Actor Randolph Mantooth, whose signature role was as Los Angeles County paramedic Johnny Gage in the 1970s television series Emergency!, passed away yesterday, at age 80; his brother announced that Mantooth died in a hospice facility after a lengthy illness.
Mantooth had a long career in television, and in addition to Emergency!, was a regular on several daytime soap operas in the '80s and '90s. Leveraging his visibility as Johnny Gage, he also became an advocate for paramedics, EMTs, and firefighters, and served as a spokesperson for several industry groups; in addition, he advocated for Native American groups (Mantooth was half Native American).
Emergency! was one of my favorite shows when I was a kid; when I started dating the woman who eventually became my wife, I discovered that not only was it one of her favorite shows, as well, but Mantooth was one of her first celebrity crushes.
me, too, and I have fond memories of watching with my Dad who told me he had wanted to be a fire fighter when he was young.
I’ve heard Randy give interviews when he talked about what a goof Johnny Gage was, right up until they were called to a scene, when he became all business. Gage was who you wanted to see coming when you were stuck half way down a cliff, or on the ledge of a tall building.
What I loved best about the show was how station 51 came together as a team to fight a fire or conduct a rescue.
And it was nice the streets of LA were never crowded.
The pair took paramedic classes, where they learned how to insert an IV, and trained with the fire department. Cinader wanted the show to be funny but told his actors that “when the [station alarm sounds], funny is left at the door. You are now a professional,” Mantooth noted. “We never got away from that.”
(And damn I’m disappointed that it is in the Hollywood Reporter article and not Variety.)
I loved Emergency and remember when it aired back-to-back with Adam 12. I lived in NY at the time, but we were from California. Both shows always made us homesick.
I was a religious viewer of Emergency! as a child, and credit the show as a serious influence on why I became a firefighter.
I got to spend two hours with Randy in my fire station in 2014 when I was a captain as he was passing through to an appearance. I even let him drive me around in a fire engine - I got driven around by Johnny friggin Gage himself. He took photos with all of us, had a bite to eat at the kitchen table with us, and just chatted with us like he belonged there with us. I got the photos printed the next morning (a Sunday) and he signed them at the event Sunday night. The autographed photo of him and me is one of my most valued possessions. Seriously a high point in my life.
We obviously all told him we were firefighters because of his influence. He told us he hears that all the time (sorry) and used to just say thanks. He said he realized a few years earlier that we were all pre-primed for the fire service, he just maybe brought it to the surface.
I’ve met a few of my heros. Not always good experiences (a particular baseball player will forever be on my poop list after meeting him). Randolph Mantooth was a classy guy, and I really do owe him for a great career choice. I’m glad I got to thank him in person for it, and that it clearly meant a lot to him how appreciative an entire generation of firefighters are to him and his legacy.
Me, too. In fact, I think it was probably my most favorite. I watched it religiously as a kid. One thing I learned from that show was that all burning cars will explode.
The Variety article you linked says that: “Mantooth broke out in 1972 when he was cast in Emergency!, which introduced the profession of paramedics to the public.”
That sounds about right to me. Everything I know about the paramedic profession pretty much came from that show. I loved their professionalism, and I’m sure it influenced a lot of watchers. Just the other day I was at the scene of an highway accident (a large tree fell across two lanes of traffic on the highway), and the paramedics who showed up were just like the one that Mantooth portrayed.
And as of last year, my nephew is a paramedic in Houston.
I can’t believe Mantooth was 80 years old. I watched the show when I was 8, and he was a young man. Where does the time go?
As a kid Emergency! was one of my favorites. Every now and then I catch it on MeTV. The differences to modern shows is stark. I watched one scene where they were performing CPR and it felt like one of the many CPR calls I’ve been on. A modern show would have a lot of yelling and drama. Instead they showed how real professionals handled emergencies.
We can think this man for “Gage” (and spelling alterations galore) being a popular baby name in recent years. Yes, the first wave of them were the offspring of “Emergency” fans who liked the name and said, “If I ever have a son, I want to name him Gage.”
As a young teen I used to look forward to babysitting on nights when Emergency! was on. Get the kiddies to bed, grab whatever snacks their parents might have left for me, and plop down in front of the TV for some great entertainment.
He appeared at our statewide EMS Symposium a few years ago, and I will always regret that I didn’t attend that year. A co-worker of mine, a crusty old paramedic very difficult to impress, came away very moved, saying “this guy actually gets it. He gets it !”
