From E! Online:
[q]Death of a "West Wing" Star
by Joal Ryan
Dec 16, 2005, 3:25 PM PT
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Leo McGarry survived his heart attack. John Spencer was not as fortunate.
Spencer, who played chief of staff turned vice presidential hopeful McGarry on The West Wing, died Friday morning of a heart attack, the actor's publicist said. He was four days shy of his 59th birthday.
Executives at the long-running NBC presidential series, now in the midst of its seventh season, used the word "saddened" more than once in addressing Spencer's death. In a joint statement, West Wing creator Aaron Sorkin and executive producer Tommy Schlamme called Spencer "an uncommonly good man."
"He'll be missed and remembered every day by his many, many friends," Sorkin and Schlamme said.
An NBC spokesman said Spencer died at a hospital. It was not known when Spencer last worked on the West Wing set.
As McGarry, Spencer acted out a heart attack in an October 2004 West Wing episode.
Spencer's death would seem to throw into disarray the series' season-long presidential campaign storyline. Earlier this fall, McGarry accepted the vice presidential slot on the Democratic ticket headed by Jimmy Smits' Congressman Santos.
In an episode that had been slated to air Jan. 8, McGarry engages in a vice presidential debate with his Republican counterpart, played by Brett Cullen.
Spencer won the 2002 Emmy for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series for playing McGarry.
Previously, Spencer made his prime-time mark in L.A. Law joining the show in 1990 as breath-of-fresh-air litigator Tommy Mullaney in 1990.
[/q]
[q]"West Wing" Star's Sudden Death
by Joal Ryan
Dec 16, 2005, 5:25 PM PT
Tragically, for John Spencer, life didn't imitate art.
A year after his West Wing alter ego survived a heart attack, Spencer was felled Friday morning by a deadly one. He was four days shy of his 59th birthday.
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A 2002 Emmy winner for the long-running NBC presidential series, Spencer was an original and still key cast member as Leo McGarry, the battle-tested chief of staff turned vice presidential candidate.
"I can't believe that he is gone," costar Bradley Whitford said in a statement. "We have all lost a dear, dear brother."
Allison Janney remembered her West Wing colleague as the "consummate professional actor." Series creator Aaron Sorkin and executive producer Tommy Schlamme hailed Spencer as "an uncommonly good man."
An NBC spokesman said Spencer died at a hospital. It was not known when the actor last worked on the set. After airing a new episode last weekend, the show is on hiatus until January.
As McGarry, Spencer acted out a heart attack in an October 2004 West Wing episode, "The Birnam Woods."
Spencer's sudden death would seem to throw into disarray the series' season-long presidential campaign storyline. With Martin Sheen's President Bartlet terming out, McGarry is party to one of two tickets seeking to claim the White House for their own. Earlier this fall, McGarry accepted the V.P. slot on the Democratic slate headed by Jimmy Smits' Congressman Santos.
In an episode that was slated to air Jan. 8, McGarry is front and center in a TV debate with his Republican counterpart, played by Brett Cullen. As recounted on a spoilers blog on the fan site, The West Wing Continuity Guide (
http://westwing.bewarne.com/), Spencer's dialogue during an exchange on health insurance is, given Friday's events, eerie.
"By an overwhelming percentage, the first warning symptom of a heart attack is death," Spencer's McGarry says, per the blog. "I'm fortunate to be here."
Spencer's life mirrored McGarry's even down to their backstories--both men were recovering alcoholics.
In a 2000 interview with the Associated Press, Spencer argued that, of the two, McGarry was the "better man."
"He has qualities that I wish I had more of," Spencer told the wire service. "I often say to Aaron [Sorkin], 'You're writing the man I'd like to be.' "
Born on Dec. 20, 1946, Spencer was a teenager when he made his TV debut as a clean-cut suitor of Cathy Lane, the English identical cousin of Brooklynite Patty Lane, on the mid-1960s sitcom The Patty Duke Show.
By the time Spencer made his first lasting prime-time impression, he was far removed from the world of sitcom fantasy--not to mention teenagers. In 1990, it was a craggy, middle-aged Spencer who blew into NBC's L.A. Law. His hustling litigator Tommy Mullaney was just the kick in the tailored pants that the tiring legal drama needed. Spencer remained with the series until its 1994 demise.
After L.A. Law, Spencer had supporting roles in films such as Forget Paris and The Rock. His other movie credits include Presumed Innocent (the role that caught then-L.A. Law producer David E. Kelley's eye) and Black Rain, where he was invariably cast as a cop.
The West Wing came along in 1999, its long hours enough to keep even a self-described workaholic such as Spencer occupied, although he continued to work on the stage.
From 2000-04, Spencer earned five consecutive Emmy nominations as Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series. He won once, in 2002.
Smits, who worked with Spencer on both West Wing and L.A. Law, said he was grateful his friend would continue to live on via his work.
"John was a true pillar of a man, he set the stage for kindness and generosity," Smits said in a statement. "His humor and smile were infectious, he will be greatly missed." [/q]