Fred Willard

Frederic Charles Willard (September 18, 1933 (In a 2012 interview with the Television Academy Foundation, Willard said he was born on September 18, 1939; that he was "pretty sure" it was in Cleveland; that his birth name was Frederic Charles Willard (without specifying his first name's spelling), and that his father had the same given name, but spelled differently.) At the time of his death in 2020, Willard's daughter stated that he was 86, which also places his birth in 1933 or 1934 (1933 if born in September). Some sources cite Willard's birthplace as Shaker Heights, Ohio, and Willard himself stated that he grew up there. Willard's mother, Ruth ( Weinman), was a housewife.

Willard graduated from the Kentucky Military Institute, a prep school, in 1951 and the Virginia Military Institute in 1955. He was stationed in West Germany while serving in the United States Army.

Career Early career

Willard's stage career began when he moved to New York in the late 1950s. His initial work included a production of Desperate Hours at a local YMCA where he worked with future comedy partner Vic Grecco. They later performed as Willard & Grecco in the Greenwich Village area, found some success touring, and appeared on The Dean Martin Show, The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour and The Tonight Show. They were offered roles in the television series Get Smart and The Carol Burnett Show, but the offers fell through due to poor management. The two parted ways in 1968.

Willard's film debut was in the 1967 exploitation film Teenage Mother. He later reported that the audience at one screening booed when his character interrupted an attempted sexual assault of the female lead.

One of Willard's earliest performing jobs was at The Second City, Chicago, where he shared the stage with Robert Klein and David Steinberg. He was a founding member of the improvisational comedy group Ace Trucking Company, whose other members included Michael Mislove and Bill Saluga. They performed sketches on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson over 50 times, and appeared regularly on This is Tom Jones.

Rise to prominence In 1977–78, Willard achieved wider fame as Barth Gimble's (Martin Mull) obtuse sidekick and announcer Jerry Hubbard on the Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman spinoffs, Fernwood 2 Night and America 2-Night, which parodied television talk shows of the day. He hosted Saturday Night Live in 1978 (with musical guests Devo). He was an original cast member of the popular NBC series Real People in 1979, then again from 1981 to 1983. His early guest-starring roles included The Bob Newhart Show, Laverne & Shirley, Mama's Family, Trapper John, M.D., and Fame.

Willard appeared in several Christopher Guest films, such as This Is Spinal Tap (1984), where he played a lieutenant on the military base where Spinal Tap perform; Waiting for Guffman (1996), playing Ron Albertson, a travel agent who performs in amateur stage productions with his wife; Best in Show (2000), where he played Buck Laughlin, a dog show commentator with an unending stream of bad jokes and off-color comments; A Mighty Wind (2003), in which he played Mike LaFontaine (known for his catchphrase "Eh—whahappen'?"); For Your Consideration (2006) as an obnoxious entertainment television show anchor; and Mascots (2016) as Greg Gammons, Jr. For his performance in Waiting for Guffman, Willard received an American Comedy Award nomination and a Screen Actors Guild nomination for Funniest Supporting Actor. He received the Boston Film Critics Award, an American Comedy Award, a Sierra Award and a tribute from AFI for his portrayal of Buck Laughlin in Best in Show.

Willard hosted the talk show What's Hot, What's Not, which aired from 1985 to 1986 and earned him a Daytime Emmy Award nomination for Outstanding Talk Show Host. In 1985, he and Mull joined up again for the mockumentary The History of White People in America. In 1987, he played Mayor Deebs in the film Roxanne, starring Steve Martin, and Tom Osbourne in the Academy Award–winning short film Ray's Male Heterosexual Dance Hall. From 1987 to 1989 he starred as a bartender/straight-man in Sid and Marty Krofft's D.C. Follies, and was host to the Krofft puppets portraying political figures of the time.

In 1990, Willard hosted the cable TV show Access America on the Ha! Comedy Network. As part of that show, on September 21, 1990, he appeared in episode 7 of the cult public-access television show Decoupage with Summer Caprice.

