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Prolific actor and singer Martin Mull has died.
Known for his performances on “Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman,” “Roseanne,” and “Veep,” and as Colonel Mustard in the cult-favorite ’80s comedy “Clue,” Mull was 80.
On Friday, his daughter Maggie took to Instagram to remember her late father, writing, “I am heartbroken to share that my father passed away at home on June 27th, after a valiant fight against a long illness. 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 was born August 18, 1943, in Chicago. He studied painting in the ’60s, earning an MFA from RISD. He would go on to paint for the rest of his life.
In 1970, he wrote the song “A Girl Named Johnny Cash,” a country hit for Jane Morgan. He became known as a comic singer, opening for rock stars Billy Joel, Bruce Springsteen, Randy Newman and Frank Zappa.
In 1972, he released an acclaimed self-titled album.
Mull made a high-profile acting debut on the satirical soap opera “Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman” in 1976 as twins Garth and Barth Gimble. The yearlong soap became a widely spoofed pop cultural craze, spawning two spin-offs on which Mull starred: “Fernwood 2 Night” (1977) and “America 2-Night” (1978).
Along with making numerous guest appearances on series that included “Taxi” (1979) and “The Golden Girls” (1990), Mull was a regular on “Domestic Life” (1984), “His & Hers” (1990), “Family Dog” (1993), “Ellen” (2001-2002), and “The Cool Kids” (2018-2019).
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Mull and the late Fred Willard famously played a couple on more than 40 episodes of “Roseanne” (1991-1997). When their characters wed on the 1995 episode of the show entitled “December Bride,” it was the first time a series depicted a gay wedding involving a recurring character.
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He was also Willard Kraft on 73 episodes of “Sabrina the Teenage Witch” (1997-2000).
Later TV roles included “Arrested Development” (2004-2013), “American Dad!” (2005-2011), “Two and a Half Men” (2008-2013), “‘Til Death” (2010), “Dads” (2013-2014), “Community” (2015), “Life in Pieces” (2015-2017), “The Ranch” (2016-2018), “I’m Sorry” (2017-2019), “Brooklyn Nine-Nine” (2020), “Grace and Frankie” (2022), “Not Dead Yet” (2023), and “The Afterparty” (2023), his final work in the medium.
He earned his only Emmy nomination for playing addled politico Bob Bradley on “Veep” (2016).
Mull made several indelible impressions in movies, including “FM” (1978), “Serial” (1980), “My Bodyguard” (1980), “Mr. Mom” (1983), and “Clue” (1985), the latter of which was a box-office bomb with three alternate endings. “Clue” eventually developed an enthusiastic following, leading to the 2022 doc “Who Done It: The Clue Documentary.”
Mull also appeared in “Mrs. Doubtfire” (1993), “Jingle All the Way” (1996), and “101 Dalmatians” (1996). His last feature film was “A Futile and Stupid Gesture” in 2018, and his most recent work was providing a voice for the 2023 video game “Nickelodeon All-Star Brawl 2.”
Mull is survived by his third wife, Wendy, and his daughter.
