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(#3) NewsRadio
- Dave Foley, Stephen Root, Andy Dick
What Happened in Real Life: Saturday Night Live alum Phil Hartman was shot to death by his wife while he was sleeping in May 1998. The fourth season of NewsRadio had already wrapped at the time of his death.
What Happened on the Show: Hartman's character is said to have died of a heart attack in the first episode of Season 5, and his character is replaced by one played by Jon Lovitz. Due to poor ratings and reviews, the show only lasted one more season.
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(#13) Adventures of Superman
- George Reeves, Noel Neill, Bill Kennedy
What Happened in Real Life: It's debatable. Officially, George Reeves - the titular Superman - took his life. A lot of people - including his mother - think he may have been murdered.
What Happened on the Show: Because Reeves passed shortly after the show was renewed for a seventh season but before they began filming it, the death of Reeves was also the death of the show.
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(#1) 8 Simple Rules
- Katey Sagal, Kaley Cuoco, Amy Davidson
What Happened in Real Life: Star and sitcom legend John Ritter died in 2003 from an undiagnosed aortic dissection.
What Happened on the Show: The comedy series premiered its second season with the three episodes Ritter had already filmed, then after a month hiatus, Ritter's character is said to have died following a heart attack while shopping for milk at the grocery store. The show only lasted one more season.
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(#15) The Waltons
- Jon Walmsley, Mary Beth McDonough, Eric Scott
What Happened in Real Life: Will Geer, who played Grandpa Walton on the hit series, died of respiratory failure in 1978 after filming Season 6.
What Happened on the Show: Grandpa Walton dies, as well, between Seasons 6 and 7. His character is mourned in the first episode of Season 7. The Waltons continued for nine total seasons.
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(#8) The District
- Craig T. Nelson, Roger Aaron Brown, Sean Patrick Thomas
What Happened in Real Life: Actor and Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego host Lynne Thigpen died suddenly from a cerebral hemorrhage during the third season of The District.
What Happened on the Show: Thigpen's character, Ella Farmer, dies suddenly in an episode shot about three weeks after her funeral. The show lasted for one more season. -
(#19) Night Court
- Harry Anderson, John Larroquette, Richard Moll
What Happened in Real Life: Selma Diamond (the chain-smoking Selma Hacker on the show) died of lung cancer in May 1985 after the end of season two.
What Happened on the Show: Bailiff Selma Hacker is replaced with bailiff Florence Kleiner, played by actor Florence Halop, who also later died of cancer. She was replaced by Roz Russell (Marsha Warfield), who stayed with the show for the remaining seasons.
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About This Tool
Fictional characters can always exist in our memory. However, for real actors, this is not the case. They are as susceptible to age and disease as ordinary people. There have been many sad moments. Many actors passed away during the production of TV shows, and they never had the opportunity to watch their performances on the screen. The sudden death of a cast member often affects the production and filming progress of the show, this requires the coordination of the screenwriter, director, and other crew members to perfect it.
Moreover, in addition to the professional necessities that may change the storyline or delete the dead actor from certain scenes, directors, producers, and staff must also deal with feelings of loss and sadness. The random tool tells 20 untimely cast member tragic death and how the TV shows dealt with.
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