In 1995, Willard reunited with his Fernwood co-star, Martin Mull, playing Scott, the romantic partner of Mull's character Leon Carp, on Roseanne. The couple married in the episode "December Bride", and Scott became a recurring character during the series' final two seasons. The following year, Willard guest-starred in three episodes of Sister, Sister, starring Tia and Tamera Mowry. Willard played Carl Mitushka, a teacher at Roosevelt High who often spoke popular teenage slang terms in order to sound cool to his students. He had a recurring role as Jamie's boss on Mad About You. He also guest-starred in episodes of The Golden Girls, Married... with Children, Dave's World, Family Matters, Murphy Brown, Friends, Step by Step, The Weird Al Show, Just Shoot Me!, and The Hughleys, among others. Willard voiced travel agent Wally Kogen in the 1999 episode "Sunday, Cruddy Sunday" for The Simpsons.

Sustained success

Willard continued to appear in films including the mission commander in Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me (1999), Basil St. Mosely in The Wedding Planner (2001), Harold Flaherty, Michelle Flaherty's dad in American Wedding (2003), and as KVWN news director Ed Harken in Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy (2004), and its sequel Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues (2013). From 2001 to 2002, he played the father of five children on the TV series Maybe It's Me.

Willard had a recurring role as Hank MacDougall on the later seasons of CBS's Everybody Loves Raymond, which brought him Emmy Award nominations in 2003, 2004, and 2005. He also hosted a VH1 documentary series, Totally Obsessed, about people obsessed with their hobbies. He appeared as Captain Ribmanman in Episode 21 of Channel Frederator, a podcast from Kansas. He provided the voices of nudist family dad Dave Campbell in Family Guy (first in the episode "From Method to Madness"), and of Officer Brown in King of the Hill, and appeared on That '70s Show. On The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, Willard appeared in 100 sketches as a government official, businessman, or other authority figure who was always drinking.

In 2005, Willard voiced Melvin in the animated film Chicken Little, and in 2006, he voiced Dad in the Academy Award nominated animated film Monster House. He appeared as a guest star on MADtv on at least three occasions between 2003 and 2007. He was the voice of a clueless companion to a lazy robot (played by Martin Mull) in the 2001 Dexter's Laboratory episode "Lab on the Run", and guest-starred on the Adult Swim cartoon Tom Goes to the Mayor. He acted in the Cartoon Network movie Re-Animated and played Vala Mal Doran's "father" in an episode of Stargate SG-1 in 2007. He appeared in two episodes of the Adult Swim program Tim and Eric Awesome Show, Great Job!. He also starred as the "Boogey Man" in an episode of The Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy and reprised his role in a 2006 video game and the movie Billy & Mandy's Big Boogey Adventure. His final appearance as "Boogey" occurred in Billy & Mandy: Wrath of the Spider Queen. In 2007, he made a guest appearance on the children's TV series Come on Over. He also guest-starred on an episode of The Boondocks, providing the voice of "Joe Petto."

Willard was cast as a sportscaster in the television series Back to You, which premiered on the Fox Network on September 19, 2007. He played Shelby Forthright, the CEO of the Buy 'n' Large Corporation, in the first ever live-action speaking segments by Pixar in the animated film WALL-E (2008).

Willard completed a sold-out run of Fred Willard: Alone At Last!, advertised as a "one-man show" but actually featuring a cast of twelve, and received Los Angeles Artistic Director Awards for Best Comedy and Best Production. Willard had several stage roles to his credit, including Off-Broadway performances in Little Murders, directed by Alan Arkin, and Arf, directed by Richard Benjamin. His regional roles include Call Me Madam in Chicago and the musicals Promises, Promises, with Jason Alexander, and Anything Goes with Rachel York, both in Los Angeles. He starred in Wendy Wasserstein's Isn't It Romantic and off Broadway in Elvis and Juliet.

Willard played Frank Dunphy, father of Phil (Ty Burrell), in several episodes of the ABC sitcom Modern Family. For his performance, he was nominated at the 62nd Primetime Emmy Awards for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series and in the same category at the 72nd Primetime Creative Arts Emmy Awards, a posthumous nomination.

