Bob Newhart Dies: Iconic Comedian & Star of ‘The Bob Newhart Show’ Was 94

Famed comedian and actor Bob Newhart has died. The performer, known for The Bob Newhart Show and Newhart, among other projects, was 94 years old.

Newhart’s death was announced by his publicist Jerry Digney who revealed that the TV icon had died Thursday, July 18th after a series of short illnesses. Along with his 1970s hit series, the actor was best known for his shows like Bob and George & Leo. The comedian got his start in television when he appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show in the 1960s, performing standup.

Newhart in Elf (Credit: New Line/courtesy Everett Collection)

From there, he took on roles in films and series like The Alfred Hitchcock Hour, Bob Hope Presents the Chrysler Theatre, Captain Nice, Hot Millions, On a Clear Day You Can See Forever, and Catch-22. He later went on to make appearances on such classics as Rowan & Martin’s Laugh-In and The Don Rickles Show.

In 1972, Newhart began his nearly 150-episode run with the comedy, The Bob Newhart Show, in which he played psychologist Dr. Robert “Bob” Hartley, whose interactions with family, patients, friends, and colleagues were mined for laughs.

A few years after the show concluded in 1979, the comedian kicked off his next television series, Newhart, which aired for eight seasons between 1982 and 1990. In Newhart, the actor played an author-turned-innkeeper operating out of rural Vermont.

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Over the years, Newhart earned several Primetime Emmy nominations, mostly for Newhart. He ultimately won his first Emmy for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series in 2013 for his appearance in The Big Bang Theory, a series on which he appeared several times during its run on CBS.

Newhart’s recent TV credits include TBBT spinoff Young Sheldon, The Librarians, NCIS, ER, and Desperate Housewives. Newhart also continued to make a splash on the big screen in recent years, appearing in films like Elf, Legally Blonde 2: Red, White & Blonde, and Horrible Bosses.

Born in 1929 in Oak Park, Illinois, Newhart attended Loyola University Chicago, graduating in 1952 before getting drafted into the United States Army during the Korean War. Newhart was predeceased by his wife Virginia Quinn to whom he was married since 1963, together they leave behind four children.