Tragedy touches all of us, and the famous aren’t immune just because of their prominent place in our society. If anything, tragedy seems to find them even more often. It’s certainly the case if you look across TV history. Sadly, many actors have passed away while their shows were still airing, and their friends and castmates had to figure out how to pick up the pieces and move on without them. Here are twelve actors who had this unfortunate fate, and here’s to hoping we see less like them in the future.
Cory Monteith (Finn Hudson on Glee) – The most recent shock on this list was Monteith’s death at the age of 31 from a heroin and alcohol overdose. Though Glee is an ensemble cast, he was absolutely the closest thing it had to a singular star, and his death almost prematurely ended the entire thing. Glee still marches on, and the cast paid tribute to his passing in a recent episode this season.
Phil Hartman (Bill McNeal on News Radio) – Hartman is without a doubt best known for his work on Saturday Night Live, but at the time of his tragic death, he was starring on a show called News Radio. Hartman was shot and killed by his wife in his California home, and the show was forced to open its next season with McNeal’s funeral, where it was said he died of a heart attack.
Andy Whitfield (Spartacus on Spartacus) – Even the strongest among us can be brought down by unfortunate disease. Rippling with muscles, gladiator Spartacus seemed invincible, but Whitfield died after a battle with lymphoma. In a rare move, the show actually replaced their titular star with a new actor, Liam McIntyre, and there were two more seasons of the show before it ended.
Lynne Thigpen (Ella Farmer on The District) – If you’re my age, you probably recognize Thigpen from her role on Carmen Sandiego. But after that show wrapped, she joined The District where she died from a brain hemorrhage at 54. The third season finale of the show was dedicated to her.
John Ritter (Paul Hennessy on 8 Simple Rules for Dating My Teenage Daughter) – Ritter is most famous for his longtime role on Three’s Company, but he got back in the TV game with 8 Simple Rules for Dating My Teenage Daughter, starring a pre-Sons of Anarchy Katey Segal and a pre-Big Bang Theory Kaley Cuoco. Ritter unfortunately died during filming at the age of 55.
Redd Foxx (Alexander Alphonso “Al” Royal on The Royal Family) – Obviously everyone knows Redd Foxx from his classic show Sanford and Son, but The Royal Family was meant to be a return to form for the actor. Unfortunately, Foxx had a massive heart attack while the show was filming and passed away in 1991.
Jerry Orbach (Lennie Briscoe on Law and Order) – Orbach spent a decade racking up fans on Law and Order, and was set to move to the spinoff, Law and Order: Trial by Jury. He only managed to film two episodes before tragically passing away after a battle with prostate cancer.
Larry Hagman (JR Ewing on Dallas) – Most will know that Hagman was the star of the ’70s version of Dallas, but he was set to appear in the modern day remake as well 30 years later. At that point, Hagman was a bit old however, and he soon passed away from leukemia.
Nancy Marchand (Livia Soprano on The Sopranos) – A plotline on the Sopranos was cut short when actress Nancy Marchland died in 2000. She was set to testify against Tony Soprano in what would have been a big development, but they had to write her death into the show, and they even used a bit of CGI magic to do so.
Jack Soo (Nick Yamana on Barney Miller) – Jack Soo had the rare honor of having the fourth wall broken for him on Barney Miller when he died of cancer in 1979. The cast took time to turn to the camera and express just how much the actor meant to them.
Will Lee (Mr. Hooper on Sesame Street) – Sesame Street had a dilemma on their hands when one of their own passed away. Rather than brushing over it to avoid possibly upsetting children, they took the topic of death head on when longtime actor Will Lee passed away. The result was one of Sesame Street’s most touching episodes to date.
Stanley Kamel (Dr. Charles Kroger on Monk) – Kamel was Adrian Monk’s longtime shrink on Monk, but the actor passed away from a heart attack in 2008. His character suffered the same fate on the show, and it was woven into the narrative in a touching tribute.
