George Wendt, the best known actor for having played the standard in longtime Sitcom applause, died at 76 years old.
His death was confirmed by his publicist in a press release.
“George was an adapted father, a beloved friend and confidant to all those who are fortunate to have known him,” his family said in a statement. “We will miss it forever. The family asked for privacy during this period. “
He died peacefully in his sleep at home.
Wendt played in Cheers from 1982 to 1993, appearing in all 275 episodes of the successful sitcom. He won six Emmy nominations for his work on the show.
“The standard you see in Cheers has been in the making,” said Wendt about his character. “I have characteristics in common with him in addition to our inclination for beer. But I think I’m much happier than the norm. ” He also added: “I was a beer drinker long before applause. When I put a few packs on my grocery basket, people are satisfied. I tell them that I bring them home to repeat.”
He then played the character of Norm in a number of other shows, including Frasier, Wings, The Simpsons, Family Guy and The Tortellis.
After Cheers, he also directed the short -term sitcom The George Wendt Show in 1995 which was canceled after six episodes. His other television credits included Sabrina The Teenage Witch, Colombo, Portlandia and the Goldbergs.
His film credits included guilty of suspicion with Robert de Niro, Fletch with Chevy Chase, Space Truckers with Dennis Hopper and Forever Young with Mel Gibson. He also played Macaulay Culkin’s father in the black or white video of Michael Jackson.
On stage, Wendt also played in Hairspray on Broadway, playing Edna Turnblad. “It was one of my two favorite roles, apart from norm,” he said. “Absolute joy and entirely different from everything in my world.”
More recently, he appeared in a season of the masked singer and the 2022 festive comedy with the Campbels. He also found members of cheers flowed to EMMY 2024.
