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Get in touch to send in cinephile news and discoveries. To keep up with our latest features, sign up for the Weekly Edit newsletter and follow us @mubinotebook on Twitter and Instagram.NEWSThe Souvenir Part II.Equity, the British entertainment industry trade union, has greeted the incoming Labour government—the first in fourteen years, having won in a landslide—with demands for reforms to the government’s arts funding.Meanwhile, across the Channel, snap French parliamentary elections resulted in an upset victory for the leftist coalition Nouveau Front Populaire over Marine Le Pen’s far-right National Rally, which had promised to privatize, at least partially, the national television and radio broadcaster, amid other cutbacks.IATSE has released more details regarding its tentative contract with AMPTP, including allowances and limitations around the use of artificial intelligence.Teamsters Local 399 is still bargaining with AMPTP and may still be far from resolving issues...

The great Martin Mull passed away recently, leaving behind a prodigious comedic legacy that included Fernwood 2 Night, Clue and that one scene in Jingle All the Way — not to mention his oddball discography and acclaimed fine art career. Most remembrances of Mull, though, singled out his work in Roseanne, where he played Roseanne Conner’s boss/frenemy Leon.

Less well-known is Mull’s role in another Roseanne-produced project, 1992’s The Jackie Thomas Show, a short-lived sitcom starring Tom Arnold as the unhinged star of a fictional sitcom.

Mull played a network executive who once worked at NBC, where he tried to cancel Cheers before it became a hit. “A bunch of slobs sitting around a bar, who knew?” he asked in the pilot episode.

Created by Arnold and Roseanne, the series featured guest stars that included Roseanne herself, as a crazed fan, and Chris Farley, as Arnold’s younger brother.

Recent documentaries about Albert Brooks and Steve Martin give the comics their rightful flowers for introducing a fresh comic persona to popular culture — the smarmy show-biz performer, polished, unctuous and self-satisfied to the point of absurdity. But Martin Mull, the accomplished musician, painter and comedian who passed away yesterday at the age of 80, deserves to be mentioned in their company.

Fernwood 2 Night, a spin-off of Norman Lear’s Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman, is one of those comedies more influential than beloved — no cable network has been running repeats for years. But catch a few episodes (thanks, Internet Archive!) and you’ll hear its echoes in It’s Garry Shandling’s Show and the mockumentaries of Christopher Guest. Mull starred as Barth Gimble, the obnoxiously hip co-host of a local talk show set in the fictional town of Fernwood, Ohio alongside Fred Willard’s clueless Jerry Hubbard.

Mull was the...

The entertainment industry mourns the loss of a versatile and much-loved figure, Martin Mull, who passed away at the age of 80 following a long and courageous battle with illness. Mull, best known for his roles in ‘Roseanne’ and ‘Arrested Development’, left a significant mark on American television and art as a respected actor, comedian, painter, and producer.

Reminiscing Martin Mull

Born Martin Eugene Mull on August 18, 1943, he developed a spectacular career that moved across various creative fields. Mull was not just a comic actor, he also found success as a musician and painter. He first gained prominence on television through his appearances on ‘Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman’ and its spin-off ‘Fernwood 2 Night.’

Numerous roles followed, garnering him further recognition. The list includes memorable characters such as Colonel Mustard in the 1985 film ‘Clue’, Leon Carp on ‘Roseanne’, Willard Kraft on ‘Sabrina the Teenage Witch’, Vlad Masters / Vlad Plasmius on ‘Danny Phantom...

He was one of the major stars of the 1970s, first as a singer/songwriter and then as part of the iconic Norman Lear comedies Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman and its spinoff, Fernwood 2 Night.

Today, the wit and charisma Mull brought to his craft was fondly remembered by his peers as word of his passing at age 80 spread.

Some of the reactions:

Although I Hadnt Seen Him In Decades, He Was Lit 1 Of Those Who Helped Launch My Career! My 1St Ever Comedy Sketches Were Playing Him & #Fredwillard On #Fernwood @ 5Yo! Always Kind, & A Comedy Legend! #Ripmartinmull Martin Mull, Funnyman & Star Dies at 80: https://t.co/gYo4imDQcn

— Corey Feldman (@Corey_Feldman) June 29, 2024

Martin Mull you always made me laugh. God bless the Mull family. Rip

— Dane Cook (@DaneCook) June 29, 2024

Rip the great Martin Mull. I used to love watching Fernwood Tonight even though I didn't always know what was going on.

