Award-winning actor and legendary comedian Bob Newhart has passed away. The comedy icon was 94 years old, according to multiple reports.
Newhart died Thursday at his Los Angeles home after a series of brief illnesses. according to to longtime spokesman Jerry Digney;
Newhart is survived by his four children and 10 grandchildren.
In 1955, Newhart began working as an accountant but realized he wanted to pursue a career as a comedian.
Newhart began creating comedy shows centered around one-sided telephone conversations, and he was hired to do comedy sketches on the radio.
Newhart then became a stand-up comedian. He signed with Warner Bros. Records and released “The Button-Down Mind of Bob Newhart” in 1960, the first comedy album to reach number one on the Billboard charts. The album won a Grammy Award for Album of the Year and Newhart won the Grammy for Best New Artist. In 2007, the comedy album was named one of 25 albums inducted into the Library of Congress’ National Recording Registry.
Newhart went on to have a successful career in television and film.
In 1962, Newhart starred in the Steve McQueen war film Hell Is for Heroes.
Newhart has appeared in famous films such as Cold Turkey, In-N-Out and Elf, and was also a voice actor in Disney’s The Rescue Team.
His television career began in 1961 when he hosted “The Bob Newhart Show.” Though the show only lasted one season, Newhart was nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award and a Peabody Award.
In 1963, he appeared in an episode of The Alfred Hitchcock Hour.
In 1972, he appeared on “The Bob Newhart Show” for the second time, which aired until 1978.
In 1982, the iconic deadpan comedic actor starred in another sitcom, “Newhart,” which ran for eight years.
Newhart starred in the sitcom “Bob” for one season in 1992, then in “George & Leo” in 1997, co-starring with Judd Hirsch.
In 2020, Newhart appeared in episodes of “The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour,” “Saturday Night Live,” “The Simpsons,” “Everybody Loves Raymond,” “ER,” “NCIS,” “The Big Bang Theory” and “Young Sheldon.”
Newhart was a regular on television talk and variety shows, making repeated guest appearances on such shows as The Jack Parr Show, The Gary Moore Show, The Dean Martin Show, The Ed Sullivan Show, and The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson.
Newhart was inducted into the Television Academy of Arts and Sciences Hall of Fame in 1993.
He was awarded the Mark Twain Prize for Humor in 2002 for his comedic talents.
Newhart is survived by his four children and 10 grandchildren. His wife of 60 years, Virginia “Ginny” Newhart, died in 2023.
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