John Mahoney: A career in pictures
![FRASIER, John Mahoney, 1993-2004, (c)NBC/courtesy Everett Collection](https://ew.com/thmb/YOheyU-vS08HSllAUUKauyvZpQ0=/1500x0/filters:no_upscale():max_bytes(150000):strip_icc()/tsdfras_ec042-2000-8e7aef64d7ea4310b74d694d919e4dd2.jpg)
Beloved actor John Mahoney died Sunday in Chicago at the age of 77. Over the course of his career, the British transplant made a name for himself on television, film, and stage, earning multiple Emmy and Golden Globe nominations and a Tony Award along the way. Here are some of his most memorable roles.
Frasier, 1993-2004
![FRASIER, Patrick Kerr, Kelsey Grammer, John Mahoney, David Hyde Pierce, 'A Tsar is Born', (Season 7,](https://ew.com/thmb/szFkUtY3SKN_Jg6iXpoqsrPEX_Y=/1500x0/filters:no_upscale():max_bytes(150000):strip_icc()/tsdfras_ec102-2000-eb3a3e72901248eba460f90681d134f4.jpg)
Mahoney was probably best known for his hilarious turn as Kelsey Grammer’s oft-grumpy father on the long-running sitcom Frasier.
Primal Fear, 1996
![PRIMAL FEAR, John Mahoney, Alfre Woodard, Richard Gere, 1996, (c)Paramount/courtesy Everett Collecti](https://ew.com/thmb/SF-3X-g0t2rumSv4ACRtIpIF5hw=/1500x0/filters:no_upscale():max_bytes(150000):strip_icc()/msdprfe_ec022-2000-6d0ad6a592ff4be781a1c3bc77bb8838.jpg)
The actor also played a corrupt attorney in this big-screen drama following a Chicago lawyer (Richard Gere) who takes on the high-profile case of an altar boy accused of murdering an Archbishop.
Say Anything, 1989
![SAY ANYTHING, John Mahoney, Ione Skye, 1989. TM and Copyright (c) 20th Century Fox Film Corp. All ri](https://ew.com/thmb/cb_6xntBd3zvxmPiGGT_Q3EIBpU=/1500x0/filters:no_upscale():max_bytes(150000):strip_icc()/msdsaan_fe003-2000-8c3ec4d6974a4570846429a9eac6ee98.jpg)
The world remembers this rom-com for Lloyd Dobler’s epic boombox serenade (and for changing the way we’ll think about Peter Gabriel's “In Your Eyes” forever), but let’s not forget that Mahoney played the father of Lloyd’s love interest.
Fathers and Sons, 2005
![FATHERS AND SONS, John Mahoney, 2005, © SHOWTIME / Courtesy: Everett Collection](https://ew.com/thmb/pVi6GnhW3vGPZJ-5bu69FGgWzz0=/1500x0/filters:no_upscale():max_bytes(150000):strip_icc()/mcdfaan_ec066-2000-ff2ebbaf3b0545d8baeb7a62dbecebdc.jpg)
This made-for-TV movie followed three families from the same street, seeing them through affairs, estrangements, and multiple generations.
Moonstruck, 1987
![moonstruck_john_mahoney](https://ew.com/thmb/rGItxyl6LcVBCuMGcCzQfPNfB20=/1500x0/filters:no_upscale():max_bytes(150000):strip_icc()/moonstruck_john_mahoney-2000-2bcd1769af6a4cd3a13edf8e2119474f.jpg)
During Cher’s relatively brief but prolific movie career, she and Mahoney collaborated on a rom-com about a widowed woman who falls for her new fiancé’s estranged younger brother. Can you keep that all straight?
In Treatment, 2008-2010
![IN TREATMENT -- Pictured: John Mahoney CR: HBO](https://ew.com/thmb/l4UqMQVSeQpsTMA-Sn_Fi8D-OJ4=/1500x0/filters:no_upscale():max_bytes(150000):strip_icc()/in-treatment-2000-67bf150d5fe44c6ab3f821792efeddcf.jpg)
This HBO drama aired for three seasons and was a fascinating (dramatized) glimpse into the world of therapy. Mahoney played a successful businessman seeking treatment for a series of panic attacks.
Reality Bites, 1994
![Reality-Bites](https://ew.com/thmb/1vnPGdxM9eL97N9dAImGLTsuK6o=/1500x0/filters:no_upscale():max_bytes(150000):strip_icc()/reality-bites-2000-fc225063218f4e349dbbf9e6d09ab463.jpg)
Before millennials dominated national debates, there was Generation X. Reality Bites offered a look inside their lives post-graduation, struggling with careers and romance and everything in between. Mahoney played Grant Gubler, a local TV personality.
Barton Fink, 1991
![BARTON FINK, John Mahoney, Judy Davis, 1991, TM & Copyright (c) 20th Century Fox Film Corp. All righ](https://ew.com/thmb/4IQExrToHyVcf7MAZUwCDoZLPWU=/1500x0/filters:no_upscale():max_bytes(150000):strip_icc()/msdbafi_fe002-2000-812ed31a2ab74c8daccfd5183496df24.jpg)
One of the Coen Brothers’ earlier works, Barton Fink centers on a playwright attempting to write scripts for 1940s Hollywood. Mahoney played W.P. Mayhew, a character loosely based on William Faulkner.
Eight Men Out, 1998
![EIGHT MEN OUT, John Sayles, Studs Terkel, John Mahoney, 1988](https://ew.com/thmb/-9aWk9Fd8tWWK84CkR7V7TbmGsg=/1500x0/filters:no_upscale():max_bytes(150000):strip_icc()/msdeime_ec003-2000-9d0865bb627649f7870b3504652a13a8.jpg)
Hey there, sports fan! Mahoney played Kid Gleason, manager of the Chicago White Sox, in this baseball flick centered around the conspiracy to intentionally lose the 1919 World Series.
Hot in Cleveland, 2014
![HOT IN CLEVELAND, l-r: Betty White, John Mahoney, in 'Rusty Banks Rides Again' (Season 5, Episode](https://ew.com/thmb/KNmh9iyFHdLgwA7qUjHSgD8I318=/1500x0/filters:no_upscale():max_bytes(150000):strip_icc()/tcdhoin_ec122-2000-a3b805385ee748c6b53afc256353b1a4.jpg)
Mahoney reunited with several of his Frasier costars for this TV Land sitcom — meanwhile, he got to stand in as Betty White’s love interest.
House of Blue Leaves, 1986-7
![HOUSE OF BLUE LEAVES, John Mahoney, Swoosie Kurtz, Ben Stiller, 1987](https://ew.com/thmb/NBGl3p7EZeWQyIGTQHsPxmXO0w8=/1500x0/filters:no_upscale():max_bytes(150000):strip_icc()/tsdhoof_ec002-2000-acd8bfdf1e674bb1ae04a2f0ca8b27ed.jpg)
A barely recognizable young Ben Stiller made his theater debut opposite Mahoney in this Broadway play. Mahoney won a Tony for his performance, and the production was adapted as a PBS telefilm.