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Jon-Erik Hexum…He was filming the show “Cover Up” with Jennifer O’Neill when he accidentally killed himself on-set with a gun containing blanks.
Sorry–didn’t see your post when I posted the same thing.
Ditto. R.I.P.
I was going to mention Jon, too. Glad to see I’m not the only one to remember him.
When Brandon Lee died on the set from a weapon being used, nobody ever bothered to bring up the same thing happening to Jon-Erik Hexum. Jon was on his way to being a really big star. He would have been as popular as Mel Gibson was at the time.
Cory Monteith didn’t pass away, He was reckless and OD’ed. Why isn’t Nick Colasantos on the list? He played the Coach on Cheers for the first 4 seasons before having passed away near the last few eps and then replaced by Woody for the remaining run of the series.
Cory Monteith shouldn’t be up there with the rest of these guys.
Pretty sure it still means he passed away. He’s up there because he was a beloved character and it’s a fresh memory.
Ummmmm he still passed away, unless you’re REALLY into conspiracy theories.
Can’t believe Nick wasn’t on the list.
I must be old — the first actors to come to mind weren’t even on the list. Pete Duel died while “Alias Smith and Jones” was in production, as did “Freddie Prinze” of Chico and the Man.
2 suicides. and yes, you’re old. I remember them too
First one I thought of was Jon Eirk Hexum (Gun accident on set, with “blanks.” At contact range to the temple they’ll kill you.)
Loved my Jon!
he was nice to look at :)
I’m there with you. I thought of the same two actors. I’m 57 yrs old.
I’m old too. Pete Duel was my first thought.
Loved Pete and only watch him and Ben!
Many notable examples from recent years, and it’s good you went far enough to include Jack Woo from Barney Miller, but you missed an even more important one from the 80’s: Nicholas Cosanto on Cheers. This is one of the most notable, because “Coach” was the gentle “heart” of the show, yet Cosanto died only a few years into cheers’ 11 year run. Coach was a true innocent surrounded by ego cases and nut jobs, yet every character loved and got along with him, even both Carla and Diane. Though he was easily confused and forgetful, he would always come through with wisdom when another character needed it most.
Coach was the regular cast’s only living piece of Sam (or anyone’s) past history, as his former coach, and their relationship had real heart: Sam watches out for Coach who is daft from getting beaned in the head with fastball, and Coach keeps alchoholic Sam from falling off the wagon again.
Cosonto’s parting also left a space for one of the most successful TV replacements, making a star of Woody Harrelson as Woody Boyd, who shared Coach’s innocence and absent mindedness, if not his warm sense of lived in charm. Cheers had a fantastic run with many great highlights, and would add more classic regulars like Frasier and Lilith Crane, but for those who loved the show from the start, there was always a little something missing with Cosanto/Coach’s absence.
I wish Coach had survived and the Diane character disappeared instead.
Diane did disappear and was replaced by a weather balloon.
Oh no you di-int!
Love that
Dick York, (Darrin) Elizabeth Montgomery’s (Samantha) husband. Also Agnes Moorehead- her Mother. Dan Blocker, Hoss on Bananza, Lorne Greene, on Battlestar Galactica. among a few others.
Dick York didn’t die during the run of “Bewitched”. He had debilitating back problems that made it impossible for him to continue on in the role, so he was replaced by Dick Sargent. And Agnes Moorehead didn’t die until after “Bewitched” had completed its network run. However, the original Gladys Kravits, Alice Pearce, died during the series run and was replaced by Sandra Gould. Marion Lorne, who played Aunt Clara, died during the production of the show, but she wasn’t replaced. They just never referred to her again.
Lorne Green, Commander Adama in the Original Battlestar Galactica and Galactica 1980, did not die during the run of the show.
Galactica ran from 1978 to 1980. Green died in 1987.
Thank you for playing.
Nicholas Colasanto
My thoughts when I first started this article went to “Coach”. Woody did a decent job of replacing him, and it gave Harrleson a springboard, but he was no Coach.
