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Gavin MacLeod, who appeared on two massively successful television series in the 1970s and 80s, died on Saturday, as first reported by
Variety. From 1970 until 1977, MacLeod played the newsroom head writer Murray Slaughter at Minneapolis television station WJM on the witty and highly influential
Mary Tyler Moore Show. He quickly followed with the leading role as Your Captain, Merrill Stubing, on
The Love Boat. That ship sailed from 1977 to 1986, with five additional post-finale specials, the last one in 1990. He continued to make appearances on shows like
That 70s Show,
The King of Queens into the aughts. He was 90 years old.
Gavin MacLeod, who became one of the most beloved faces on TV as a wisecracking TV news writer on ’The Mary Tyler Moore Show’ and then as the amiable skipper of ’The Love Boat’, died at his home in California.
35 Years Ago: The Love Boat Sets Sail for the Final Time krna.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from krna.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
When fans tuned in to wish
The Love Boat a bon voyage on May 24, 1986, they got what they expected. After three made-for-TV movies and nine seasons, the final episode of
The Love Boat didn’t deliver anything exciting or new. Instead, the finale offered tenderness and corny jokes, absurd situations and ’80s glamour, and, of course, guest stars.
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The series took a bow with a fittingly-odd assortment of Hollywood veterans and new names including
Police Academy regular Michael Winslow, a 21-year-old Teri Hatcher and Marion Ross (Marion Cunningham on
The anchor of ABC s popular Saturday-night lineup for a decade,