Actor, comedian, and musician Martin Mull, known by many as Gene Parmesan, Private Eye, from “Arrested Development” or Colonel Mustard from “Clue: The Movie,” died Thursday at the age of 80 according to an Instagram post shared on Friday by his daughter, TV writer Maggie Mull.

“I am heartbroken to share that my father passed away at home on June 27th, after a valiant fight against a long illness,” she wrote. “He was known for excelling at every creative discipline imaginable and also for doing Red Roof Inn commercials. He would find that joke funny. He was never not funny. My dad will be deeply missed by his wife and daughter, by his friends and coworkers, by fellow artists and comedians and musicians, and — the sign of a truly exceptional person — by many, many dogs. I loved him tremendously.”

Mull was born in Chicago, but grew up in Ohio and Connecticut.

In news that will certainly devastate fans of comedy and prolific character actors, it was announced today that comedian, actor, musician, and painter Martin Mull has passed away. The star of shows like "Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman," "Fernwood 2 Night," "Roseanne," "Sabrina the Teenage Witch," "Arrested Development," "Danny Phantom," and countless comedic movies (including the cult hit "Clue") was 80 years old. The news first broke on a post from his daughter Maggie Mull's Instagram. Her caption reads below:

"I am heartbroken to share that my father passed away at home on June 27th, after a valiant fight against a long illness. He was known for excelling at every creative discipline imaginable and also for doing Red Roof Inn commercials. He would find that joke funny. He was never not funny. My dad will be deeply missed by his wife and daughter, by his friends and coworkers, by fellow artists and comedians and musicians,...

Martin Mull, the comedian and actor known for his rolls in Clue, Roseanne and Arrested Development, has died at the age of 80.

His daughter, Maggie Mull, announced the news on Friday, writing, “I am heartbroken to share that my father passed away at home on June 27th, after a valiant fight against a long illness.” She added, “He was known for excelling at every creative discipline imaginable and also for doing Red Roof Inn commercials. He would find that joke funny. He was never not funny.”

“My dad will be...

Martin Mull, who played Colonel Mustard in Clue, Roseanne’s boss Leon Carp in the ABC comedy Roseanne and starred on Norman Lear’s Fernwood 2 Nite, died Thursday at his home. He was 80.

The news was revealed by his daughter Maggie Mull, an exec producer on Family Guy.

“I am heartbroken to share that my father passed away at home on June 27th, after a valiant fight against a long illness. He was known for excelling at every creative discipline imaginable and also for doing Red Roof Inn commercials. He would find that joke funny. He was never not funny. My dad will be deeply missed by his wife and daughter, by his friends and coworkers, by fellow artists and comedians and musicians, and—the sign of a truly exceptional person—by many, many dogs. I loved him tremendously,” she wrote.

Related: Hollywood & Media Deaths In 2024: Photo Gallery...

Martin Mull, the comic musician and actor who started with 1970s TV series “Fernwood 2 Night” and went on to appear as Colonel Mustard in “Clue” and on “Arrested Development” and “Roseanne,” died Thursday in Los Angeles. He was 80.

His daughter Maggie announced his death on Instagram, writing “I am heartbroken to share that my father passed away at home on June 27th, after a valiant fight against a long illness. He was known for excelling at every creative discipline imaginable and also for doing Red Roof Inn commercials. He would find that joke funny. He was never not funny. My dad will be deeply missed by his wife and daughter, by his friends and coworkers, by fellow artists and comedians and musicians, and—the sign of a truly exceptional person—by many, many dogs. I loved him tremendously.”

Mull was nominated for an Emmy in 2016 for his guest role...

Veteran comedic actor Martin Mull, who tallied dozens of TV roles over the years, including memorable turns on Roseanne and Sabrina the Teenage Witch, has died at the age of 80.

Mull’s daughter Maggie announced the news on Instagram: “I am heartbroken to share that my father passed away at home on June 27th, after a valiant fight against a long illness. He was known for excelling at every creative discipline imaginable and also for doing Red Roof Inn commercials. He would find that joke funny. He was never not funny. My dad will be deeply missed by his wife and daughter,...

Martin Mull, the droll comedian, actor, singer-songwriter and painter who found fame on the soap opera satire Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman and its spinoff Fernwood 2 Night, has died. He was 80.

Mull died Thursday at home after a “valiant fight against a long illness,” his daughter, Maggie Mull, shared on her Instagram.

“He was known for excelling at every creative discipline imaginable and also for doing Red Roof Inn commercials,” she wrote. “He would find that joke funny. He was never not funny. My dad will be deeply missed by his wife and daughter, by his friends and coworkers, by fellow artists and comedians and musicians, and — the sign of a truly exceptional person — by many, many dogs. I loved him tremendously.”

