‘WKRP’, ‘Head Of The Class’ Star Howard Hesseman Dead At 81
30.01.2022 - 21:21
/ etcanada.com
Howard Hesseman, star of TV series “WKRP in Cincinnati” and “Head of the Class”, has died at age 81.
The Hollywood Reporter reports that the actor died Saturday at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center Los Angeles; Hesseman’s wife, actress and acting teacher Caroline Ducrocq, told THR he died due to complications from colon surgery he underwent last summer.
Hesseman was best known for playing radio disc jockey Dr. Johnny Fever in “WKRP”, which ran from 1978 until 1982 and earned Hesseman two Emmy nominations.
He subsequently starred as teacher Charlie Moore in the first four seasons of “Head of the Class”, which debuted in 1986 (he exited the show in 1990). He also had a recurring role on the original “One Day at a Time”, playing boyfriend and eventual husband of Bonnie Franklin’s Ann Romano during the sitcom’s ninth and final season.
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A member of the San Francisco-based improv group “The Committee” during the late 1960s, Hesseman (who then used the stage name Don Sturdy) appeared in numerous TV shows in the 1970s, including playing a hippie on “Dragnet”, one of Dr. Bob Hartley’s patients on “The Bob Newhart Show” a psychiatrist on “Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman”, and a prosecutor on “Soap”. More recently, Hesseman appeared on such TV series as “Boston Legal”, “That ’70s Show”, “John From Cincinnati” and “Fresh Off the Boat”.
On the big screen, Hesseman’s credits included “Shampoo”, “The Sunshine Boys”, “Silent Movie”, “Doctor Detroit” and “This Is Spinal Tap”.
Hesseman was nominated for two Emmy nominations, both for his role as Dr. Johnny Fever on “WKRP”,