Howard Hesseman

Howard Hesseman (February 27, 1940 – January 29, 2022) was an American actor and Broadway performer born in Lebanon, Oregon. His parents divorced when he was five years old, and he was subsequently raised by his mother and stepfather, who worked as a police officer. Hesseman graduated from Silverton High School in 1958 and later attended the University of Oregon. He became a founding member of the San Francisco-based improvisational comedy troupe The Committee alongside fellow actor David Ogden Stiers. Early in his career, he performed and worked under the alias Don Sturdy, a name he also used while serving as a radio DJ at underground FM station KMPX in San Francisco during the late 1960s.

Hesseman's earliest television appearances were made under the Don Sturdy alias, including a 1968 episode of Dragnet titled "Public Affairs: DR-07," in which he portrayed a hippie named Jesse Chaplin, the editor of an underground newspaper, appearing as a panelist opposite Sgt. Friday and Officer Gannon. He also appeared in two final-season episodes of The Andy Griffith Show, credited as Don Sturdy in both. In one episode, "Sam for Town Council," he played a character named Harry who negotiates a vote in exchange for a promise to stock a nearby pond with perch. In the other, "Goober Goes to an Auto Show," he played a counter boy serving hot dogs and root beers. On July 18, 1969, he appeared with The Committee in several sketches on The Dick Cavett Show, including one alongside guest Janis Joplin. The Committee also contributed material to the 1971 film Billy Jack.

Hesseman made recurring appearances on The Bob Newhart Show as Mr. Plager, a member of a group therapy ensemble whose character eventually came out as gay. He also wrote a play about the group therapy characters during the show's sixth season, and his voice appeared as a TV announcer in several additional episodes. He became most widely recognized for his portrayal of disc jockey John "Dr. Johnny Fever" Caravella on the television sitcom WKRP in Cincinnati, which ran from 1978 to 1982. To prepare for the role, he worked for several months as a DJ at KMPX-FM in San Francisco. His performance earned him two Primetime Emmy Award nominations for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series, in 1980 and 1981. He later reprised the character in nine episodes of The New WKRP in Cincinnati, the 1991–93 revival series, on which he also directed several episodes.

From 1982 to 1984, Hesseman played Sam Royer, the husband of lead character Ann Romano, portrayed by Bonnie Franklin, in the final two seasons of One Day at a Time. He then took on the lead role of history teacher Charlie Moore on the ABC series Head of the Class, a part he held for four seasons from 1986 to 1990. His film work during this period included the role of Captain Pete Lassard in Police Academy 2: Their First Assignment (1985), the Chief of Police in the mystery film Clue (1985), and NASA research facility scientist Dr. Louis Faraday in the Disney film Flight of the Navigator (1986).

In 1995, Hesseman made his Broadway appearance in Laughter on the 23rd Floor. That same year, he also played the Marquis de Sade in a production of Quills at the Geffen Playhouse in Westwood, California, a role that included a fully nude scene. He made three appearances as host on Saturday Night Live, one of which included a tribute to the recently deceased John Belushi, and another during which he mooned a displayed photograph of President Ronald Reagan off-camera while encouraging viewers to do the same and send photographs to NBC. In 1994, he introduced previously unseen footage of Janis Joplin in a documentary about Woodstock.

His later career included a role in three episodes of That '70s Show in 2001, a part in Alexander Payne's comedy-drama About Schmidt (2002) as Larry Hertzel, and three episodes of Boston Legal in 2006 as unorthodox Judge Robert Thompson. He appeared in an episode of House in 2006, guest-starred on the 2007 season premiere of ER as a man possibly tripping on magic mushrooms, and played The Chemist on HBO's John From Cincinnati in 2007. He also guest-starred on an episode of Psych as a horse track announcer. In 2009, he appeared in Rob Zombie's Halloween II and the Sandra Bullock film All About Steve. He starred in The Sunshine Boys at the New Theatre Restaurant in Overland Park, Kansas, from September to November 2010, and in February 2011 portrayed Dr. Elliot D. Aden in a season eleven episode of CSI: Crime Scene Investigation.

Hesseman was married to Kathy Mason from 1965 until 1974, and subsequently to actress Caroline Ducrocq for 33 years. He died on January 29, 2022, in Los Angeles, California, from complications of colorectal surgery, at the age of 81.