Howard Hesseman Died: What Was His Cause Of Death?

The artist, nominated for two Emmys, died on Saturday of complications from last summer’s colon operation.

Howard Hesseman, who played DJ Johnny Fever on the sitcom “WKRP in Cincinnati” and actor-turned-history teacher Charlie Moore on “Head of the Class,” has died at the age of 81.

Hesseman died on Saturday in Los Angeles due to complications from colon surgery, as reported by his manager Robbie Kass this Sunday.

Two Emmy nominations
Hesseman, a DJ during the ’60s, earned two Emmy nominations for playing Johnny Fever on CBS’s “WKRP in Cincinnati,” which ran for four seasons (1978-1982). The role made Hesseman a counterculture icon at a time when few hippie characters made it onto network television.

The actor also played a hippie in one of his earliest roles, in 1967’s “Dragnet,” and also in Richard Lester’s 1968 film “Petulia.” Born in Lebanon, Oregon, Hesseman wasn’t that out of touch with some of the characters he played. In 1983, he told People magazine that he had done “pharmaceutical experiments in recreational chemistry.” In fact, he was jailed in San Francisco in 1963 for selling marijuana.

Continuing with his musical career, the artist belonged to the San Francisco improvisation group ‘The Committee’, and at that time he was already working as a disc jockey for the San Francisco rock and roll station KMPX on Saturdays. Later on ‘WKRP in Cincinnati’, Hesseman would often improvise his jokes during filming. “It is impossible to overstate the influence of Howard Hesseman on him and subsequent generations of improvisers,” actor and comedian Michael McKean said on Twitter.

Amelia Warner writes all the Latest Articles. She mostly covers Entertainment topics, but at times loves to write about movie reviews as well.

Leave a Comment