Mull also enjoyed lengthy stints in the 1990s as the befuddled principal Willard Kraft on Sabrina, the Teenage Witch and as Leon Carp, the gay boss and pal...

We have sad news to report today. It has been announced that Martin Mull, the hugely talented comedian and actor known for playing Colonel Mustard in Clue, Leon Carp in Roseanne, Gene Parmesan in Arrested Development, and more, has died at the age of 80.

The news was revealed by Martin’s daughter Maggie on Instagram. “I am heartbroken to share that my father passed away at home on June 27th, after a valiant fight against a long illness,” Maggie wrote. “He was known for excelling at every creative discipline imaginable and also for doing Red Roof Inn commercials. He would find that joke funny. He was never not funny. My dad will be deeply missed by his wife and daughter, by his friends and coworkers, by fellow artists and comedians and musicians, and—the sign of a truly exceptional person—by many, many dogs. I loved him tremendously.“

Related Cutting...

Martin Mull, the droll comic actor best known for his roles in “Clue,” “Roseanne” and “Arrested Development,” died Thursday at age 80.

His daughter, Maggie Mull, shared the news to Instagram on Friday, writing, “I am heartbroken to share that my father passed away at home on June 27th, after a valiant fight against a long illness.”

Maggie, who is a TV writer, added, “He was known for excelling at every creative discipline imaginable and also for doing Red Roof Inn commercials. He would find that joke funny. He was never not funny.”

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by maggie mull (@mulltoons)

She added that he will be missed by “his wife and daughter, by his friends and coworkers, by fellow artists and comedians and musicians, and — the sign of a truly exceptional person — by many, many dogs.”

She ended her post with, “I loved him tremendously.”

Mull...

Dabney Coleman, an Emmy winner whose six-decade career included a sterling run of hit movies in the ’80s such as 9 to 5, On Golden Pond and Tootsie and whose TV work included ranges from Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman to Yellowstone, has died, according to TMZ. He was 92.

Coleman’s career began with appearances on such early-’60s TV staples as Ben Casey, Dr. Kildare and The Outer Limits. Through the decade and into the ’70s he continued to be cast on episodes of some of TV’s most popular shows, with longer arcs on The Fugitive and That Girl.

His big break came with Norman Lear’s Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman in 1976, in which he recurred as Fernwood Mayor Merle Jeeter in dozens of episodes, also appearing on spinoffs Fernwood Tonight and Forever Fernwood. But it was in the early ’80s that Coleman Broke through with a series of film roles,...

Dan Wilcox, an Emmy-winning writer, producer and longtime union man who penned dozens of M*A*S*H episodes including co-writing its record-setting series finale and had many other TV credits including Sesame Street and Fernwood/America 2-Nite, has died. He was 82.

His niece, Julie Merson Rothenberg, told the WGA that he died February 14 at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles. No cause was given.

A six-decade WGA member and longtime former board member who was active in the 2007-08 strike, Wilcox was a fierce champion of unions and equal rights. In 2017, he received the Morgan Cox Award in recognition of his exemplary service to the Guild. Wgaw President Howard A. Rodman said at the time: “Dan Wilcox has been, in a sustained and deeply moving way, a voice for the voiceless. His work, at once passionate and effective, has been on behalf of those who might otherwise lack the...

Norman Lear, the creator, writer and producer of such iconic TV classics as All in the Family, Maude, Good Times, and The Jeffersons, died of cardiac arrest, according to a Los Angeles County death certificate filed today.

Lear died in Los Angeles at 101 on Dec. 5. At the time, a spokesperson for the family said only that he died of natural causes.

The death certificate lists the immediate cause of death as cardiopulmonary arrest, with congestive heart failure an underlying cause.

Lear’s other series included Sanford & Son, Mary Hartman Mary Hartman, and Fernwood 2 Night/America 2 Night, among others. He remained active even as he approached his 100th birthday, winning Emmy Awards in 2019 and 2020 for installments of Live in Front of a Studio Audience, in which episodes of All in the Family, The Jeffersons and Good Times were re-enacted with new performers.

“Norman lived a life of creativity, tenacity and empathy,...

One of the highlights in the final chapter of Norman Lear’s legendary career were the Live In Front Of a Studio Audience specials recreating episodes from his classic sitcoms. He executive produced them with Jimmy Kimmel, winning an Emmy for Outstanding Variety Special (Live) together while also developing a close friendship.