On September 16, 2011, Willard was honored as a Pioneer in Comedy at Burbank International Film Festival. Also in 2011, Willard starred as "Santa Jack," a comical—and somewhat pervy—owner of a local Christmas carnival in episode 12 of the final season of The Closer.

In 2012, Willard played Al Kaiser in Rob Reiner's film The Magic of Belle Isle. In 2013, he starred in The Bird Men (originally called The Birder) alongside Tom Cavanagh, a film centered around a mild-mannered birder who seeks revenge on a younger rival, after losing the highly coveted Head of Ornithology position at the National Park. In 2014, he voiced Secretary of the Interior in the animated film Planes: Fire & Rescue.

Pacific Pioneer Broadcasters presented Willard with the Art Gilmore Career Achievement Award at their celebrity luncheon on June 19, 2015.

On August 10, 2018, Willard made a special guest appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live!, reprising his role from a 1970s television pilot for an unmade series called Space Force, in light of President Donald Trump's announcement that he will create a space force for the United States military. Following the sketch, Willard made guest appearances on the show on a frequent basis, often portraying comedic, misguided characters parodying current news topics which Jimmy would interview "live via satellite". The characters included the ghosts of Fred Trump and George Washington, a Trump-supporting Santa Claus, and Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

On October 23, 2019, it was announced that Willard was cast as Fred Naird in the 2020 Netflix comedy series, Space Force. This was Willard's final acting role, with the series being released two weeks after his death.

Willard's final voice-acting performance was in the 2017 Disney animated cartoon Mickey and the Roadster Racers as the character Mr. Doozy.

Willard's final role was in the 2021 television film Captain Daddy, where he played the role of Daddy, it was released in the summer a year after his death.

Personal life and death

Marriage and family In 1968, Willard married Mary Lovell (1947–2018). They had a daughter and a grandson.

Legal issues On July 18, 2012, Willard was arrested on suspicion of engaging in masturbation at the Tiki Adult Theater on Santa Monica Boulevard and was brought to the Los Angeles Police Department's Hollywood Station. However, there was no proof of any misconduct and no charges were filed. Despite the outcomes, PBS fired Willard from Market Warriors immediately following his arrest, and Mark L. Walberg replaced him on the show. In an appearance on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon shortly thereafter, Willard stated that the incident was "very painful" and "very embarrassing," but that he "did nothing wrong." Willard was subsequently required to take a sex education diversion program.

Death Willard died at his home in Los Angeles on May 15, 2020, at age 86, according to his daughter and his representative. His cause of death was reported as cardiac arrest, with coronary artery disease and myelodysplastic syndrome as contributing factors. Jamie Lee Curtis and her husband Christopher Guest, who frequently worked with Willard, were the first to reveal the news of his death.

