Contact Form

 

‘Frasier’ Star John Mahoney Dies at 77


John Mahoney, best known for playing Martin Crane on 11 seasons of “Frasier,” died in Chicago on Sunday while in hospice care, his manager, Paul Martino, confirmed. He was 77.

Mahoney played the father of Kelsey Grammer and David Hyde Pierce’s characters during the show’s run on NBC from 1993 to 2004. He won a SAG Award and received two Emmy and two Golden Globe nominations for his work on “Frasier.” He was also a mainstay of Chicago’s theater community and a Tony winner in 1986 for his work on Broadway in John Guare’s “The House of Blue Leaves.”

From 2011 to 2014, Mahoney had a recurring role on “Hot in Cleveland” as Roy, the love interest of Betty White’s character, Elka. He was much praised for his performance as an anguished CEO in psychological counseling on Season 2 of HBO’s “In Treatment” in 2009.

Producer Greg Berlanti credited Mahoney with allowing him to secure a greenlight for his first feature, the 2000 romantic comedy “The Broken Hearts Club.”

“He never wavered in his belief in me — a first time director,” Berlanti said via Twitter. “And he was even more kind than he was brilliant.”

Mahoney worked in film for more than 35 years, appearing in classics like “The American President,” “Moonstruck,” “In the Line of Fire,” and “Say Anything,” along with voicing animated characters in the “Antz” and “Atlantis” films. He also had guest spots in a number of TV shows including “Cheers,” the forerunner of “Frasier” (although he played a different character), and “3rd Rock from the Sun.”

Born in Blackpool, England, the actor started his career in theater and continued to return to the stage, appearing in “Prelude to a Kiss” on Broadway and “The Outgoing Tide” and “The Birthday Party” in Chicago after “Frasier” ended.

He came to the U.S. at age 19 and taught English at Western Illinois University; Mahoney was already in his late thirties when he began working with Chicago’s Steppenwolf Theatre ensemble, which needed an actor who could play older roles.

Mahoney never married and had no children.


Television John Mahoney, who played Frasier's Martin Crane, dies aged 77 British actor famously played the father of Kelsey Grammer’s Frasier and David Hyde Pierce’s Niles on the hit 1990s show John Mahoney, who has died in Chicago, was born in Blackpool, England. Photograph: Matt Sayles/AP

John Mahoney, the actor best known for playing cranky father Martin (Marty) Crane on the US sitcom Frasier, has died at the age of 77.

Mahoney’s longtime manager, Paul Martino, said Mahoney died on Sunday in Chicago after a brief hospitalisation. The cause of death was not immediately announced.

Frasier, Absolutely Fabulous and Joey: the dos and don’ts of TV spin offs Read more

Mahoney played the father of Kelsey Grammer’s Frasier and David Hyde Pierce’s Niles. The series, a spinoff of Cheers, ran for 13 seasons on NBC from 1993 to 2004. Mahoney’s portrayal of Marty earned him two Emmy nominations, two Golden Globe nominations and a Screen Actors Guild award.

The actor was born in Blackpool, England, but made Chicago his adopted hometown. Beginning his acting career in theatre in the 1970s, he joined Steppenwolf Theatre on the suggestion of actor John Malkovich, eventually winning a Tony Award for his performance in John Guare’s The House of Blue Leaves in 1986.

Mahoney made his feature film debut in Tin Men in 1987, later appearing in films including In the Line of Fire, Reality Bites, Say Anything, The American President and Primal Fear. He was also a frequent voice actor, including voicing characters in the 1998 animated film Antz, Atlantis: The Lost Empire and an episode of the Simpsons.

Mahoney’s recent work included guest appearances on Hot in Cleveland and a 2015 episode of Foyle’s War.

Colleagues and fans paid tribute to him on social media.


