John Mahoney, Known as Feisty Father on TV's 'Frasier,' Dies of Throat Cancer

John Mahoney, famous for playing Mar- tin Crane, father of the title character on the TV show “Frasier,” died of throat cancer on Feb. 4 while in hospice care, according to the Chicago Tribune. The 77-year-old had remained immersed in the theater until the end of his life.

On “Frasier,” which ran from 1993 to 2004, Mahoney played a lovable curmud- geon. Viewers familiar with his work on the show might be surprised to learn that he migrated to Chicago from Manchester, England, at 19.

Over the years, Mahoney acted in mov- ies including “Tin Men,” “The Hudsucker Proxy,” “Moonstruck” and “Barton Fink.” On Broadway, he appeared in “Prelude to a Kiss” in 2007 and won a 1986 Tony Award for his work in “The House of Blue Leaves,” the Tribune reported.

He spent his later years in the city he loved the most, Chicago, acting in more than 30 shows at the Steppenwolf Theatre, the Tribune reported.

Mahoney, who held a master’s degree in English, was working as associate edi- tor at a medical journal when he quit to study acting in his 30s, he told Fox News in October 2017. The publication he’d been working for was The Journal for the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Hospitals, according to the Guardian. He was treated for cancer 20 years ago and then again three years ago, Fox reported.