‘WKRP in Cincinnati’ star Howard Hesseman, who played Dr. Johnny Fever, dies at 81

Actor Howard Hesseman of “WKRP in Cincinnati” and “Head of the Class” has died at age 81, his wife told The Hollywood Reporter.

Hesseman died Saturday at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center Los Angeles of complications from colon surgery, according to the publication.

He was nominated for two Emmy Awards for his role as DJ Dr. Johnny Fever in “WKRP In Cincinnati” from 1978 to 1982, Variety reported.

The role made Hesseman, himself a former radio disc jockey, a counterculture icon, the Associated Press reported.

“I think maybe Johnny smokes a little marijuana, drinks beer and wine, and maybe a little hard liquor,” Hesseman told The New York Times in 1979. “And on one of those hard mornings at the station, he might take what for many years was referred to as a diet pill.”

In the pilot, his character introduces himself as Johnny Caravella. “I’m also known as Johnny Midnight, Johnny Cool, Johnny Duke, Johnny Style and Johnny Sunshine,” he says, having been fired from a previous job for saying “booger” on-air, Yahoo reported.

He later went on to play teacher Charlie Moore on “Head of the Class.”

“Impossible to overstate Howard Hesseman’s influence on his and subsequent generations of improvisors,” actor Michael McKean wrote on Twitter. “He was a friend for 50 years.”

“What great times we had,” comedian and actor Laraine Newman wrote on Twitter. “Oh god this hurts.”

“For years, I thought all DJs acted like him,” SiriusXM host Eric Alper wrote on Twitter. “Sometimes I still do.”

“The absolute best radio character in TV history,” wrote radio and podcast host John Derringer. “Howard Hesseman made us all laugh and cry, often at the same time.”

This story was originally published January 30, 2022 at 10:26 AM.