1/46 5 February 2018 Philadelphia Eagles' Nick Foles celebrates with the Vince Lombardi Trophy after winning Super Bowl LII Reuters

2/46 4 February 2018 Authorities investigate the scene of a fatal Amtrak train crash in Cayce, South Carolina. At least two were killed and dozens injured. The State via AP

3/46 3 February 2018 Members of security services react as a man in the crowd tries to shake hands with French President Emmanuel Macron, who walks next to Senegalese President Macky Sall in a street of Saint-Louis, Senegal. Reuters

4/46 2 February 2018 County Sheriffs restrain Randall Margraves, the father of three daughters who were abused by Larry Nassar, after he tried to attack the former team USA Gymnastics doctor who pleaded guilty in November 2017 to sexual assault charges, during victim statements of his sentencing in the Eaton County Circuit Court in Charlotte, Michigan. REUTERS

5/46 1 February 2018 Abu Rabih, 65, walks through the rubble with his eight-year-old grandson Yahya following air strikes by regime forces which hit the building where they live in Arbin, in the rebel-held Eastern Ghouta region on the outskirts of the Syrian capital Damascus. Arbin is in the Eastern Ghouta region which has been under government siege since 2013. AFP/Getty Images

6/46 31 January 2018 A 'Supermoon' shines its blood red colors during a full eclipse above the Big A Sign of Angel Stadium in Anaheim, California. A 'Supermoon' commonly is described as a full moon at its closest distance to the earth with the moon appearing larger and brighter than usual. EPA

7/46 30 January 2018 A man wears a mask among fellow supporters as Kenyan opposition leader Raila Odinga (not pictured) takes a symbolic presidential oath of office in Nairobi. Reuters

8/46 29 January 2018 Tractors are parked outside a meeting of European Union agriculture ministers during a protest by Belgian farmers in Brussels. Reuters

9/46 28 January 2018 Bruno Mars accepts Record of the Year for '24K Magic' with his production team onstage during the 60th Annual GRAMMY Awards at Madison Square Garden in New York. Getty Images for NARAS

10/46 27 January 2018 Students with torches gather prior to a march in celebration of the 165th birth anniversary of Cuba's independence hero Jose Marti, in Havana. Reuters

11/46 26 January 2018 A firefighter inspects a burnt hospital after a fire in Miryang, South Korea. 37 people were killed in the fire, with the number of casualties likely to rise further. Kyungnam Shinmun via Getty

12/46 25 January 2018 Rescue workers and police officers stand near derailed trains in Pioltello, on the outskirts of Milan. Reuters

13/46 24 January 2018 Afghan police officers take position during a blast and gun fire in Jalalabad, Afghanistan. Reuters

14/46 23 January 2018 Workers clean the beach of the coastal town of Zouk Mosbeh, north of Beirut, as garbage washed up and piled along the shore after stormy weather. AFP/Getty

15/46 22 January 2018 A Free Syrian Army soldier takes a selfie as fighters join up with Turkish troops near the Syrian border at Hassa, Hatay province. Turkey shelled Kurdish militia targets in Syria and claimed progress in a cross-border offensive that has stoked concern among its allies and neighbours

16/46 21 January 2018 Palestinians take part in a protest against aid cut, outside the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) office, in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip. Reuters

17/46 20 January 2018 Oscar Janicki, 6, participates in the Second Annual Women's March in Philadelphia. Reuters

18/46 19 January 2018 Russian President Vladimir Putin bathes in an ice-cold water on Epiphany near St. Nilus Stolobensky Monastery on Lake Seliger in Svetlitsa village, Russia. Thousands of Russian Orthodox Church followers will plunge into icy rivers and ponds across the country to mark Epiphany, cleansing themselves with water deemed holy for the day. Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP

19/46 18 January 2018 People protest to call for a new DREAM Act to replace DACA in Los Angeles, California. Reuters

20/46 17 January 2018 Pro-democracy activists Raphael Wong and Joshua Wong arrive at Lai Chi Kok Reception Centre after they were jailed on protest related charges following their sentencing at the High Court in Hong Kong. AFP/Getty

21/46 16 January 2018 Skyscrapers Oriental Pearl Tower and Jin Mao Tower (L) are seen from the Shanghai World Financial Center on a hazy day in the financial district of Pudong in Shanghai, China. Reuters

22/46 15 January 2018 Martin Luther King III, US Secretary of the Interior and others wait to place a wreath during an event at the Martin Luther King Memorial on the National Mall. AFP/Getty

23/46 14 January 2018 A boy stands with women loyal to the Houthi movement during a gathering held to show their support to the movement in Sanaa, Yemen. Reuters

24/46 13 January 2018 Diego Martin Duplessis of Argentina drives his Honda during the 2018 Peru-Bolivia-Argentina Dakar rally, 40th edition stage seven, La Paz to Uyuni. Reuters