It’s also interesting to note that they mentioned Larry Hagman’s passing on the new DALLAS series, but failed to mention the passing of Jim Davis, who played Jock Ewing, in the original DALLAS series. During Season 4, he was diagnosed with cancer and died weeks after that season had ended. The producers decided to delay his characters passing until sometime in mid-season.
At the start of the new season, Jock had been called by the U.S. Government to do some exploratory drilling in South America. Mid-way through the season, he was going to be coming home; but his chopper had crashed somewhere in the jungle. As his sons went to go and join in the search to find him, most of the cast had a flashback moment to various scenes that showed how great of an actor he was. They never found him; only recovering a piece of jewelry that he wore during the series. At the end of the episode, they showed the now-famous portrait of him that would be used during the remainder of the series with the caption: “Jim Davis 1909-1981”
John Spencer (Leo McGarry on West Wing) was an amazing actor who was just starting to get the recognition he deserved.
what about john spencer while the west wing was still on?
John Spencer (“West Wing”); Madeline Kahn (“Cosby”).
Interesting that they included Larry Hagman on the new Dallas but failed to mention his TV dad Jim Davis (Jock Ewing) who died 4 years or so into the original Dallas.
Barbara Bel Geddes, the mother, almost died and had to quit because of a major heart attack.
No Jon Erik Hexum? Shot himself in the head playing russian roulette during the TV show Cover Up.
although your description of his action is off according to the witness, I was wondering the same;
It wasn’t Russian roulette, it was an accident. He jokingly pulled the trigger of a prop gun with blanks in it, while holding it against his head – not realizing that blanks can be deadly at very close range.
I was going to post here and say that this list is missing many high-profile names but some other posters have already pointed some of them out.
Ah, Jon Erik Hexum?
Selma Diamond and Florence Halop, both of “Night Court” passed away within a year of each other, early in that show’s run. The opening episodes of season 3 and season 4 were tributes to their characters.
Perhaps the greatest such tragedy was the death of Samantha Smith, the 13-year-old Maine actress and goodwill ambassador (to Russia) who died in a plane crash on her way home from taping Lime Street with Robert Wagner.
Also, David Strickland from Suddenly Susan.
What about Lee Thompson Young? He was known as ‘The Famous Jett Jackson’ but he was still filming Rizzoli & Isles when he died.
Yeah, he should have been on the list. He died this year.
He is definitely the most recent–I too was shocked he wasn’t on the list (although why was he on the show Tues?
they were filming this current season when he died.. i thought he should have been on this list too. very sad…
Anyone else here know the BBC cult favorite of the nineties, “Father Ted?” The title actor, Dermot Morgan, died of a massive heart attack the day after wrapping season 3. Terrible tragedy…he was a comic genius.
again, british television. Americans don’t care. I didn’t know he had died. loved father ted.
I see others have pointed out some I thought of right away, Nick Cosanto (Cheers), Freddie Prinze (Chico and the Man), John Spencer (West Wing), the two elderly ladies from Night Court. I also came up with David Strickland (Suddenly Susan) who committed suicide, was given a tribute in the season 3 finale, and they went on to do a 4th season. A couple of supporting characters from Betwitched died and their characters lived on with other actresses playing their roles. All the major ones i could think of either made the list, or the comments section.
David Strickland committed suicide after the opening of Forces of Nature which opened at #1 at the box office. Depression is a strange and tragic thing. Everything can be coming up roses, but that can’t quell the feelings of depression.
I was surprised that this list didn’t include Elisabeth Sladen, who starred in the BBC’s popular Doctor Who spin-off The Sarah Jane Adventures. She died of cancer at age 65 while the show was in the midst of filming its fifth season. The BBC aired the completed episodes of the fifth season, after which the show ended.
because we only care about American television
Michael Conrad from Hill Street Blues and John Spencer of the West Wing come to my mind first
Absolutely. Michael Conrad was my top-of-mind as well (“Let’s be careful out there…’)
i remember jack soo dying and that special episode. the show was never the same without him.
