Actor had bladder cancer

David Ogden Stiers, best known for playing  Major Charles Emerson Winchester III in the TV series of M*A*S*H, died yesterday at the age of 75.

His agent Mitchell K. Stubbs broke the news via Twitter, posting: ‘I am very sad to report that David died this morning March 3, 2018 peacefully at his home in Newport, Oregon after a courageous battle with bladder cancer. His talent was only surpassed by his heart.’

I am very sad to report that David died this morning March 3, 2018 peacefully at his home in Newport, Oregon after a courageous battle with bladder cancer.

His talent was only surpassed by his heart. pic.twitter.com/fjuGmbVYgd

— MKS Talent Agency (@MKSTalentAgency) March 3, 2018

His former agent Quinn Cummins added: 'He was very kind, dryly funny unlike anyone else I have known. Life was fizzier with him. We were honored to have seen him work, a phrase which I hope would have pleased him and know would have made him tease me ceaselessly.'

Stiers joined the cast of the top-rated sitcom in the sixth series, in 1977, replacing Larry Linville's Frank Burns character. Winchester was a well-spoken, pompous and talented surgeon who acted as an erudite foil to Alan Alda's joker, Hawkeye Pierce.

His mellifluous tones made him in demand as a voiceover artist, too, contributing to Disney movies, including Beauty and the Beast, where he played Cogsworth, Pocahontas (the Archdeacon), and The Hunchback of Notre Dame  (Governor Ratcliffe).

His other TV credits included a recurring role on The Dead Zone and Perry Mason, and guest spots in the likes of Frasier, Ally McBeal and Cybill.

And like his  M*A*S*H, character, Stiers was a classical music buff. He was the associate conductor for the Newport (Oregon) Symphony Orchestra and the Ernest Bloch Music Festival and guest conducted more than  70 orchestras around the world.

Stiers was nominated for two primetime Emmys for his role as Winchester, in 1981 and 1982 and his final appearance in the show, in its 1983 closing episode, was seen by 125 million viewers. 

In 2009, Stiers came out as gay, saying he had previously hidden his sexuality in case it had repercussions for his career on family-friendly shows.

Here are a couple of his more dramatic scenes from M*A*S*H:

Published: 4 Mar 2018