Martin Mull, hip comic and actor from 'Fernwood Tonight' and 'Roseanne,' dies at 80 (2024)

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Martin Mull, whose droll, esoteric comedy and acting made him a hip sensation in the 1970s and later a beloved guest star on sitcoms including “Roseanne” and “Arrested Development,” has died, his daughter said Friday. He was 80.

Mull’s daughter, TV writer and comic artist Maggie Mull, said her father died at home on Thursday after “a valiant fight against a long illness.”

Mull, who was also a guitarist and painter, came to national fame with a recurring role on the Norman Lear-created satirical soap opera “Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman,” and the starring role in its spinoff, “Fernwood Tonight.”

“He was known for excelling at every creative discipline imaginable and also for doing Red Roof Inn commercials,” Maggie Mull said in an Instagram post. “He would find that joke funny. He was never not funny. My dad will be deeply missed by his wife and daughter, by his friends and coworkers, by fellow artists and comedians and musicians, and—the sign of a truly exceptional person—by many, many dogs.”

Known for his blonde hair and well-trimmed mustache, Mull was born in Chicago, raised in Ohio and Connecticut and studied art in Rhode Island and Rome.

RELATED COVERAGE

On an unusually busy news day, did the assassination attempt’s aftermath change the media tone?

Celebrity birthdays for the week of July 21-27

James Sikking, star of ‘Hill Street Blues’ and ‘Doogie Howser, MD,’ dies at 90

His first foray into show business was as a songwriter, penning the 1970 semi-hit “A Girl Named Johnny Cash” for singer Jane Morgan.

He would combine music and comedy in an act that he brought to hip Hollywood clubs in the 1970s.

“In 1976 I was a guitar player and sit-down comic appearing at the Roxy on the Sunset Strip when Norman Lear walked in and heard me,” Mull told The Associated Press in 1980. “He cast me as the wife beater on ‘Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman.’ Four months later I was spun off on my own show.”

His time on the Strip was memorialized in the 1973 country rock classic “Lonesome L.A. Cowboy” where the Riders of the Purple Sage give him a shoutout along with music luminaries Kris Kristofferson and Rita Coolidge.

“I know Kris and Rita and Marty Mull are hangin’ at the Troubadour,” the song says.

On “Fernwood Tonight” (sometimes styled as “Fernwood 2 Night”), he played Barth Gimble, the host of a local talk show in a midwestern town and twin to his “Mary Hartman” character. Fred Willard, a frequent collaborator with very similar comic sensibilities, played his sidekick. It was later revamped as “America 2 Night” and set in Southern California.

He would get to be a real talk show host as a substitute for Johnny Carson on “The Tonight Show.”

Martin Mull, hip comic and actor from 'Fernwood Tonight' and 'Roseanne,' dies at 80 (4)

Mull often played slightly sleazy, somewhat slimy and often smarmy characters as he did as Teri Garr’s boss and Michael Keaton’s foe in 1983’s “Mr. Mom.” He played Colonel Mustard in the 1985 movie adaptation of the board game “Clue,” which, like many things Mull appeared in, has become a cult classic.

The 1980s also brought what many thought was his best work, “A History of White People in America,” a mockumentary that first aired on Cinemax. Mull co-created the show and starred as a “60 Minutes” style investigative reporter investigating all things milquetoast and mundane. Willard was again a co-star.

He wrote and starred in 1988’s “Rented Lips” alongside Robert Downey Jr., whose father, Robert Sr., directed.

His co-star Jennifer Tilly said in an X post Friday that Mull was “such a witty charismatic and kind person.”

In the 1990s he was best known for his recurring role on several seasons on “Roseanne,” in which he played a warmer, less sleazy boss to the title character, an openly gay man whose partner was played by Willard, who died in 2020.

Mull would later play private eye Gene Parmesan on “Arrested Development,” a cult-classic character on a cult-classic show, and would be nominated for an Emmy, his first, in 2016 for a guest run on “Veep.”

“What I did on ‘Veep’ I’m very proud of, but I’d like to think it’s probably more collective, at my age it’s more collective,” Mull told the AP after his nomination. “It might go all the way back to ‘Fernwood.’”

Other comedians and actors were often his biggest fans.

“Martin was the greatest,” “Bridesmaids” director Paul Feig said on X. “So funny, so talented, such a nice guy. Was lucky enough to act with him on The Jackie Thomas Show and treasured every moment being with a legend. Fernwood Tonight was so influential in my life.”

Mull is survived by his daughter and musician Wendy Haas, his wife since 1982.

Martin Mull, hip comic and actor from 'Fernwood Tonight' and 'Roseanne,' dies at 80 (2024)
Top Articles
Directions Anwendung & Tipps: Step by Step
Grange Display Calculator
O'reilly's Auto Parts Closest To My Location
Form V/Legends
How To Get Free Credits On Smartjailmail
Victoria Secret Comenity Easy Pay
The Many Faces of the Craigslist Killer
Bernie Platt, former Cherry Hill mayor and funeral home magnate, has died at 90
Xm Tennis Channel
Boat Jumping Female Otezla Commercial Actress
DIN 41612 - FCI - PDF Catalogs | Technical Documentation
Capitulo 2B Answers Page 40
Edible Arrangements Keller
Leeks — A Dirty Little Secret (Ingredient)
Transfer Credits Uncc
Craigslist Pets Athens Ohio
Buff Cookie Only Fans
Conscious Cloud Dispensary Photos
How To Cancel Goodnotes Subscription
Att.com/Myatt.
Aol News Weather Entertainment Local Lifestyle
Www.paystubportal.com/7-11 Login
Southland Goldendoodles
Sherburne Refuge Bulldogs
Move Relearner Infinite Fusion
Jackie Knust Wendel
Bra Size Calculator & Conversion Chart: Measure Bust & Convert Sizes
Busted Mugshots Paducah Ky
Hrconnect Kp Login
3 Ways to Drive Employee Engagement with Recognition Programs | UKG
Jailfunds Send Message
Stouffville Tribune (Stouffville, ON), March 27, 1947, p. 1
Ugly Daughter From Grown Ups
Trust/Family Bank Contingency Plan
Dreammarriage.com Login
Frostbite Blaster
Back to the Future Part III | Rotten Tomatoes
Craigslist Car For Sale By Owner
Flashscore.com Live Football Scores Livescore
Craigs List Stockton
Hannibal Mo Craigslist Pets
Hell's Kitchen Valley Center Photos Menu
Ludvigsen Mortuary Fremont Nebraska
“Los nuevos desafíos socioculturales” Identidad, Educación, Mujeres Científicas, Política y Sustentabilidad
Myrtle Beach Craigs List
Lebron James Name Soundalikes
Verizon Forum Gac Family
60 Days From August 16
Oefenpakket & Hoorcolleges Diagnostiek | WorldSupporter
Prologistix Ein Number
Craigslist.raleigh
Ff14 Palebloom Kudzu Cloth
Latest Posts
Article information

Author: Terrell Hackett

Last Updated:

Views: 6194

Rating: 4.1 / 5 (52 voted)

Reviews: 91% of readers found this page helpful

Author information

Name: Terrell Hackett

Birthday: 1992-03-17

Address: Suite 453 459 Gibson Squares, East Adriane, AK 71925-5692

Phone: +21811810803470

Job: Chief Representative

Hobby: Board games, Rock climbing, Ghost hunting, Origami, Kabaddi, Mushroom hunting, Gaming

Introduction: My name is Terrell Hackett, I am a gleaming, brainy, courageous, helpful, healthy, cooperative, graceful person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.