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'Cheers' star George Wendt dead at 76: 'He will be missed forever'

'Cheers' star George Wendt dead at 76: 'He will be missed forever'

Calgary Herald20-05-2025

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George Wendt, who was best known for playing Norm Peterson on NBC's long-running sitcom Cheers, died Tuesday at the age of 76.
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Wendt's publicist Melissa Nathan and family confirmed his death in a statement to The Hollywood Reporter and Variety, telling the outlets he died early Tuesday morning, peacefully in his sleep while at home.
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'George was a doting family man, a well-loved friend and confidant to all of those lucky enough to have known him,' the family said in a statement. 'He will be missed forever.'
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After getting his start with Chicago's Second City troupe in the 1970s, the father of three caught his big break as Norm on Cheers in 1982.
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The role earned him six Emmy nominations, from 1984-89, and ran for 11 seasons, from 1982 to 1993. It was a character he played in other NBC shows during its run, including Wings and St. Elsewhere. He later reprised the role opposite Kelsey Grammer in his Frasier spinoff.
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Wendt, who was uncle to Ted Lasso star Jason Sudeikis, also had a recurring part on Saturday Night Live as Bob Swerski, a Chicago Bears superfan.
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Following Cheers' end, Wendt landed his own short-lived sitcom, The George Wendt Show, which cast him as a co-owner of a garage shop in Wisconsin. But despite his much-ballyhooed return to TV, the show was a flop, lasting only six episodes.
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He later found a renewed career onstage, appearing in Broadway productions of Art, Hairspray and Elf.
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In 2017, he checked off a bucket-list part when he took on the tragic Willy Loman in Arthur Miller's Death of a Salesman at the St. Jacobs Country Playhouse in Waterloo, Ont.
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'If I can manage to pull this off it should be quite a capper in a career in the theatre,' Wendt told Postmedia in an interview. 'It's considered one of the classics and I'd say that's spot-on. It's got classic themes — fathers and sons, big picture operatic themes.'
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Initially when he auditioned for Cheers, Wendt said Norm only had one line — 'Beer.'
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'The casting director, the late Stephen Kolzak, I was in his office and he said, 'There's this role, but it's too small. You can't just say beer.' So he handed me the part of Norm,' Wendt recalled in a 2017 interview. 'It wasn't that big, but it was the guy who always wanted another beer and didn't want to leave. So I read for that and they were interested but I wasn't available, oddly. I was doing a different show. So they had me on the pilot as a guest star and then my other show got cancelled, so then they made Norm a regular role.'

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'Days of Our Lives' cast shot funeral for Drake Hogestyn's character as he was dying
'Days of Our Lives' cast shot funeral for Drake Hogestyn's character as he was dying

Toronto Sun

time6 hours ago

  • Toronto Sun

'Days of Our Lives' cast shot funeral for Drake Hogestyn's character as he was dying

Actor died in September 2024 from pancreatic cancer Get the latest from Mark Daniell straight to your inbox Drake Hogestyn is pictured presenting the award for outstanding daytime talk series host during the 50th Daytime Emmy Awards on Friday, Dec. 15, 2023, in Los Angeles. Photo by Chris Pizzello, File / AP Photo As Drake Hogestyn was in the end stages of his battle with pancreatic cancer, his Days of Our Lives cast mates and creative team wondered how they were going to end the story for his long-running character John Black on the daytime soap. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account. Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments. Enjoy additional articles per month. Get email updates from your favourite authors. THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK. Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments Enjoy additional articles per month Get email updates from your favourite authors Don't have an account? Create Account Rather than recast the part, e xecutive producer Ken Corday went to Hogestyn's family and got permission to conclude his nearly 40-year arc by killing off Black. His funeral scenes were shot while Hogestyn was still alive last fall, but they offered closure to his co-stars. 'Drake, as the consummate storyteller that he is, said, 'Absolutely. You gotta tell the story,'' Eric Martsolf, who played his son Brady, told Variety this week. 'Drake knew what he was facing. He understood that this is a story fans would want to be told. So Drake graciously said, 'Yes, let's do it.' But knowing that this man was on the planet, and we were literally taping his funeral and his death, that was hard. It was really hard.' Hogestyn died the weekend after producers filmed Black's funeral sequence. Your noon-hour look at what's happening in Toronto and beyond. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. Please try again This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. 'There was literally zero acting going on during those three days,' Martsolf said. 'Everyone was holding hands to the point where our hands were getting white.' 'For us, it felt like our responsibility and an honour to do it the very best that we knew how,' Martha Madison, who played John's daughter, Belle, added. 'The fact that we were losing Drake at the same time, it was very hard on us emotionally, as we're losing someone we really love. We didn't really have to perform. It wasn't like we were having to dig for anything. 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Hogestyn joined Days in 1986 as John Black — who Variety described as a 'mysterious and heroic spy, mercenary, police officer, private investigator and secret agent' — quickly becoming a fan favourite. Alongside Hall, Hogestyn helped form one of daytime's most enduring romances. Deidre Hall as Dr. Marlena Evans Black and Drake Hogestyn as John Black. NBC Universal Photo In a 2023 interview with PEOPLE , Hall reflected on the popularity of their Black and Evans' relationship over the years with Days fans. 'We're the couple that teaches you that people stay together through thick and thin, and they stay loving, and they stay sensual and sexual, and that's worth fighting for,' she said at the time. '(Fans are) able to suspend the disbelief long enough to really sink into the story.' mdaniell@ Read More NHL Celebrity Editorial Cartoons Toronto & GTA News