That’s so true. His dry humor and expression always put a smile on my face.
ditto…..great actor and one of my all time favorite shows….
Surprised no one has mentioned Marcia Wallace, Mrs. Krabapple on The Simpson, who passed away just weeks ago. Of course, Phil Hartman also had a few prominent roles on the series before his death.
You failed to mention Lee Thompson Young a/k/a Detective Frost on Rizzoli & Isles.
There’s also Diana Hyland who played the Mother, Joan Bradford, on “Eight Is Enough.” She passed away shortly before the show went into production for its second season on ABC. They incorporated her death into her character’s as well and did a great job of how a family has to deal with the death of a Mother and Wife.
Marcia Wallace (Edna Krabappel on The Simpsons)
You missed Trevor Goddard from JAG. (Pirates of the Caribbean Black Pearl too)
Anyone remember Bea Benaderet who played Kate Bradley on Petticoat Junction. The show was never the same after she passed.
I care more about those who died of natural causes or at the hands of another, not suicides.
Or drug overdoses.
Anyone’s death is a tragedy. Mental health issues and drug addiction are illnesses.
Thanks For your compassion.
Anyone remember Rebecca Schaeffer from My Sister Sam? She was murdered by a stalker
One of the most tragic ……..
nicholas colasanto on “Cheers”! that was a very long running show, and he was plenty of people favorite character. woody harrelson did okay in a similar role, but nobody will ever replace coach in our hearts.
How about Brandon Lee? Actually killed on the set while filming the movie The Crow.
Not a TV show. There are quite a few actors who died on movie sets, but that is a topic for a different thread.
WHERE IS HEATH LEDGER???
this was about actors who died while their TV shows were still running, not actors who were filming movies.
Jon Erik Hexum was the first one I thought of.
my age must really be showing for i remember both how Barny miller and sesame street dealt with the deaths of their cast members. plus also surprised to not see John spencer or John eric hexom on the list. though in johns hexoms case the one show he is known for was out of production.
I know I must be showing my age but didn’t the character William Frawley played on “My Three Sons” had to be written out and he was replace by William Demarest. In addition, the character whose name I can’t think of at the moment but he played “Good ol’ Mr. Wilson on ‘Dennis the Menace’ and he was replaced by Gale Gordon.
Willam Frawley didn’t die. He was replaced because he was too ill and the studio couldn’t insure him.
he used to go back to the set and mess with William Demarest until they finally banned him. William Frawley died coming home from watching the movie Inside Daisy Clover
But William Frawley didn’t die while he was on My Three Sons. He was written out of the show in 1965. He died in 1966. The show continued until 1972, but it had already gone a full season without him when he died.
I also thought about Joseph Kearns, the original Mr. Wilson, died of the heart attack and was replaced by Gale Gordon but the show was never the same.
George Reeves?
It doesn’t matter how a person died; the fact is that they’re dead. Just because some of you may not EVER think about taking your own life or allow yourself to become addicted to drugs/alcohol; there are many that do. Just because you cannot comprehend why a person would commit suicide or overdose on drugs does not mean that their life was not meaningful. Stop judging. Rest in Peace for all those who have passed away.
OK, who did Madeline Kahn play in “Cosby”? All these are bringing back such fond memories of a better time and place in the entertainment industry. Thank you for the trip down memory lane.
Tecnhilally William Hartnell would count,but he had left Doctor Who a couple of years before his death. However, what about Elizibeth SLaden, who died while the Sara Jane Adventures were still running?
What about Elisabeth Sladen, who passed away during her run on the Sarah Jane Adventures, a spin-off of Doctor Who, where she first came to America’s attention as the companion of the third and fourth Doctors?
what was the name of the actor killed while filming The Twilight Zone Movie?
Vic Morrow
Jim Davis, John Ross ‘Jock’ Ewing, Senior from Dallas…
The guy who did roll call at the beginning of every roll call on Hill Street Blues.
