Will & Grace, Dynasty, and The Office actor Charles C. Stevenson has died at age 95, his son has announced
A hit sitcom actor has died, his family has announced.
Will & Grace actor Charles C. Stevenson died in Camarillo, California last month, but his death has only just been announced.
The actor, who was 95 at the time of his death, played the role of Smitty on 12 Will & Grace episodes over seven seasons between 2002 and 2020.
Stevenson's son Scott confirmed his dad’s death in a statement to Variety. Scott told the outlet how his late father viewed his roles as an actor, which included a number of religious characters.
“In his own words, his job was "marrying or burying people’,” Scott told the publication. He went on: “As he told it, the panic-stricken director would invariably come to him to beg him to find a way to fill in unscripted space between ‘we are gathered here together’ (where he’d probably get his close-up) and the ‘amen’ at the end of the scene (where he usually wouldn’t).” Scott concluded: “Stevenson admitted that he got pretty good at that.”
Stevenson's final appearance on the beloved series Will & Grace came in the 11th episode of the 11th season, titled Accidentally on Porpoise, which aired February 20 2020. He was 89 at the time of production.
Stevenson was a veteran of the Korean War, having served in the Navy, according to Variety. He attended college UC Berkeley and got an English degree. He went on to begin a career in acting later in his life.
His first major part came when he was aged 76 in the 2008 Disney movie Snow Buddies. Stevenson also appeared in uncredited roles in 1980s TV shows such as Cheers, L.A. Law and Dynasty.
In the 1990s he starred in other noteable TV shows including Murder She Wrote, Baywatch and Everybody Loves Raymond. In the 2000s, he had appearances in The Office, My Name Is Earl, and Curb Your Enthusiasm, to name a few.
Stevenson also appeared in films including The Naked Gun, Ed Wood, Men in Black, Pleasantville and Ghost World.
The actor is survived by five children, eight grandchildren and six great-grandchildren. He had been married to Barbara Keller, with whom he welcomed Charles III and Valerie; and to late agent Joy Stevenson, with whom he fathered Catherine, Scott and William.
He died of natural causes on January 19.