On Wednesday night, hours after news broke that Lear had died Tuesday night at the age of 101, Kimmel opened his ABC late-night show Jimmy Kimmel Live with a moving tribute to his idol and friend.

“Norman was the genius who brought us some of the greatest television shows and characters of all time,” a visibly emotional Kimmel said, listing some of Lear’s most famous series, including All in the Family, Good Times, The Jeffersons, Maude, The Facts of Life; Diff’Rent Strokes; Sanford and Son, One Day at a Time; Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman, and Fernwood Tonight.

“He...

Updated: NBC and Fox posted online the in memoriam card they broadcast tonight in tribute to TV icon Norman Lear. The CW aired the tribute during the Republican Debate. CBS and ABC also committed to airing the tribute. See it below.

Thanks for making us all family. pic.twitter.com/ZUjRhCNZ0U

— NBC Entertainment (@nbc) December 7, 2023

Previously at 1 p.m.: Broadcast owes a debt of gratitude to Norman Lear, so they’re going to show it tonight.

In recognition of Lear’s accomplishments and influence across television, CBS, ABC, NBC, Fox and The CW will simulcast an on-air in memoriam card tonight at 8:00 Pm, Et/Pt to honor the late legendary TV writer and producer.

Lear died Tuesday of natural causes at his home in Los Angeles. He was 101.

The Uber-producer’s series were icons on broadcast TV. All in the Family aired on CBS for nine seasons,...

Norman Lear was a man of modest physical stature, standing a trim 5’7″ on a good day. In terms of his impact on television — comedy primarily, but the medium as a whole — he was a giant, who belongs on any Mt. Rushmore of showrunners. He dominated an entire decade of TV like no one before or since, with hit after hit that expanded the boundaries of what could be done with the old-fashioned multi-camera sitcom format (shot on a stage in front of a studio audience), and what kinds of stories and characters audiences would accept.

Norman Lear, who died today at 101, had been in the TV business for more than 70 years. Along the way, he’d written and created some of the most iconic and groundbreaking shows in television history and worked with some of the biggest of Hollywood’s stars.

After World War II, where he was decorated for his service in a B-52 bomber, Lear broke into show biz in 1950 as a writer on All Star Revue, where he worked with such legendary comedians as Jimmy Durante, Danny Thomas, Martha Raye and George Jessel. He followed that by working on the Colgate Comedy Hour with the likes of Dean Martin, Jerry Lewis, Bob Hope, Abbott and Costello and Eddie Cantor.

Those gigs led to Lear working on The Martha Raye Show, The Tennessee Ernie Ford Show, Henry Fonda and Family and the film The Night They Raided Minsky’s.

But it was the ’70s...

Writer-producer-developer Norman Lear, who revolutionized American comedy with such daring, immensely popular early-‘70s sitcoms as “All in the Family” and “Sanford and Son,” died on Tuesday. He was 101.

Lear’s publicist confirmed to Variety that he died at his home in Los Angeles of natural causes. A private service for immediate family will be held in the coming days.

“Thank you for the moving outpouring of love and support in honor of our wonderful husband, father, and grandfather,” Lear’s family said in a statement. “Norman lived a life of creativity, tenacity, and empathy. He deeply loved our country and spent a lifetime helping to preserve its founding ideals of justice and equality for all. Knowing and loving him has been the greatest of gifts. We ask for your understanding as we mourn privately in celebration of this remarkable human being.”

Lear had already established himself as a top...

Bill Saluga, whose trademark lines that began with “You can call me Ray” cracked up a generation of comedy fans, has died, according to his friend, Eric Brenner. He was 85.

Saluga’s March 28 death in Los Angeles was attributed to complications of heart failure and arthritis, according to his friend, Bill Minkin, who joined with him, Fred Willard, Patti Deutsch, Michael Mislove and George Memmoli in the improv troupe Ace Trucking Company.

Related: Fred Willard Dies: Actor On ‘Everybody Loves Raymond’ And ‘Fernwood 2Night’ Was 86

“He was an icon,” said Minkin, who characterized his friend as quiet and polite when he wasn’t on stage, a stark contrast to the brash characters he portrayed.

Saluga was best known for his cigar-smoking, zoot suited character Raymond J. Johnson Jr.

A frequent talk-show guest, Saluga would be triggered by someone calling him “Mr. Johnson.” Feigning outrage, he then would launch into a soliloquy for his catchphrase,...

