(18 September 1933 - 15 May 2020)
The American comic actor Fred Willard, who has died aged 86 of natural causes, was a ubiquitous performer on countless television shows, although he also appeared in many films. He was never a household name in the UK but was perennially popular in the States. His career began in stand-up comedy including Chicago’s Second City company. He entered television in 1966 and spent the next fifty-odd years on the box. Notable series included The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson, Fernwood Tonight, The Love Boat, Murder, She Wrote, The Golden Girls, Family Matters, Roseanne, Family Guy, Saturday Night Live, Everybody Loves Raymond, King of the Hill, The Cleveland Show, The Bold and the Beautiful and Modern Family etc. One of his early uncredited film appearances was in Jacques Demy’s American movie Model Shop with Anouk Aimḗe. He was in Robert Aldrich’s Hustle with Burt Reynolds, Arthur Hiller’s Silver Streak with Gene Wilder, Ted Kotcheff’s Fun with Dick and Jane with George Segal and Jane Fonda, and Buck Henry’s First Family with Bob Newhart, but it wasn’t until he worked with writer-director Christopher Guest on his series of mockumentary comedies that he came into his own as a movie actor. The first film was Rob Reiner’s This Is Spinal Tap, followed by Waiting for Guffman, Best in Show, A Mighty Wind and For Your Consideration, all five written, directed and starring Guest.
Willard also appeared in Fred Shepisi’s Roxanne, Jay Roach’s Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me, Adam Shankman’s The Wedding Planner, Jesse Dylan’s American Pie: The Wedding, Adam McKay’s Anchorman and Anchorman 2, Jason Friedberg & Aaron Seltzer’s Epic Movie, Amy Heckerling’s I Could Never Be Your Woman, and Andrew Stanton’s WALL-E, alongside many other movies and TV shows, the last of which, Space Force, is still in post-production. In all Fred Willard notched up over 300 film and TV appearances. He was nominated several times for Emmy Awards and won one in 2015 for The Bold and the Beautiful. He was married to the actress and writer Mary Lovell who died in 2018. They have a daughter, Hope.
MICHAEL DARVELL
