HAPPY Days star Gavan O’Herlihy has passed away as director Ron Howard paid tribute to the talented actor.
O’Herlihy’s brother, Cormac, confirmed to The Hollywood Reporter that the actor died on September 15 in Bath, England. He was 70.
The family has not revealed the cause of death.
On Twitter, Howard, who starred as Richie Cunningham in the hit show, remembered O’Herlihy as a “talented actor with a big free spirit.”
“RIP Gavan. I knew him as the 1st of 2 Chucks on #HappyDays & then as Airk in #Willow where I had the pleasure of directing him. A talented actor with a big free spirit,” Howard wrote.
In 1974, O’Herlihy appeared in seven episodes as Chuck Cunningham, the eldest sibling, during the first season of ABC’s Happy Days.
Happy Days revolved around teenager Richie and his family: his father, Howard, who owns a hardware store, his homemaker mother Marion, younger sister Joanie, and older brother Chuck, a basketball star at Jefferson High.
O’Herlihy’s big-screen debut came in 1978, where he starred as the former partner of the bride in Robert Altman’s A Wedding.
In 1983, he played the SPECTRE bad guy Jack Petachi in Irvin Kershner’s James Bond film Never Say Never Again.
After his one-season stint on Happy Days, O’Herlihy appeared on such shows as Marcus Welby, M.D., The Bionic Woman, Matt Houston, and Star Trek: Voyager.
He relocated to England to star on the 1982 series We’ll Meet Again.
O’Herlihy is survived by his brother Cormac, siblings Patricia, Lorcan, Olwen, his wife, Juliette, and his children, Rogan, Lonan, David, and Daniel.
Do you have a story for The US Sun team?
Email us at exclusive@the-sun.com or call 212 416 4552.
Like us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/TheSunUS and follow us from our main Twitter account at @TheSunUS