Few works of pop culture have a higher barrier to entry than “On Cinema at the Cinema,” but even fewer are as rewarding to new viewers willing to invest countless hours of their lives. Tim Heidecker and Gregg Turkington’s longtime Adult Swim series is ostensibly a parody of syndicated movie review shows like “Siskel & Ebert & the Movies,” with the entirety of each episode taking place on a chintzy talk show set. But over the course of 12 seasons and countless spinoffs, it has evolved into something much, much weirder.

Each episode features Heidecker and Turkington hosting their own public access show about movies, with the two men reviewing films they clearly haven’t seen (a running gag is that every single film receives a perfect “five bags of popcorn” rating). But the real action begins when the reviews end, as they frequently devote a majority of their airtime...

The word that seems to crop up most often in descriptions of both Dana H., the play written by Lucas Hnath, and Dana H., the characterization by Deirdre O’Connell, is “harrowing,” – few reviewers could resist, for the simple reason that no other word seems to come close to capturing the real-life experience that the work chronicled and the effect the telling had on audiences.

Dana H., which ran on Broadway at the Lyceum Theatre last fall and is nominated for three Tony Awards, tells the unlikely but all too true story of Dana Higginbotham, the mother of the playwright, a chaplain in a Florida psychiatric hospital who, in 1997, was abducted by a violent psychopath who’d been under her care. Terrorized, gaslighted, threatened and subjected to horrific physical and sexual abuse, the abduction lasted for five months,...

Barrie Youngfellow, star of ’80s sitcom It’s a Living, died Monday night. She was 75, and her cause of death was not revealed.

The news was confirmed by her family who wrote: “[Barrie] was the best of friends and had many loyal ones. Loved a good story and a nice bottle. Had a great laugh that confirmed her sense of life. Even during her decline, she could shoot off a good one liner.”

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Barrie Youngfellow, who starred in the ’80s sitcom It’s a Living, died on Monday night, according to her family. She was 75. A cause of death was not disclosed.

“[Barrie] was the best of friends and had many loyal ones. Loved a good story and a nice bottle,” the family wrote. “Had a great laugh that confirmed her sense of life. Even during her decline, she could shoot off a good one liner.”

Youngfellow appeared in 120 episodes of It’s a Living between 1980 and 1989, with the series running on ABC for two seasons before airing in first-run syndication. The show followed a group of waitresses working at Above the Top, a fancy restaurant at the top of a skyscraper, with Youngfellow portraying waitress Jan Hoffmeyer Gray.

Born in Cleveland, Ohio on October 22, 1946, Youngfellow last appeared in an episode of Law & Order in 1998. She was also seen over the course of her career on such series as Blossom,...

Robin French, a talent agent who worked with legends including Marlon Brando and Elizabeth Taylor and later headed production at Paramount Pictures in the late 1970s, has died. His family said he had been in declining health for the past few months and died September 6 in Palm Desert, CA.

“Dad left knowing that we love him so much, and that we are all safe and secure thanks in large part to his fierce devotion to us,” his children said in a statement. “He was so smart, funny, loyal, friendly, grumpy, opinionated and just a one-of-a-kind guy. We will all miss him forever, but feel so lucky that he was our Dad.”

French began his career as an agent at Chartwell, working with his father, Hugh French — a former actor who become an agent whose clients in the 1950s and ’60s included Brando, Taylor and Richard Burton — and Jerry Perenchio.

During his agenting days,...

It’s a very happy birthday for TV legend Norman Lear, who gets to celebrate with a bonus present: The new take on Lear’s syndicated 1970s series “Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman” has landed in script development at TBS.

As reported in February, “Schitt’s Creek” star Emily Hampshire is developing a fresh version of “Mary Hartman,” along with Jacob Tierney (“Letterkenny”). After being shopped by Sony Pictures TV to buyers this spring, the project has landed at TBS. The news comes as Lear, who was born in 1922, celebrates his 99th birthday.

“The kick of kicks as I turn 99 today is learning that TBS is developing ‘Mhmh’ and will allow us to make a new version of it starring Emily Hampshire,” Lear said in a statement. “As someone who believes his 99 years on this planet is owed to the amount of laughter he enjoyed through the years, here’s to the next 99. Bless you all!

Schitt’s Creek vet Emily Hampshire has booked herself a trip to Fernwood, Ohio, to star in a remake of Norman Lear’s Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman.

The original syndicated series, which ran weeknights from January 1976 to July 1977, was a soap opera sendup that starred Louise Lasser as a housewife who attempted to cope with various bizarre and violent incidents occurring around her. Lasser earned an Emmy nod for the role in ’76, in a Special Classification of Outstanding Program and Individual Achievement. (In July 1977, the offshoot Fernwood 2 Night, a talk show spoof starring Martin Mull and Fred Willard, premiered and ran through September.

