‘Happy Days’ actor Gavan O’Herlihy dies at age 70
“He was an exquisite actor with an extended and distinguished profession in movie, tv and theatre and was revered as a person of directness, sincerity, and honesty,” Michael Emptage advised CNN.
Emptage mentioned O’Herlihy died in Tub, England, on September 15, though his loss of life was not publicly confirmed till Friday.
The Irish-born O’Herlihy was a part of a showbiz household — the son of singer and actor Dan O’Herlihy — and grew up in the USA. When the nostalgic sitcom “Glad Days” went into manufacturing in 1974, O’Herlihy obtained his huge break as Chuck Cunningham, the household’s eldest baby. Chuck was a university jock whose defining trait was a behavior of dribbling his basketball by means of the home, to the irritation of his father Howard, performed by Tom Bosley.
“I used to be going to return in, grunt, bounce a basketball as soon as each couple of weeks for most likely three or 4 years, and at 20 years outdated, that is not the gig you wish to be doing,” he mentioned.
Actor Randolph Roberts briefly took over the position within the present’s second season earlier than Chuck merely stopped showing on this system, turning into the quintessential instance of a personality who disappears from a tv present with none rationalization.
In distinction to his healthful begin on the small display screen, O’Herlihy later specialised in enjoying heavies, together with in Sean Connery’s closing James Bond movie, “By no means Say By no means Once more.” His character, Jack Petachi, memorably used a pretend eye to idiot safety at a nuclear facility earlier than being murdered in a automotive crash.
O’Herlihy’s household didn’t reveal his explanation for his loss of life.
“Gavan was bigger than life and is enormously missed by all who knew him, most significantly by his adoring spouse and household,” Emptage mentioned.