Filmography

Film Year Title Role Notes 1967 Teenage Mother Coach 1969 Model Shop Gas Station Attendant Uncredited 1970 Jenny Executive 1971 Dynamite Chicken Self Ace Trucking Co. 1973 The Harrad Experiment Ace Trucking Company employee Uncredited 1974 Harrad Summer 1975 Hustle Interrogator 1976 Chesty Anderson, USN Peter Linden Silver Streak Jerry Jarvis 1977 Fun with Dick and Jane Bob Cracking Up Various 1979 Americathon Vincent Vanderhoff 1980 How to Beat the High Co$t of Living Robert First Family Presidential Assistant Feebleman 1982 National Lampoon's Movie Madness President Robert Fogerty 1983 IMPS* Dad (segment "3-Mile Island People") 1984 This Is Spinal Tap Lt. Bob Hookstratten 1985 Moving Violations Terrence 'Doc' Williams 1987 Roxanne Mayor Deebs Ray's Male Heterosexual Dance Hall Tom Osborne Short 1988 Portrait of a White Marriage Hal Harrison 1991 High Strung Insurance Salesman 1995 Prehysteria! 3 Thomas MacGregor 1996 Waiting for Guffman Ron Albertson 1998 Permanent Midnight Craig Ziffer 1999 Elvis is Alive! Interviewee Can't Stop Dancing Chester Idle Hands Dad Tobias Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me Mission Commander 2000 Dropping Out Paul Blanchard Chump Change Steve's Manager Best in Show Buck Laughlin 2001 Basil St. Mosely Teddy Bears' Picnic Senator Roger Dickey How High Philip Huntley 2002 The Year That Trembled Frank Woods 2003 Mike LaFontaine American Wedding Harold Flaherty Nobody Knows Anything! Mr. McClintock 2004 Killer Diller Ned 50 Ways to Leave Your Lover Bucky Brandt Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle Dr. Willoughby Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy Edward "Ed" Harken Wake Up, Ron Burgundy: The Lost Movie Direct-to-videoThe Nutcracker and the Mouse KingBubbleVoice 2005 Chicken Little Melvin Voice Pen 'n' Inc. Ralph Television film 1981–1986 Various roles 3 episodes 1982 SCTV Network Himself Episode: "Indecent Exposure" Madame's Place Himself Episode: "The Prey of Madness" 1984 Mama's Family Willie Potts Episode: "Mama Buys a Car" Trapper John, M.D. K.K. Laird Episode: "Moonlighting Becomes You" 1985 Hal Harrison Television film Getting the Last Laugh ABC Special George Burns Comedy Week Fred Episode: "Home for Dinner" Lots of Luck A.J. Foley Television film Faerie Tale Theatre Paul Link Episode: "The Three Little Pigs" 1985–1986 What's Hot, What's Not Himself (host) Nominated—Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Talk Show Host 1986 Fast Times Gus Pantelis Episode: "Secret Romance" Hal Harrison Television film 1987 Fame Casper Wintergreen Episode: "Ian's Girl" 1987–1989 D.C. Follies The Bartender 19 episodes 1988 Out of This World Milton Wiler Episode: "The Box Is Missing" My Secret Identity Ray Bennett Episode: "For Old Time's Sake" 1989 I, Martin Short, Goes Hollywood Psychiatrist Television special 1991 The Golden Girls Bob Episode: "Dateline:Miami" Nurses Crazy Jim "Dr. Robinson" Episode: "Friends and Lovers" 1992 Married... with Children Stan Mandelson Episode: "My Dinner with Anthrax" Dream On Fenton Harley Episode: "Up All Night" 1993 The Ben Stiller Show Dad Episode: "At the Beach" The Jackie Thomas Show Hatfield Walker 2 episodes 1994 Sodbusters Clarence Gentry Television film Dave's World Bud Episode: "Just Kidding" Hart to Hart: Old Friends Never Die Reginald Cobbles Television film 1994–1996 Family Matters Vice Principal Mallet 3 episodes 1995 The Mommies John Episode: "The Dating Pool" Murphy Brown Dick Episode: "Dick and Dottie" 1995–1997 Roseanne Scott 8 episodes 1996 Back to Back Loan Officer Television film Friends Mr. Lipson Episode: "The One After the Super Bowl: Part 1" Clueless Joe Pasadine Episode: "City Beautification" Sister, Sister Mr. Mitushka 3 episodes The Spooktacular New Adventures of Casper Wally Winkle Voice, 1 episode 1996–1997 Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman President Garner 3 episodes 1996 Saved by the Bell: The New Class Mr. Huffington Episode: "Stealing Screech" 1997Muppets Tonight Himself Episode: "Coolio & Don Rickles"; cameo Diagnosis: Murder Harry Fellows Episode: "Must Kill TV" Step by Step Bert Lambert Episode: "Girls Just Wanna Have Fun" The Weird Al Show Award Show Host Episode: "The Competition" Breast Men Talk Show Host Television film; uncredited 1998 The Wayans Bros. Dick Ferndale Episode: "All in the Family Feud" Sabrina the Teenage Witch Bobby Calzone Episode: "Rumor Mill" Oh Baby Dr. Foster Episode: "The Vacation" Two Guys and a Girl Frank Farber Episode: "Two Guys, a Girl and a Vacation" City Guys Mr. Brown Episode: "A Noble Profession" 1998–1999 Mad About You Henry Vincent 5 episodes Hercules Vic Voice, 4 episodes 1999 The Pooch and the Pauper President Television filmPinky, Elmyra & the BrainGlen TarantellaVoice, episode: "Mr. Doctor" Professor Ed Warmer