Actor Peter Scolari of ‘Bosom Buddies’ and ‘Newhart’ dead at 66
Actor Peter Scolari, an Emmy-winner and a familiar face on TV for four decades, died Friday at 66.
He had been battling cancer for the last two years.
Scolari starred alongside a young Tom Hanks in the 1980s sitcom “Bosom Buddies.” He also spent six years on “Newhart” and won an Emmy for playing Lena Dunham’s dad on “Girls.”
Scolari, a New Rochelle native, became a household name in 1980 when he and Hanks starred in their short-lived sitcom about two men who had to dress as women so they could live in an affordable female-only hotel in Manhattan.
The show lasted just two seasons, but the stars became bosom buddies in real-life, forging a lifetime friendship.
While Hanks went on to become an Academy Award winning film star, Scolari enjoyed a steady and prolific career, that included appearances on “Happy Days,” “The Love Boat,” and “The Twilight Zone.”
On “Newhart,” Scolari played Michael Harris, who produced Bob Newhart’s fictional TV show and was a boyfriend to the inn’s spoiled maid, played by Julia Duffy.
““I knew that Peter was sick, but his death still comes as a great shock. We were friends and colleagues for over 40 years,” Newhart, 92, tweeted. “Julia and Peter, as a vacuous couple, were an essential part of the success of ‘Newhart.’ In life, he was a fantastic person, and it was a joy to work together. He will be sorely missed and his passing at 66 is much too early.”
He and Hanks teamed up again in 1996 in the film “That Thing You Do,” which Hanks directed. They also shared the Broadway stage in 2013′s “Lucky Guy,’ which was about former Pulitzer Prize winning New York Daily News reporter Mike McAlary.
Scolari wedded four times, including his 2013 marriage to Tracy Shayne. Hanks gave a heartfelt toast at that wedding.
“To be honest with you, I thought he was going to tease me and make fun and make fun of me a little bit,” Scolari said on a 2014 episode of “Oprah: Where Are They Now?” “And he didn’t tease me at all. He actually said, ‘We should all be a little bit more like him because he never stops trying. He doesn’t give up.’
“Can you imagine such a thing” an emotional Scolari continued. “I cannot get my mind around what I’ve done in my life to deserve this kind of affection.”
The pair acted together in 2014′s “the Bronx Bombers” where Scolari played Yankees icon Yogi Berra.
Scolari went on to gain new fans for his recurring role as Tad Horvath on “Girls,” for which he won the Emmy for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series in 2016.
That show’s creator and star, Lena Dunham, saluted Scolari in an Instagram post showing a photo of the two of them in the show.
“The shyest extrovert, the most dramatic comedian, the most humble icon. You had lived enough life to know that a TV show was just a TV show, but also to appreciate just what it meant to be allowed to play pretend for a living- and you never let us forget that this job was a privilege,” Dunham wrote.
She added that Scolari “bragged nonstop about [his] kids” and praised his acting.
“Becky Ann [Baker] and I loved every second of playing your family and I couldn’t have been raised up by a better TV ‘papa,” Dunham continued. “Thank you, Scolari, for every chat between set ups, every hug onscreen and off and every ‘Oh, Jeez.’ We will miss you so much.”
