George Wendt, legend of "Saturday Night Live" and the series "Cheers," has died

A figurehead of American television has passed away. Every American household is familiar with George Wendt, and his face may be familiar to you from his many supporting roles in American series over the past 30 years. He died this Tuesday morning at his home at the age of 76.

George Wendt was part of their daily lives for over twenty years through two series, "Cheers," which is little-known in France, and "Frasier." The American actor and comedian received six consecutive Emmy Award nominations for his role as "Norm" Peterson in the cult NBC comedy series "Cheers."

Wendt's death was confirmed by his publicist Melissa Nathan. "George was a devoted family man, a beloved friend, and a confidant to all who were fortunate enough to know him. He will be forever missed. The family has requested privacy during this time," she told US media .

Born on October 17, 1948, in Chicago, Illinois, Wendt grew up one of nine children before attending the University of Notre Dame and then transferring to the Jesuit Rockhurst College, where he earned a degree in economics. He then branched out into the Chicago School of Improv, where he was a stand-up comedian at the renowned Second City in the 1970s before becoming a television actor.

After numerous guest roles, he landed the role that would come to define him: the loyal bar regular Norm Peterson, whose opening line "Afternoon everybody" became one of the show's fan-favorite gimmicks.

A remarkable member of the cast, he was a pillar of the cast throughout the 11 seasons of "Cheers", described by our colleagues at Le Monde as "like an effective remedy for melancholy" . The entire series is available on Paramount+ in France.

George Wendt later reprised the role in guest appearances on the short-lived spin-off "The Tortellis" and the long-running spin-off "Frasier." After appearing in all 273 episodes of "Cheers," Wendt left to lead his own sitcom, "The George Wendt Show," in which he played a radio host-mechanic. But the show was quickly canceled after a month. It was a flop.

His face is not unknown to moviegoers, since we saw him in "Airplane?" and "Forever Young," in small roles.

He bounced back nicely in the '90s, becoming a regular on "Saturday Night Live," drawing on his Chicago "Southside" roots to join Chris Farley, Mike Myers and Robert Smigel in recurring sketches.

In a particularly odd episode of "SNL" history, Wendt co-hosted a 1986 episode with director Francis Ford Coppola, which was in preparation for the release of "Peggy Sue Got Married." Philip Glass, incidentally, was the musical guest. George Wendt is also the uncle of "SNL" and "Ted Lasso" star Jason Sudeikis .