'West Wing' Actor John Spencer Dies at 58
Friday December 16 6:29 PM ET
John Spencer, who played a dedicated politico on "The West Wing" who survived a serious illness to run for vice president, died of a heart attack Friday, his publicist said. Spencer, 58, died at a Los Angeles hospital, said publicist Ron Hofmann. He would have been 59 next week.
Spencer played Leo McGarry, the chief of staff to President Jeb Bartlet (Martin Sheen) through the first few seasons of the NBC series. In a sad parallel to life, his character suffered a heart attack that forced him to give up his White House job.
The character recovered and was picked as a running mate for Democratic presidential contender Matt Santos, played by Jimmy Smits; the campaign has been a central theme this season for the drama.
Spencer, who also starred on "L.A. Law" as attorney Tommy Mullaney, received an Emmy Award for his performance on "The West Wing" in 2002 and was nominated four other times for the drama.
The actor mirrored his character in several ways: both were recovering alcoholics and both, Spencer once said, were driven.
"Like Leo, I've always been a workaholic, too," he told The Associated Press in a 2000 interview. "Through good times and bad, acting has been my escape, my joy, my nourishment. The drug for me, even better than alcohol, was acting."
Spencer grew up in Paterson, N.J., the son of blue-collar parents. With his enrollment at the Professional Children's School in Manhattan, he was sharing classes with the likes of Liza Minnelli and budding violinist Pinchas Zukerman.
As a teenager, Spencer landed a recurring role on "The Patty Duke Show" as the boyfriend of English twin Cathy. Stage and film work followed. Then his big break: playing Harrison Ford's detective sidekick in the 1990 courtroom thriller "Presumed Innocent." That role led to his hiring for the final four years of "L.A. Law."
Service and funeral arrangements were pending, Hofmann said.
http://tv.yahoo.com/news/ap/20051216/113478654000.html
The West Wing's John Spencer dies at Age 58
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'West Wing' Producers Face Dilemma After Spencer's Death
POSTED: 12:21 pm EST December 19, 2005
UPDATED: 12:28 pm EST December 19, 2005
LOS ANGELES -- A spokeswoman for "The West Wing's" production company Warner Brothers tells The Washington Post they have not yet decided how to write actor John Spencer's character out of the show.
Spencer, who was 58, died of a heart attack Friday.
As Leo McGarry, Spencer played the savvy chief of staff to President Josiah "Jed" Bartlet, played by Martin Sheen.
In recent episodes of the popular Washington drama, he was picked as a running mate for Democratic presidential contender Matt Santos, played by Jimmy Smits.
In a sad parallel to life, his character on the show, McGarry, had earlier suffered a heart attack that forced him to give up his White House job.
Spencer is in two of the five remaining episodes that have been shot but not aired. The show resumes production in January.
Other television shows have faced similar decisions in the past, including John Ritter, who died in at the beginning of 2003-2004 season of ABC's "8 Simple Rules," and comedian Redd Foxx, who died of a heart attack in 1991 after making seven episodes of the CBS sitcom "The Royal Family."
Other actors who died during the production of a television series include comedian Freddie Prinze, star of NBC's "Chico and the Man," who committed suicide in 1977 in the third year of the sitcom; and Peter Duel, who shot and killed himself in 1971 after watching an episode of the ABC Western, "Alias Smith and Jones."
POSTED: 12:21 pm EST December 19, 2005
UPDATED: 12:28 pm EST December 19, 2005
LOS ANGELES -- A spokeswoman for "The West Wing's" production company Warner Brothers tells The Washington Post they have not yet decided how to write actor John Spencer's character out of the show.
Spencer, who was 58, died of a heart attack Friday.
As Leo McGarry, Spencer played the savvy chief of staff to President Josiah "Jed" Bartlet, played by Martin Sheen.
In recent episodes of the popular Washington drama, he was picked as a running mate for Democratic presidential contender Matt Santos, played by Jimmy Smits.
In a sad parallel to life, his character on the show, McGarry, had earlier suffered a heart attack that forced him to give up his White House job.
Spencer is in two of the five remaining episodes that have been shot but not aired. The show resumes production in January.
Other television shows have faced similar decisions in the past, including John Ritter, who died in at the beginning of 2003-2004 season of ABC's "8 Simple Rules," and comedian Redd Foxx, who died of a heart attack in 1991 after making seven episodes of the CBS sitcom "The Royal Family."
Other actors who died during the production of a television series include comedian Freddie Prinze, star of NBC's "Chico and the Man," who committed suicide in 1977 in the third year of the sitcom; and Peter Duel, who shot and killed himself in 1971 after watching an episode of the ABC Western, "Alias Smith and Jones."
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