“Schitt’s Creek” star Emily Hampshire has signed on to star as the title character in a new, updated version of Norman Lear’s 1970s syndicated hit “Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman.”

Hampshire will also be an executive producer on the project, and co-write the script with Jacob Tierney (“Letterkenny”), who will serve as showrunner. Sony Pictures TV is planning to shop the show to buyers in the coming weeks.

It’s the latest series remake to come out of the Lear cannon, following the recent critically acclaimed reimagining of “One Day at a Time,” and an animated take on “Good Times” that is currently in the works. Lear and Brent Miller’s Act III Prods. is developing the new “Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman” with Sony, with Lear and Miller as executive producers alongside Hampshire and Tierney.

“Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman” reunites Hampshire with Tierney, as Hampshire previously starred in Tierney’s film “The Trotsky.

Jeremy Stevens, a three-time Emmy Award winner – including two as a writer and executive producer on Everybody Loves Raymond – died of renal failure on October 27 at his home in Northridge, California, surrounded by his family. He was 83,

A Brooklyn native, Stevens earned a degree in theater at Brooklyn College before studying at New York’s Hb Studio under Uta Hagen and Herbert Berghof. Roles Off Brodway led to his hiring in the replacement cast of the original Broadway production of Neil Simon’s The Sunshine Boys.

While working at the Fourth Wall Improvisational Theatre Group, Stevens was offered his first opportunity to write for television, penning sketches for Valerie Harper and Richard Schaal on The Skitch Henderson Show. This led to more jobs, including a stint as headwriter for the talk and variety show, Playboy After Dark.

His next job led to his first Emmy Award in 1972, when he was...

The Emmys are pretty stingy when it comes to giving out posthumous awards. A 2017 Goldderby piece proclaimed that the reason the Emmys haven’t honored the dead is because the voters are not sentimental. I think that’s part of the reason, but I also think it’s just so sad when they do win. To clarify, it’s not that they shouldn’t have won, it’s just so emotional to see spouses, friends, children and co-workers go up on stage and accept the award in their honor.

Remember John Travolta’s impassioned acceptance speech for his late girlfriend Diana Hyland, and “Boy in the Plastic Bubble” co-star who won the Emmy for outstanding performance by a supporting actress in a comedy or dramatic special? She had died in his arms of breast cancer in March 1977 at the age of 41. The audience was crying as hard as Travolta. “Wherever you are,...

Fred Willard was an actor, a comedian, an improv genius and a gentle soul. The performer, who died May 15 of natural causes at the age of 86, was beloved in the creative community because he offered the rarest commodity in showbiz.

“He was a guarantee,” says Phil Rosenthal, creator and showrunner of “Everybody Loves Raymond,” which featured Willard in a recurring role in its later seasons.

“With Fred Willard, when his face popped up in a show or a movie, you suddenly got a little jolt of ‘This is going to be funny,’” Rosenthal says. “There are way more famous comedians who can carry movies, but you can’t always guarantee that they’re going to be funny. Fred was a guarantee.”

Willard was known for playing dimwitted characters and straitlaced, average guys who would say and do unexpectedly outrageous things.

A graduate of Virginia Military Institute and an Army veteran,...

Three days after Fred Willard’s death, Jimmy Kimmel honored the comedy legend on Monday with a Live episode entirely dedicated to Willard’s life and career.

“Tonight’s show will be a special show, it will be a sad show,” Kimmel began. “But we will also laugh a lot as we pay tribute to a lovely and genuinely funny man named Fred Willard.” (The actor died of natural causes on May 15; he was 86 years old.)

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Monday night’s episode of “Jimmy Kimmel Live” was devoted to comedian Fred Willard, who died Friday at age 86. And appropriately, Kimmel began with an opening monologue that recounted some of his favorite moments when Willard appeared on the show.

Willard, best known for his long collaboration with director Christopher Guest, was also a friend of Kimmel’s as well as a frequent guest on “Live.” He not only appeared several times to promote other projects, but also performed as part of the show, appearing in many sketches over the years.

Kimmel talked about that and more in his monologue, which began with a discussion of the influence Willard had on Kimmel when he was growing up. “When I was a kid, I spent a lot of time sitting in front of a TV I had on my desk in my room – and one of the shows I would watch...

Fred Willard, best known for his roles in Best in Show, This Is Spinal Tap, Everybody Loves Raymond, and Modern Family, died of natural causes at the age of 86, according to Variety.

