JOHN MAHONEY
THE FILM AND STAGE VET WAS MUCH MORE THAN JUST FRASIER’S DAD
The beloved Frasier actor’s friends and co-stars, like John Cusack and Wendie Malick, remember his enduring film and television legacy.
It’s a testament to how great an actor John Mahoney was that he could not have been more different than Martin Crane, the crotchety ex-cop he played on Frasier. “He was an absolute delight to be around,” Wendie Malick, who became his TV wife, tells Closer. “He was a real gentleman.”
John, who reportedly died of multiple ailments, including brain disease, at 77 on Feb. 4, was born in England amid the bombings of World War II. He emigrated to America and joined the U.S. Army, becoming a citizen in 1959. He later worked as an English teacher and medical-journal editor and didn’t start acting until he was 37. “I learned by doing it,” he said, spending years at Chicago’s Steppenwolf Theatre before getting his break in 1987’s Tin Men. Scene-stealing roles in Moonstruck and Say Anything followed. Then came Martin Crane.
“Frasier was a classy gig,” said John, who earned two Emmy nods for his expert turn as Martin, who loved his dog, Eddie, almost as much as his snooty sons, played by Kelsey Grammer and David Hyde Pierce. Said John, “I didn’t think for one minute it was less prestigious or artistic than doing a play.”
That sense of professionalism shone through in all of John’s performances. “He found great joy in the craft,” says Wendie, who also co-starred with him in The American President and Hot in Cleveland.
Ironically, John excelled at playing fathers, even though he had no kids. “He was married to his work,” says Wendie. Concludes Say Anything co-star John Cusack, “He always said it took him a long time to find out what he loved — and he loved performing. He was so happy to be there.”
— Bruce Fretts, with reporting by Ilyssa Panitz