Happy Gilmore star Joe Flaherty dies aged 82-Rishma Dosani-Entertainment – Metro

Freaks and Geeks star Joe Flaherty dies aged 82 (Picture: Getty)

Joe Flaherty has died at the age of 82.

The actor was most known for his stints in Freaks and Geeks and Happy Gilmore, as well as his efforts in Second City Television – aka SCTV.

The news was confirmed on social media by his former co-star, Joel Murray, who shared a heartbreaking tribute.

Taking to Twitter, the actor – who starred opposite Flaherty in One Crazy Summer – penned: ‘We’ve lost another of my idols. RIP Joe Flaherty 1941-2024.

Quoting Murray’s tweet, Jennifer Tilly shared: ‘Joe Flaherty played my dad in “The Wrong Guy.” I was so thrilled to be able to work with him.

‘His performance was pitch perfect. A great comedian. Gone too soon.’

Tributes poured in for Joe on social media (Picture: Getty)

Flaherty’s cause of death has not yet been confirmed.

In February, it was revealed that his health had taken a turn, when members of SCTV set up a fundraiser to help his loved ones with the costs.

Martin Short shared details of the fundraiser with fans at the time, describing the late star as a ‘mentor’.

‘Our beloved SCTV cast member, Joe Flaherty, is very ill. Joe is aware of the gravity of his failing health and would like to spend whatever time he has left at home rather than in a facility,’ the message, via 800 Gorilla Media, read.

The actor starred in SCTV alongside Andrea Martin, John Candy, Martin Short and Eugene Levy (Picture: Getty)

‘Joe’s daughter, Gudrun, is currently Joe’s sole caregiver. Unfortunately, neither Gudrun nor Joe has the financial means to hire the 24-hour care he will require at home. We understand the cost of such care will be about 20k a month.

‘Our hope is to raise the funds needed to honor Joe’s wishes.’

‘We are writing to our friends because we believe SCTV meant something to you, and that would not be the case if it were not for Joe Flaherty,’ the message continued, without going into detail about Flaherty’s health issues.

‘He was a mentor, a director, and an inspiring improviser who gave us many of the tools we are still using in the careers he helped kickstart.

‘And he made us all laugh! We believe that you would want to know about Joe’s condition and, perhaps, even want to contribute towards his home care.’

Joe started his career in Second City (Picture: Getty)

Pittsburgh-born Flaherty served in the US Air Force for four years before turning his attention to the spotlight, starting his comedy career at Second City Theater in Chicago.

Through this, he performed on SCTV between 1976 and 1984, with huge names including Short, Eugene Levy, Catherine O’Hara and John Candy.

He then went on to work on One Crazy Summer with Murray in 1986, as well as Happy Gilmore with Adam Sandler in 1996.

One of Flaherty’s most notable roles came in TV comedy Freaks and Geeks, which launched the careers of James Franco, Seth Rogen and Jason Segel.

In the 1999 series, he portrayed Harold Weir, father of main characters Lindsay Weir (Linda Cardellini) and Sam Weir (John Francis Daley).

His other small screen credits include Frasier, the King of Queens, Even Stevens and That ‘70s Show.

Flaherty is survived by children Gudrun and Gabriel.

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