# Actors who died during filming/series **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [July 25, 2005, 12:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-who-died-during-filming-series/314035 "2005-07-25T12:10:22Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2005, 3:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-who-died-during-filming-series/314035/21 "2005-07-25T15:06:20Z")
Not sure if this really counts, but Peter Sellers died during the planning of a movie in the _Pink Panther_ series (to be called _Romance of the Pink Panther_); but the writer/director still went on to make another (different) movie (_Trail of the Pink Panther_) anyway, out of deleted scenes, outtakes etc from the other films. ---
**Author:** ![Revtim](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/revtim/32/1042_2.png) [@Revtim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revtim)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2005, 3:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-who-died-during-filming-series/314035/22 "2005-07-25T15:10:54Z")
It’s tempting to say Rebecca Schaeffer from “My Sister Sam”, who was murdered by a crazy fan, but she was killed about a year after the show was cancelled. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2005, 3:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-who-died-during-filming-series/314035/23 "2005-07-25T15:11:53Z")
Dermot Morgan died very close to the end of filming of the last episode in (what turned out to be) the last series of _Father Ted_. ---
**Author:** ![F.U.Shakespeare](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/aca169/32.png) [@F.U.Shakespeare](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/F.U.Shakespeare)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2005, 3:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-who-died-during-filming-series/314035/24 "2005-07-25T15:25:49Z")
They may not technically be actors, but in 1973, **Wally Cox** died while doing the Hollywood Squares (Peter Marshall taped a poignant farewell that ran at the start of the subsequent show), and **Dave Akeman** , known as “Stringbean” on ‘Hee Haw’, was killed by burglars. ---
**Author:** ![seosamh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ce7236/32.png) [@seosamh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/seosamh)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2005, 4:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-who-died-during-filming-series/314035/25 "2005-07-25T16:27:22Z")
**Roy Kinnear** died during the filming of Dick “Don’t Call Me Dick” Lester’s Return of the Musketeers. He fell off a horse. ---
**Author:** ![Zeldar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/b77776/32.png) [@Zeldar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zeldar)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2005, 4:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-who-died-during-filming-series/314035/26 "2005-07-25T16:46:08Z")
Nancy Marchand died between seasons of _The Sopranos_ but the writers had included her in the plot developments of the coming season. They used some outtakes, a body double, and a good deal of rewriting to have her “die” within the season and to have her death provide a new dynamic to the show. It doesn’t take a great deal of scrutiny to see how makeshift the reshooting was, but even so it cost them a great deal to do. Gandolfini’s hair and shape were giveaways that this was after-the-fact recovery. ---
**Author:** ![An\_Arky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/87869e/32.png) [@An\_Arky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/An_Arky)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2005, 4:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-who-died-during-filming-series/314035/27 "2005-07-25T16:53:16Z")
**Najai “Nitro” Turpin** died after taping _The Contender_ (boxing reality show), but before the show aired. Does that count? ---
**Author:** ![Papermache\_Prince](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/f05b48/32.png) [@Papermache\_Prince](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Papermache_Prince)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2005, 5:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-who-died-during-filming-series/314035/28 "2005-07-25T17:00:58Z")
Wally Cox was definitely [an actor](http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0185281/?fr=c2l0ZT1kZnxteD0yMHxsbT01MDB8dHQ9MXxmYj11fHBuPTB8cT1jb3guIHdhbGx5fGh0bWw9MXxubT0x;fc=1;ft=20;fm=1). He starred in his own sit-com in 1952, _Mr. Peepers_, and later did the voice of Underdog. ---
**Author:** ![Otto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Otto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Otto)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2005, 5:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-who-died-during-filming-series/314035/29 "2005-07-25T17:13:57Z")
Madeline Kahn died in 1999 while a regular on _Cosby_. I didn’t watch the show so I don’t know if any sort of replacement character was introduced. (But she (and John Candy) have a [movie](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0113735/combined) coming out this year) ---
**Author:** ![BobT](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/8e8cbc/32.png) [@BobT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobT)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2005, 5:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-who-died-during-filming-series/314035/30 "2005-07-25T17:15:46Z")
> [@Papermache Prince](#): > > Wally Cox was definitely [an actor](http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0185281/?fr=c2l0ZT1kZnxteD0yMHxsbT01MDB8dHQ9MXxmYj11fHBuPTB8cT1jb3guIHdhbGx5fGh0bWw9MXxubT0x;fc=1;ft=20;fm=1). He starred in his own sit-com in 1952, _Mr. Peepers_, and later did the voice of Underdog. Wally Cox was also a good friend of Marlon Brando. I remember when he died and was shocked to find out how young he was. He must have done some hard living. ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2005, 5:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-who-died-during-filming-series/314035/31 "2005-07-25T17:27:36Z")
