Comedian and Actor Jay Thomas Dead At 69

“Murphy Brown” and “Cheers” actor Jay Thomas died Thursday after a battle with Cancer. Thomas passed away with his wife and children by his side.

Thomas was known for his Emmy winning guest appearance as the obnoxious tabloid talk show host on “Murphy Brown.” As well as playing Eddie LeBec, the washed-up hockey goalie husband of barmaid Carla on the 80’s sitcom “Cheers.”

His agent and long-time friend Don Buchwald confirmed the passing and released a statement in the New York Daily News. Confirming the cause of Thomas death was cancer. “Jay was one of a kind, never at a loss for words and filled with so much fun and wonderfully wacky thoughts and behavior,” Buchwald told daily news.

A Humble Start As A Disc Jockey

Richard Dreyfuss and Jay Thomas in Mr. Holland’s Opus (1995) Photo by Hollywood Pictures

Jay Thomas was a native of Kermit, Texas and raised in New Orleans. He got his start in radio as a high school football announcer for the Rutherford High Rams in Panama City, Florida.

He worked in several radio stations in  Florida and Nashville. He earned nicknames like “The Mouth of the South”, “The Scorpion” and “The Prince of Darkness.”

During college, the actor delved into sportscasting and stand-up comedy. Eventually, he moved to New York to pursue a career in radio landing a job at FM station 99X.

He soon developed his acting side.

Jay Thomas Rise To Sitcom Success

Thomas was a disc jockey in 1979 when he landed his first role on the short lived ABC sitcom “Mork & Mindy” starring Robin Williams as a space alien. Thomas played Romeo Da Vinci, co-owner of a deli. He appeared in dozens of episodes before the show ended in 1982. After his stint with “Mork & Mindy”, roles came easily to Thomas. His good looks and ability to play a wiseacre were an advantage in landing roles.

Dolly Parton and Jay Thomas in Straight Talk (1992) Photo by Hollywood Pictures

Thomas made a name for himself in sitcoms with numerous television credits to his name. Even though he played secondary characters, he would steal the scene and with his impeccable comedic timing.

He took starring roles in two 90’s sitcoms “Love & War” and “Married People.” But his most prominent role to date was his reoccurring character on “Cheers” as Eddie LeBec. Thomas made a name in sitcoms with numerous television credits to his name. Thomas made a name in sitcoms with numerous television credits to his name.

He had guest roles in “Law and Order: Special Victims Unity”, “Cold Case” and “Boston Legal.”

But he also had the occasional movie appearances, most notably his role in “Mr. Holland’s Opus” back in 1995.

His last television role was on the crime drama series “Ray Donovan” as Marty Grossman, an editor of a TMZ-like website.

Christmas Talk Show Stories and Radio Shows

The wise cracking wit of Thomas served him well when he found himself on the talk-show circuit. Especially on the “Late Show With David Letterman”, where the comedian appeared on every Christmas season.

He would drop by the Late Show and tell the story of how he met the actor who played the Lone Ranger, Clayton Moore. His story involved marijuana and a broken headlight. People dubbing it the greatest talk show story ever.

A tradition that began in 1998 and continued until Letterman’s retirement from the show in 2015.

In recent years, Thomas developed a large radio following. Since 2005, he had hosted “The Jay Thomas Show” on SiriusXM. After his passing, SiriusXM ran an encore episode of Thomas’ radio show.

Thomas is survived by his wife Sall, and sons Max and J.T.