The spotlight has dimmed on two staples of early Seventies sitcoms.
Suzanne Pleshette, co-star of The Bob Newhart Show, passed away on Saturday at the age of 70 from respiratory failure. It's been more than a decade since I last saw the show for which Ms. Pleshette was most famous, but I grew up on The Bob Newhart Show and loved the balance she gave to the zany and dry characters she found herself surrounded by. Knowing she was in Alfred Hitchcock's The Birds gives me renewed reason to finally seek it out.
Overshadowed by this passing is the loss of Allan Melvin, whose roles are better known than he was. Mr. Melvin played Alice the housekeeper's butcher boyfriend Sam on The Brady Bunch, which wasn't a stretch from his former role as another kind-hearted lug — Magilla Gorilla. He passed away Wednesday at 85 after a long fight with cancer.
Thank you, both. Though you never worked together, you shared the hearts of many fans.