Will Lee, better known as Mr. Harold Hooper. ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2005, 5:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-who-died-during-filming-series/314035/32 "2005-07-25T17:36:35Z")
Well, Phil Hartman, natch, during the run of _NewsRadio_. As a minor and tortured coincidence, in one episode of _Futurama_, Zapp Branigan (who would’ve been voiced by Hartman, had he lived) looks on while aliens vaporize a character named McNeal, the same name as Hartman’s character on _NewsRadio_. ---
**Author:** ![wonky](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wonky/32/393_2.png) [@wonky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wonky)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2005, 5:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-who-died-during-filming-series/314035/33 "2005-07-25T17:59:13Z")
Jack Soo died during the run of “Barney Miller.” It’s the first death of an actor during a show that I can remember. I loved that show. I loved that character. Ah me. Dolph Sweet died during the run of “Gimme a Break!” ---
**Author:** ![souroranges](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/3e96dc/32.png) [@souroranges](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/souroranges)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2005, 6:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-who-died-during-filming-series/314035/34 "2005-07-25T18:03:05Z")
Just out of random memory: The grandfather on My Three Sons ( I believe Ethel’s husband on " I Love Lucy" ) died during production on the show and was replaced. The rising singer and actor, Aliya (named probably spelled wrong) I believed died in a plane crash accident during the movie “Queen of the Damned”. They used voice samples, and I believe doubles to finish her role. Also, she was in contracts to be now Jada Pinkett Smith’s character in The Matrix Reloaded/Revolutions. First Post: BOO YAH!!! ---
**Author:** ![Troy\_McClure\_SF](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/troy_mcclure_sf/32/4150_2.png) [@Troy\_McClure\_SF](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Troy_McClure_SF)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2005, 6:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-who-died-during-filming-series/314035/35 "2005-07-25T18:30:15Z")
> [@Bryan Ekers](#): > > Well, Phil Hartman, natch, during the run of _NewsRadio_. Plus Lionel Hutz and, well, me. ---
**Author:** ![Mirror\_Image\_egamI\_rorriM](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e56c9b/32.png) [@Mirror\_Image\_egamI\_rorriM](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mirror_Image_egamI_rorriM)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2005, 6:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-who-died-during-filming-series/314035/36 "2005-07-25T18:36:01Z")
> [@souroranges](#): > > The rising singer and actor, Aliya (named probably spelled wrong) I believed died in a plane crash accident during the movie “Queen of the Damned”. They used voice samples, and I believe doubles to finish her role. Also, she was in contracts to be now Jada Pinkett Smith’s character in The Matrix Reloaded/Revolutions. Aaliyah. And they used her brother to do the voice samples. From [IMDB.com](http://IMDB.com): “Aaliyah died in a plane crash shortly after principal photography was completed. Michael Rymer called in Aaliyah’s brother, Rashad Haughton, to help overdubbing her voice following her death.” ---
**Author:** ![zev\_steinhardt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/97f17d/32.png) [@zev\_steinhardt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zev_steinhardt)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2005, 6:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-who-died-during-filming-series/314035/37 "2005-07-25T18:39:42Z")
13 year old [Samantha Smith](http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0809858/) died in a plane crash while filiming the series “Lime Street.” William Frawley played Uncle Bub, not the boy’s grandfather, on My Three Sons. Zev Steinhardt ---
**Author:** ![spectrum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9fc29f/32.png) [@spectrum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/spectrum)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2005, 6:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-who-died-during-filming-series/314035/38 "2005-07-25T18:41:46Z")
Orson Welles died during the making of the Transformers movie, and some of his dialogue was recorded by Leonard Nimoy. ---
**Author:** ![Spiff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spiff/32/9852_2.png) [@Spiff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spiff)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2005, 6:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-who-died-during-filming-series/314035/39 "2005-07-25T18:54:36Z")
Snopes has a nice page on actors who have died while films/TV shows were being made … or even whilst in front of live audiences: [http://www.snopes.com/horrors/freakish/onstage.htm](http://www.snopes.com/horrors/freakish/onstage.htm) ---
**Author:** ![Captain\_Amazing](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/6de8d8/32.png) [@Captain\_Amazing](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Captain_Amazing)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2005, 7:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-who-died-during-filming-series/314035/40 "2005-07-25T19:11:11Z")
> [@souroranges](#): > > The grandfather on My Three Sons ( I believe Ethel’s husband on " I Love Lucy" ) died during production on the show and was replaced. The actor’s name was William Frawley, and that’s not exactly true. Frawley left the show after the 1964-5 season, because of his ill health (as did Tim Considine, who played “Mike”) He died the next year. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-who-died-during-filming-series/314035.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/actors-who-died-during-filming-series/314035.md?page=3)