Martin Mull, the droll comedian, actor, singer-songwriter, and painter has died at the age of 80. Mull, who found fame on the soap opera satire Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman and its spinoff Fernwood 2 Night, passed away on Thursday at home after a "valiant fight against a long illness."
His daughter, Maggie Mull, shared the news on her Instagram. “He was known for excelling at every creative discipline imaginable and also for doing Red Roof Inn commercials. He would find that joke funny. He was never not-funny. My dad will be deeply missed by his wife and daughter, by his friends and coworkers, by fellow artists and comedians and musicians, and — the sign of a truly exceptional person — by many, many dogs. I loved him tremendously.”
Mull is survived by his third wife, Wendy Haas, whom he married in 1982, and their daughter Maggie, a TV writer-producer.
Born Martin Eugene Mull on August 18, 1943, in Chicago, he was raised in North Ridgeville, Ohio, and New Canaan, Connecticut. Mull initially pursued painting, earning a bachelor’s and a master’s degree in fine arts from the Rhode Island School of Design. However, his foray into music to fund his education opened the door to a career in entertainment.
Mull’s eclectic career spanned decades, and he was a familiar face on television in the 1990s, as the befuddled principal Willard Kraft on Sabrina, the Teenage Witch and as Leon Carp, the gay boss and friend of Roseanne Connor on Roseanne. He played memorable roles such as the private detective Gene Parmesan on Arrested Development and a pharmacist on Two and a Half Men. In 2016, he earned an Emmy nomination for his performance as political operative Bob Bradley on Veep.
In collaboration with Fred Willard, Mull co-wrote and starred in the 1985 Cinemax mockumentary The History of White People in America and its sequel. He also portrayed Colonel Mustard in the 1985 film Clue. He also appeared on the Fox sitcom The Cool Kids, Netflix’s The Ranch, and ABC’s Not Dead Yet.
Mull found early success in 1970 when country music star Jane Morgan recorded his parody “A Girl Named Johnny Cash,” which charted on Billboard’s Hot Country Songs for five weeks. Mull continued to perform in nightclubs, opening for acts like Frank Zappa, Randy Newman, Bruce Springsteen, and Billy Joel. His debut album, released in 1972, featured drummer Levon Helm of The Band.
Though he achieved success in music, it was his roles as Garth and Barth Gimble on Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman that catapulted him to national fame. Mull joined the series in 1976 and quickly became a notable character despite his reservations about the role’s darker aspects.
“I thought they hired me because I was a comedian,” Mull said in a 2014 interview. “I was kind of surprised when all of a sudden we got all this Virginia Woolf-ish high drama. I didn’t like the character at all. I don’t care for violence, and wife-beating is particularly repugnant to me, so it was quite hard.”
Nevertheless, his razor-sharp comic timing and sly approach made his characters unforgettable. When Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman ended in 1977, Lear created the spinoff Fernwood 2 Night, which became a cult hit and showcased Mull's comedic prowess alongside Willard.
His passing is mourned by many in the entertainment world. A lot of his fans and peers took to social media reflecting on the wit and charisma he brought to his craft.