“It is with a heavy heart that I share the news my father passed away very peacefully last night at the fantastic age of 86 years old,” his daughter Hope Willard tweeted on Saturday. “He kept moving, working and making us happy until the very end. We loved him so very much! We will miss him forever.”

Willard first came into national consciousness as the sidekick to Martin Mull’s host on the nightly Fernwood 2 Night. He is well known as part of the revolving troupe of actors – including Michael McKean, Harry Shearer, Catherine O’Hara and Eugene Levy – assembled by director Christopher Guest.

“How lucky that we all got to enjoy Fred Willard’s gifts,” Guest’s wife,...

Fred Willard, the man who brought the art of dimwitted, out-of-touch comedy gold to each of his television and movie performances, is dead at age 86. The actor and comedian died on Friday in Los Angeles.

He won a Daytime Emmy Award in 2015 for his guest role on “The Bold and the Beautiful.” Willard received a Primetime Emmy nomination for the first season of “Modern Family” in 2010 to go along with three others he has in his career for his guest work on “Everybody Loves Raymond”.

SEECelebrity Deaths 2020: In Memoriam Gallery

He first became well known to audiences in the fictional talk show “Fernwood Tonight” starring Martin Mull. In addition to many appearances on such TV shows as “The Bob Newhart Show,” “The Golden Girls,” “Murphy Brown,” and “Roseanne” (also opposite Mull), he has worked with Christopher Guest on all of his movies, including “Waiting for Guffman,” “Best in Show,...

Fred Willard has died.

The beloved comedy actor has died of natural causes.

He was 86.

“My father passed away very peacefully last night at the fantastic age of 86 years old,” his daughter, Hope, said in a statement.

“He kept moving, working and making us happy until the very end. We loved him so very much! We will miss him forever.”

The actor was probably best known for his many roles in Christopher Guest’s films, alongside Michael McKean, Catherine O’Hara, Harry Shearer, and Eugene Levy.

He played an Air Force colonel in This Is Spinal Tap, travel agent/amateur actor Ron Albertson in Waiting for Guffman, announcer Buck Laughlin in Best in Show, and the music manager Mike Lafontaine in A Mighty Wind.

"A fond farewell to Mr. Fred Willard," actress Jamie Lee Curtis, whose husband, Christopher Guest, has worked with Willard over the years, wrote in an Instagram tribute.

Fred Willard, who parlayed a knack for naive characters into costarring roles on the television series Fernwood 2 Night and Everybody Loves Raymond and in several memorable films, has died. He was 86 and his death was confirmed by his agent, Michael Eisenstadt.

“Fred was one of the busiest comedic actors in a career which lasted over 50 years,” Eisenstadt said in a note. “He had recently completed his Emmy nominated recurring role on Modern Family and can be seen later this month in his recurring role as Steve Carrell’s dad in the Netflix series Space Force. Jimmy Kimmel had Fred recur on his show on an average of every two weeks doing comedic sketches until the stay-at-home order began. Fred truly enjoyed every role and gave each performance his own special spin. He was truly a comedic genius.”

Emmy-nominated for three consecutive years for his role as father-in-law Hank MacDougall...

Fred Willard, the Second City alum who delivered Emmy-nominated performances in Modern Family and Everybody Loves Raymond, has died of natural causes, reports THR. The actor was 86.

“My father passed away very peacefully last night at the fantastic age of 86 years old,” his daughter, Hope, said in a statement. “He kept moving, working and making us happy until the very end. We loved him so very much! We will miss him forever.”

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Fred Willard, the comic actor known for his genial but dunderheaded characters, has died. He was 86.

Willard died Friday night at his home in Los Angeles of natural causes. Willard’s daughter, Hope Mulbarger, said the actor died “very peacefully.”

“He kept moving, working and making us happy until the very end. We loved him so very much,” Mulbarger said. Willard has a role in the upcoming Netflix comedy series “Space Force” opposite Steve Carell.

Willard was married for 50 years to Mary Willard, a playwright and collaborator with her husband. She died in 2018 at the age of 71.

After getting his start in improv comedy with Second City, Fred Willard was an astonishingly ubiquitous presence especially on TV but also in movies for decades, almost always in small but memorable roles.

The New York Times said in 2008: “He has become the king of the deadpan cameo, the guy who makes...

Fred Willard, comedic actor best known for “This Is Spinal Tap,” “Best in Show” and “Waiting for Guffman,” and, most recently as Phil Dunphy’s father on “Modern Family,” died Friday night of natural causes. He was 86.

