Personally, I wish they’d kept Ruth Ann Torkelson.
The first ones I thought of were Chano (Gregory Sierra) and Wentworth (Linda Lavin) on Barney Miller. Both of them were written out and not mentioned again when the actors left the show (for their own series.) They did get a brief shout out in the finale along with Yemana and Fish, though, so I don’t know if they count as being officially Chucked.
It’s hard to call up too many favorites, though, because when the producers Chuck a character, it’s usually because no one cares about them enough to even give them an exit story.
IIRC, the show was supposed to be “Chano and Company” with Hal Linden/Barney Miller just the lovable straight man and everyone else holding up the scenery. Sierra quickly got overwhelmed by the magnificent ensemble cast and left in something of a huff.
Kevn Riley from Star Trek.
I have two. The obvious one is Kinch in Hogan’s Heroes. He just ups and disappears with not a word. Even in the days of TV shows not caring about continuity, that was a bit excessive.
And the subtle one is MacMillan and Wife’s two(!) children (not even mentioned in the TVTropes page). They existed in the womb, but no birth was ever mentioned, no evidence that a child (or two) lived in their house was seen, no one even mentioned the kids, no daycare was mentioned when the two were out mystering, nothing. Obviously, Sally was pregnant only as a cover for Susan St James’ real-life pregnancies, but the show could have at least pretended. When Sally dies (off camera) for Season 6, I don’t think they mentioned if the kid(s) died, too.
Yeoman Rand, too, of course. Both named characters with multiple episodes who just… wanished.
Season One of TOS is a breeze to watch when you skip the ones in which Rand is sexually assaulted…
Captain Calvin Spaulding in MASH. He was played by Loudon Wainwright III, and his addition to the cast was announced in TV Guide. But he only appeared in three episodes (He did perform part of a song in one) and then was never seen again. I certainly would have loved to have seen more of Loudon.
Dr. Stephanie in BBT was there for a few episodes and then gone with no explanation
What does it take to be officially Chucked? I think Steven Hill should get some sort of award in the category; he disappeared from two different series, although there was some mention of his character working on Holocaust reparations after leaving Law & Order.
Spearchucker was also Chucked, but he was a total snooze. I liked Ugly John, though(also Chucked).
Thalia Meminger on “The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis” who after the first season only appeared in two other episodes. No one could match her money obsessed heart, not even Linda Sue Faversham. I always cried about her 60 year father with a heart condition, her mother who wasn’t getting any younger, her sister married to a loafer and a brother giving every indication of becoming a welfare case.
Milton Armitrage was more than adequately replaced by his cousin Chatsworth Osbourne Jr. Davey Gilles as the wiser older brother was as useless as the young Cousin Dunky would be. Fortunately the Army threw Maynard G Krebs out so we only had to endure his cousin Jerome for two episodes
Leonard broke up with her. That’s the explanation. He just rode the “Don’t break up with me - let’s fuck” train a few more stops is all.
I also miss Leslie Winkle from BBT, she was one of the few people that could take Sheldon down a peg or two when he needs it.
I always liked Richard Masur as Ann Romano’s BF on, “One Day at a Time.”
The main elements are 1)a recurring character who 2)disappears 3)without explanation and 4)without being referenced once absent.
Two appearances is enough to count as “recurring” if we’re including Kevin Riley (who got to be a recurring character more or less by accident – they hired Bruce Hyde to play a different one-shot character in “The Conscience of the King”, somebody remembered that he’d been in “The Naked Time”, and the script was revised to use Riley again).
I nominate Seven from Married with Children.
So was Duke Forrest. He was a major character in the book as well as the movie (excellently played by Tom Skerritt), but while almost all the characters from the movie transfered over to TV including minor characters like Ugly John and Lt. Dish, for some reason they dropped Duke completely.
In the comics there is Chad, Jeremy’s older brother in “Zits”. I don’t think I’ve seen him in the strip in over 10 years, and he’s never mentioned by anyone else in the family.
Gendry will be back any day.