Michael Conrad “be careful out there”
John Spencer will always be at the top of the list for me. He was amazing on The West Wing..
I remember that episode of Barney Miller. Loved Jack Soo. Mushy Mushy.
You make it sound like Larry Hagman didn’t make it to the “Dallas’ reboot (which was a continuation and not a “remake”)…but he was on for almost a season-and-a-half before passing away…
I cant believe they forgot Jeanne Cooper from “The Young and the Restless”. She passed away just this year in May 2013, but began her career on the show, and stayed on the show 40 years ago, in 1973. She died young at 84. RIP Mrs. C.
Daytime TV? Pfft.
Also as Doctor Who fans know, the lovely Elisabeth Sladen, a favorite Doctor Who companion, died while her show “The Sarah Jane Adventures” were still being filmed. She was loved by all who knew her, and was said to be one of the kindest people you would ever meet.
Dick York, the original Darrin Stephens of Bewitched.
It’s understandable that some of these stars would be missing, since article is titled “12 actors who…” not “THE 12 actors who….” Still, some of the missing ones are notable.
Dick York didn’t die when Bewitched was still on the air.
He just got fired.
Barton Yarborough – Dragnet (both television and radio, as Sergeant Ben Romero) – had just completed the second episode filming when he died of a heart attack. He received a memorial episode of the radio version the next week.
No mention of John Spencer, aka Leo McGerry on West Wing, whopassed away during the filming of the final season?
Patrick Swayze passed away of pancreatic cancer in 2009 while filming his television show “The Beast”
Glad you pointed that one out. I was going to post it myself if someone else didn’t. It’s important for me to note him as I have pancreatic cancer myself and want to get attention to such a terrible disease. Luckily, I have the slower version, like Steve Jobs has. Two very big losses.
That’s right I forgot he was doing that show too. I’m so sick of my guys dying young!
Wrong about Larry Hagman.
He was not set to appear.
We did see him in the new show.
It was not a remake. It was a sequel, an update.
Dan Blocker Bonaza
Brandon Lee while filming the Crow
Also: Michael Conrad (“Hill Street Blues”), William Frawley (“My Three Sons”), George Cleveland (“Lassie”), Bea Benaderet and Smiley Burnette (“Petticoat Junction”), Marcia Wallace (“The Simpsons”), Heather O’Rourke (“Happy Days”, only 12 at the time of her death).
Freddie Prinze was my first thought because I actually talking about him just the other night to my 27 year old son who didn’t have a clue whom I was talking about.
I might have overlooked if anyone posted the name John Ritter. He was great!
Yes and I corrected his costars credits by the author. Ritter’s death still makes me sad especially since his son, Jason has been coming into his own as an actor since his dad passed away.
So how did monteth make this list? All the others were accomplished actors who died unexpectedly or of natural causes. Monteth was a marginal actor who commited suicide by drugs.
Does Suzanne Sommers and Rhodas careers dieing count the same?
Will Geer, Grandpa Walton
Will Geer and I believe also Ellen Corby both died while “The Waltons” was still on the air. The guy that said “Let’s be careful out there on “Hill St. Blues”, John, I forget his last name, the guy who played the chief of staff on “The West Wing” The young detective only recently that was on “Rizzoli and Isles” The actress that Travolta was madly in love with who did the first season of “Eight is Enough” and played the mother is another one who died while the series was still on.
Nick Castellano that was the bartender on Cheers is another one.
Jon Spencer: The West Wing
Phil Hartman will always be Lionel Hutz and Troy McClure to me.
Blasto too.
HOW ABOUT NICK ADAMS FROM THE REBEL SERIES
Wasn’t Patrick Swayzie still filming when he died?
Forgot John Erik Hexum from Cover Up (also in The Voyagers and The Making of a Male Model).
Katy Segal was on a little know, very short run show called “Married With Children” before she did “8 Simple Rules”, you might have missed it. Kaley Cuoco moved on to “Charmed” before “The Big Bang Theory” and Larry Hagman managed to do 1 1/2 seasons of the new “Dallas” before he died.