“My father passed away very peacefully last night at the fantastic age of 86 years old. He kept moving, working and making us happy until the very end,” his daughter Hope Mulbarger said in a statement. “We loved him so very much!”

Willard was a master at playing characters who weren’t the brightest of bulbs, a feat he perfected in Rob Reiner’s “This Is Spinal Tap,” along with a number of Christopher Guest’s mockumentaries, including “Waiting for Guffman,” “Best in Show,” “A Mighty Wind” and “For Your Consideration.”

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Guest’s wife, Jamie Lee Curtis,...

Fred Willard, the prolific and beloved comic actor and master of the mockumentary genre who stood out in ensemble comedies like Best in Show, For Your Consideration and This Is Spinal Tap, died Friday at the age of 86.

Willard’s rep Glenn Schwartz confirmed his death to Rolling Stone, adding that the cause of death was natural causes. Willard’s daughter Hope Mulbarger said in a statement, “My father passed away very peacefully last night at the fantastic age of 86 years old. He kept moving, working and making us happy until the very end.

Looking back at some of the strangest cameos in film and TV history, we were struck by how many of them were by musicians. It makes sense. After all, musicians are already out of place among actors on a TV or film set. What they bring to the table is different from what actors bring, in terms of star quality, charisma, self-expression and established personae. If you’re familiar with both the musician’s work and the characters in a movie or TV show (and the actors who play them...

Fred Willard, the Emmy-nominated actor who played clueless characters to perfection on Fernwood 2 Night and Everybody Loves Raymond, died Friday. He was 86.

Hollywood figures have taken to social media to pay tribute to the actor, who was known for such roles as Ed Harken in the two Anchorman films and received Emmy nominations for portraying Hank MacDougall, the conservative father-in-law of Brad Garrett's Robert, on Everybody Loves Raymond and for playing Frank Dunphy, father of Ty Burrell's Phil, on Modern Family.

On Twitter, Jamie Lee Curtis shared a clip from Willard's 2000 comedy Best in Show while writing: "How lucky that ...

Fred Willard, the Emmy-nominated actor who played clueless characters to perfection on Fernwood 2 Night and Everybody Loves Raymond, died Friday. He was 86.

Hollywood figures have taken to social media to pay tribute to the actor, who was known for such roles as Ed Harken in the two Anchorman films and received Emmy nominations for portraying Hank MacDougall, the conservative father-in-law of Brad Garrett's Robert, on Everybody Loves Raymond and for playing Frank Dunphy, father of Ty Burrell's Phil, on Modern Family.

On Twitter, Jamie Lee Curtis shared a clip from Willard's 2000 comedy Best in Show while writing: "How lucky that ...

Fred Willard, the clever comic actor who played clueless characters to perfection on Fernwood 2 Night, Everybody Loves Raymond and as a member of a great ensemble in several Christopher Guest mockumentaries, has died. He was 86.

Willard died Friday night in Los Angeles of natural causes, his agent Michael Eisenstadt told The Hollywood Reporter.

His daughter, Hope, said he passed "very peacefully … He kept moving, working and making us happy until the very end. We loved him so very much! We will miss him forever."

Always amusing, Willard also elicited grins as station director Ed ...

Fred Willard, the clever comic actor who played clueless characters to perfection on Fernwood 2 Night, Everybody Loves Raymond and as a member of a great ensemble in several Christopher Guest mockumentaries, has died. He was 86.

Willard died Friday night in Los Angeles of natural causes, his agent Michael Eisenstadt told The Hollywood Reporter.

His daughter, Hope, said he passed "very peacefully … He kept moving, working and making us happy until the very end. We loved him so very much! We will miss him forever."

Always amusing, Willard also elicited grins as station director Ed ...

Mary Willard, playwright, TV writer and wife of four-time Emmy nominee Fred Willard, has died at the age of 71.

Willard died on July 13, but news of her death was recently made public.

Champion is the one word that comes to mind when remembering Mary Willard and she wasn’t just Fred Willard’s best cheerleader, but she also mentored and nurtured a number of creative comedic writers and actors through the Willards’ Los Angeles-based comedy sketch group The Mohos over the last two-plus decades (which anecdotally I was a part of some years ago).

‘Let’s put on a show’ was an unofficial mantra, and within less than two-weeks time, the troupe would pull wigs out of the closet and brush up pages for performances at the Io West and The Bang Theater and even as far as the Inland Empire. Those trying out sketches at Mohos had the opportunity...