve to survive unimaginable challenges, through performance. Her one-woman show It’s All the Rage, performed at San Francisco’s Marsh Theatre, shared how she was able to cope. Pittman addressed that further in a 2012 interview with Hana Baba of KALW (https://bit.ly/3OrVigG).
Pittman later expanded her work to include narration for documentaries and corporate films, consulting and coaching for NPR stations, and co-hosting and co-producing the weekly LGBTQ+ interview show Out in the Bay with Eric Jansen. The show has been re-airing memorable interviews that Pittman conducted, such as with the legendary singers Sylvester and Lesley Gore. Listen to those shows and more at: https://www.outinthebay.org/
You can also watch videos of Pittman, including her entire It’s All the Rage show, at YouTube: https://bit.ly/3Otkpjf
In Memoriam
Published on April 9, 2026
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