“Little known, very short run”? Married With Children ran for 11 years and won over a dozen Emmy and Golden Globe awards.
It is Katy Sagal . They misspelled her name.
I know it is a movie but Gloria Foster died during the filming of The Matrix and had to be replaced
Paul, add Ward Bond of Wagon Train to the slide show. A whole country mourned the loss of this wagonmaster.
How are you NOT going to have John Spencer on this list?
How about John Ritter on 8 Simples Rules for Dating My Teenage Daughter? He died of a heart dissection for rehearsing for one of the episodes about 10 years ago. He used to be on THREE COMPANY’S with Suzanne Somers and Joyce Dewitt when I was a teenager about 40 years ago.
go back and look at the list…he’s on there
how can u leave lee Thompson young off this list??? I mean really! he died while season 4 of “Rizzoli and isles” was still airing. u recognize cory monteith here but not lee t young who died a month later..smh pitiful
Hey, what about Col. Henry Blake on MASH?
Blake died, but McLean Stevenson did not.
Marcia Wallace, actress from ‘The Simpsons’
Marcia Wallace as Mrs. Krabappel.
My fav Dack Rambo Sword of Justice, could not understand why the show went off air. Found out why maybe 8 months later, loved that show
Sorry, but it’s not at all accurate to say that Cory Monteith was “absolutely the closest thing (Glee) had to a singular star.”
Lea Michele and Matthew Morrison have both been more front-and-center than he was.
Lest we forget, the legendary Rock Hudson became ill during his role in Dynasty and passed shortly after.
I didn’t know some of these people were even dead, much less been dead for so long. In particular, the guy from Law and Order and the lady from Carmen Sandiego. :/
Nancy Marchand played in the original run of Angels in America at the Eureka Theater in San Francisco. If I recall correctly, she played Roy Cohn in Part I, and I know for sure she played a member of the Soviet Politburo in Part II, bringing down the house with the monologue on theory.
Oops. Sorry. Scratch that. It was Kathleen Chalfont.
you of course mean the 80s version of dallas
I thought Brandon Lee would be up on this list, but realized it were T.V. shows…
How can you leave out Coach[Nick Colasanto] from “Cheers” or Freddy Prinz from “Chico and the Man”
And the sergeant from Hill Street Blues, Michael Conrad. was a big loss, too. Let’s be careful out there.
Will Geer (Grandpa Walton on the Waltons) died during the 6th or 7th season of the Waltons and his death was written into the show (as was the stroke of Ellen Corby, who played Grandma Walton).
I thought their was a actor, I can’t remember his name though who shot himself with a blank in the temple with his prop gun. I think it happened in the 1980’s, I also believe it was a cop show or some such. Would realy like to know!
Jon-Erik Hexum of “Cover Up”
William Frawley (sp) my 3 sons
They forgot Jon-Erik Hexum of “Cover Up”.
I believe Glenn Quinn(Mark from Roseanne) died while the show was still on the air
Dolph Sweet died while Gimme A Break! was still airing.
Joseph Kearns of Dennis The Menace Fame (The original Mr. Wilson)
Alice Pearce of Bewitched (The original Gladys Kravitz)
Marion Lorne of Bewitched (Aunt Clara)
Ted Knight. The Ted Knight Show
Peter Duel of “Alias Smith and Jones”
They missed a few…..Lee Thompson Young being one that died while Rizzoli & Isles was taping. I wonder how they are going to write that in to the start of next season…..maybe died in an accident while on his vacation? I do believe he was “on vacation” on the last episode in January/February this year.
Glad that Larry Hagman was included. In J.R. Ewing, he created one of the most iconic villains in television history. His death was smartly written into the new Dallas and the character got a fitting send-off. TNT is doing a good job with the new version of this great TV franchise.
Epic fail for the omission of Jon-Erik Hexum