George Wendt, the Emmy-nominated star of Cheers known for his role as Norm Peterson, dies at 76 after decades of comedic television success.
George Wendt, the beloved actor who brought the beer-loving barfly Norm Peterson to life on the classic NBC sitcom Cheers, has died. He was 76.
View this post on Instagram
Wendt passed away Tuesday morning at his home in Studio City, California, according to his manager Geoff Cheddy, who confirmed the news but did not disclose a cause of death.
For more than a decade, Wendt was a fixture in American households, appearing in every single episode of Cheers throughout its 11-season run from 1982 to 1993. His portrayal of Norm — the iconic, quippy Everyman who always had a seat at the bar — earned him six consecutive Primetime Emmy Award nominations for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series, beginning in 1984.
A South Side Chicago native, Wendt’s path to stardom started in humble fashion. He began as a floor sweeper at The Second City, the legendary improv theater that launched the careers of stars like John Belushi, Mike Myers, Tina Fey, and Amy Poehler. By 1974, Wendt had joined Second City’s touring and resident companies, despite having no formal acting background. “Something just clicked,” he told Rochester’s Democrat and Chronicle in 2013.
By the late ’70s, Wendt was on his way to Hollywood, making appearances on shows like Taxi, Alice, and Hart to Hart before landing the role that would define his career. In Cheers, his rotund, affable presence and effortless charm made Norm a character audiences felt like they knew — someone they might bump into at their own neighborhood watering hole.
Wendt often credited his physique with helping him land the role. “One nice thing about being fat for a living is that you don’t worry about losing weight or dieting,” he joked in an interview. “Anyhow, if I lost 100 pounds people would say, ‘Oh, no, not another fat comedian wanting to be a leading man!’”
Despite the close connection fans felt to Norm, Wendt emphasized that they weren’t the same person. “The Norm you see in Cheers has been years in the making,” he said. “I have some characteristics in common with him besides our fondness for beer. But I think I’m a lot happier than Norm.”
Still, he embraced the overlap. “I was a beer drinker long before Cheers,” he once said. “When I put a couple of six packs on top of my grocery shopping cart, people are pleased. I tell ’em I’m taking them home to rehearse.”
Wendt’s career spanned more than 170 film and TV credits, but Norm Peterson remained his most enduring and beloved role — a character that solidified his place in television history and in the hearts of fans everywhere.
