Popular American actor, renowned for his work on ‘Fernwood 2 Night’, ‘Roseanne’, and ‘Sabrina the Teenage Witch’, Martin Mull, has passed away at the age of 80.
Mull’s daughter, Maggie Mull, who is a TV writer and comic artist, announced that he died at home on Thursday following a long illness.
Mull, also a talented guitarist and painter, gained national attention with his role in the satirical soap opera ‘Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman’, created by Norman Lear, and later starred in its spinoff, ‘Fernwood 2 Night’, where he played the host of a mock talk show.
Reflecting on his father’s legacy, Maggie Mull shared on Instagram, “He was known for excelling at every creative discipline imaginable and also for doing Red Roof Inn commercials. He would find that joke funny. He was never not funny. My dad will be deeply missed by his wife and daughter, by his friends and coworkers, by fellow artists and comedians and musicians, and—the sign of a truly exceptional person—by many, many dogs.”
Melissa Joan Hart, who worked with Mull on ‘Sabrina the Teenage Witch’, honoured him in an Instagram post, saying, “I have such fond memories of working with him and being in awe of his huge body of work.” Caroline Rhea, another “Sabrina” actress, remembered Mull as “brilliantly funny and kind,” stating, “Your impact on the world will never be forgotten. What a gift it was to know you, Martin.”
Born in Chicago and raised in Ohio and Connecticut, Mull pursued art studies in Rhode Island and Rome. He merged his musical and comedic talents in the hip clubs of Hollywood during the 1970s.
“In 1976 I was a guitar player and sit-down comic appearing at the Roxy on the Sunset Strip when Norman Lear walked in and heard me,” Mull told The Associated Press in 1980. “He cast me as the wife beater on ‘Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman.’ Four months later I was spun off on my own show.”
Throughout the 1980s, Mull appeared in movies such as ‘Mr. Mom’ and ‘Clue’, and in the 1990s, he had a recurring role on ‘Roseanne’.
He later portrayed private eye Gene Parmesan on ‘Arrested Development’ and received an Emmy nomination in 2016 for a guest role on ‘Veep’.
Reflecting on his career, Mull said, “What I did on ‘Veep’ I’m very proud of, but I’d like to think it’s probably more collective, at my age it’s more collective. It might go all the way back to ‘Fernwood’.
Fellow artists and comedians often admired Mull’s talent. Paul Feig, director of ‘Bridesmaids’, expressed his admiration on X, stating, “Martin was the greatest. So funny, so talented, such a nice guy. Was lucky enough to act with him on The Jackie Thomas Show and treasured every moment being with a legend. Fernwood Tonight was so influential in my life.”