Brownstein: SNL vet Mikey Day making first appearance at JFL as fest pulls out all the stops
Brownstein: SNL vet Mikey Day making first appearance at JFL as fest pulls out all the stops

Montreal Gazette

time13 hours ago

  • Montreal Gazette

Brownstein: SNL vet Mikey Day making first appearance at JFL as fest pulls out all the stops

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US Open '25: DeChambeau's sand save an all-time memory at golf's most punishing major
US Open '25: DeChambeau's sand save an all-time memory at golf's most punishing major

Winnipeg Free Press

time4 days ago

  • Winnipeg Free Press

US Open '25: DeChambeau's sand save an all-time memory at golf's most punishing major

It only feels right that the reigning titleholder at the golf championship that, at least in theory, anyone can win is the player who leans into the role of the sport's most relatable everyman, Bryson DeChambeau. And it only feels right that at the U.S. Open — a tournament built to humble and punish the best in the game as much as celebrate them — DeChambeau earned his title by hitting a shot that virtually no man can hit. A plaque now sits outside the bunker on the 18th hole at Pinehurst No. 2, enshrining the spot where DeChambeau placed his name in the history books with what he called 'the shot of my life' — a 55-yard blast from the sand to 4 feet with the trophy hanging in the balance on Sunday at last year's Open. Defense of the title begins Thursday at Oakmont, getting ready to host its record 10th U.S. Open and a course with a longtime reputation for being as difficult as they come. All of which seems to suit the 31-year-old pro golfer/social media star just fine. His first U.S. Open title came in 2020 at Winged Foot, the course best known for producing the 1974 'Massacre at Winged Foot' along with Phil Mickelson's meltdown in the trees and trash cans more than 30 years later. Then, last year, that bunker at Pinehurst. What would golf's everyman say to his millions of YouTube followers who someday might encounter their own version of the 50-yard bunker shot, widely recognized as one of the most difficult in the game, even under normal circumstances? 'The best piece of advice I give them is, just practice in weird, unique situations for maybe an hour a week, 20 minutes, whatever,' DeChambeau said. 'But try to be different and don't just hit the same stock shot every time.' A history-making shot in a tournament that does not produce them All the major championships have their own personalities. The Masters produces roars through the pines during back-nine charges on Sunday. The British Open is a brittle links-style test where players have to think differently about getting from Point A to Point B. America's golf championship has a reputation for forcing the best players to suffer like the rest of us. As a result, the list of 'greatest shots of all time' at the U.S. Open is a short one: — Ben Hogan's 1-iron on the 72nd hole that helped force a playoff at Merion in 1950. — Arnold Palmer's lash with driver to the first green at Cherry Hills in 1960. — Jack Nicklaus' 1-iron that hit the flagstick on No. 17 at Pebble Beach in 1972. — Tom Watson's chip from the rough on the same hole 10 years later to beat Nicklaus. — Tiger Woods' 12-foot putt at Torrey Pines in 2008 to force a playoff he eventually won over Rocco Mediate. And now, there is DeChambeau's bunker shot. 'When he took this big swing, the amount of confidence that you have to have to hit it that close to the golf ball and not accidentally catch too much ball and send it on top of the clubhouse, it's a very fine line,' said NBC golf analyst Smylie Kaufman, whose biggest brush with pressure came when he played in the final group Sunday at the 2016 Masters. 'They work every single day, every week at these facets of the game in hopes they will have an opportunity to try it,' said Notah Begay, also of NBC. 'I think one of the most overlooked things about professional golf is all the calculation that happens on the fly in evaluating certain shots, which way the grass is lying, where the ball's going to land, and on top of all the normal things.' A tournament for everyone could come down to Bryson, Rory, Scottie Maybe the biggest irony is what the U.S. Open officially sells itself as, versus what always ends up happening. More than 10,000 players signed up to qualify for the U.S. Open which is, officially, open to any professional, or amateur with a handicap of 0.4 or lower. There will be good stories to tell among those who went through qualifying to make the 156-man field: a 17-year-old high schooler from Georgia, a dentist in Indiana who used to caddie at Oakmont. The cold facts: The last man to run the gauntlet of local and sectional qualifying to win the title was Orville Moody in 1969. (Lucas Glover went through sectional qualifying only when he won in 2009.) By the time the sun starts going down on Sunday, the tournament almost certainly will come down to a handful of players who virtually all golf fans have heard of. Though Scottie Scheffler is playing the best right now and Rory McIlroy recently won the Masters to complete the career Grand Slam, it's plausible to think that DeChambeau captures the attention of more of those fans than anyone. He recently surpassed 2 million subscribers on his YouTube channel. He is making golf feel like everyman's sport, posting videos in which he makes a hole-in-one with a wedge shot over his house, plays with off-the-rack clubs to see how they stack up and tries to beat a scratch golfer while playing left-handed. Thursdays Keep up to date on sports with Mike McIntyre's weekly newsletter. All of it sounds nutty, but it all goes back to that piece of advice he offered when asked how to replicate the improbable under impossible circumstances — i.e., a 50-yard bunker shot with the U.S. Open on the line. 'Once you get a stock shot down and you're comfortable with it, go have some fun,' DeChambeau said. 'Do a chipping contest with your amateur friends and throw it in the bunker from 50 yards, or throw it in a bush and see if you can get out. Stuff to that extent has suited my game very well.' ___ AP Sports Writer Ben Nuckols contributed to this report. ___ AP golf:

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