25/46 12 January 2018 Angela Merkel speaks during a joint press conference after exploratory talks in Berlin. According to reports, the leaders of CDU, CSU and SPD parties after night-long talks agreed on a plan for formal coalition negotiations. EPA

26/46 11 January 2018 A Pakistani girl holds a picture of Zainab Ansari, an 8-year-old girl who was raped and kidnapped in Kasur, during a protest in Karachi, Pakistan. Anees Ansari, Zainab's father, accused the police of being slow to respond when his daughter went missing in the eastern Punjab province. Two people were killed and three others were wounded in clashes between angry Kasur residents and police after protesters enraged over her death attacked a police station in the city. AP

27/46 10 January 2018 India's Border Security Force (BSF) ‘Daredevils’ women motorcycle riders perform during a rehearsal for the Republic Day parade on a cold winter morning in New Delhi. Reuters

28/46 9 January 2018 Members of the South Korea delegation (R) shake hands with members of the North Korean delegation (L) during their meeting at the border truce village of Panmunjom in the Demilitarized Zone dividing the two Koreas. North and South Korea began their first official talks in more than two years, focusing on the forthcoming Winter Olympics after months of tensions over Pyongyang's nuclear weapons programme. AFP/Getty

29/46 8 January 2018 Migrants in a dinghy are rescued by Libyan coast guards off the coast of Garabulli, east of Tripoli. Reuters

30/46 7 January 2018 French President Emmanuel Macron observes a minute of silence in front of the plaque commemorating late police officer Ahmed Merabet to mark the third anniversary of the Charlie Hebdo terrorist attack, in Paris. Rex

31/46 6 January 2018 Nicolaos Solis from Greece kisses the wooden cross which was thrown into the waters by Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I, during the Epiphany ceremony to bless the waters at the Golden Horn in Istanbul. AP

32/46 5 January 2018 Women mourn the death of a family member following a landslide in Kinshasa. Thirty-seven people died overnight when torrential rain and mudslides swept though shanty homes. AFP/Getty

33/46 4 January 2018 Mourners carry the body of Palestinian Mosab al-Tamimi, 17, who was shot and killed by Israeli troops, during his funeral near the West Bank city of Ramallah . Reuters

34/46 3 January 2018 People take part in pro-government rallies, Iran. Tasnim News Agency via Reuters

35/46 2 January 2018 Indonesian bus passengers watch as Mount Sinabung spews thick smoke in Karo, North Sumatra. AFP/Getty

36/46 1 January 2018 People take part in the traditional New Year's Day swim in Scheveningen, Netherlands. Rex

37/46 31 December 2017 Fireworks explode over Sydney Harbour during New Year's Eve celebrations. EPA

38/46 30 December 2017 An Indian muslim lifts a stool with a metal rod pierced through his cheeks to commemorate the anniversary of the death of Rafai Papa Miyan Sai at the Shah-E-Alam Dargah shrine in Ahmedabad. AFP/Getty

39/46 29 December 2017 A New York apartment fire killed at least 12 people, including a baby, with four more critically injured. Mayor Bill de Blasio said at a press conference from the scene that 'it is the worst fire tragedy we have seen in this city in at least a quarter century.' Reuters

40/46 28 December 2017 Afghan women mourn inside a hospital compound after a suicide attack in Kabul, Afghanistan. Reuters

41/46 27 December 2017 Pope Francis greets newlyweds during his weekly general audience at Aula Paolo VI in The Vatican. AFP/Getty

42/46 26 December 2017 Rohingya refugees walk next to a pond in the early morning at the Balukhali refugee camp near Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh. Reuters

43/46 25 December 2017 Members of ice swimming club "Berliner Seehunde" (Berlin Seals) take a dip in the Orankesee lake in Berlin as part of their traditional Christmas ice swimming session, in Berlin, Germany. Reuters

44/46 24 December 2017 Mourners carry the body of 19-year-old Mohamed Sami al-Dahdouh, a Palestinian youth from Jabalia who was killed in clashes with Israeli forces east of Gaza City. AFP/Getty

45/46 23 December 2017 Policemen evacuate a baby after the Cagayan River swelled caused by heavy rains brought by Tropical Storm Tembin. People have died and others are missing as the storm struck the southern Philippines unleashing floods and landslides across a region of 20 million people. AFP/Getty

Total comment

Author

fw

0   comments

Cancel Reply