Martin Mull, the comedic actor, musician and artist who gained widespread attention in the 1970s on television shows such as “Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman” and “Fernwood 2-Night,” and remained active in television and film in the later half a century, died Thursday at his home in Los Angeles. He is 80.
His wife, Wendy Mull, confirmed the death. No reason was given.
In “Mary Hartman,” Norman Lear’s satire of soap operas, Mr. Mull is Garth Gimble, a domestic abuser who met his death by nailing a star to the top of an aluminum Christmas tree.
He also starred in the show’s subsequent spinoff, “Fernwood 2-Night,” a parody of talk shows that aired in 1977. He played the show’s host, Barth Gimble, Garth’s twin brother.
“With an unmistakable blond mustache, which may or may not have been intended as a joke, Barth copes manic-depressively with a shaky work situation and some vague allegations about the charges pending against him in Florida,” John J. O’Connor of The New York Times wrote a review of the show’s opening week. “Barth would only say that his lawyer thought he had a ‘good case for entrapment.'”
She is also known for her roles in the film “Clue” (1985) and the television shows “Roseanne” and “Arrested Development.” He played Bob Bradley, an aide to the main character on the political sitcom “Veep.”
Recently, Mr. Mull on the Fox series “The Cool Kids,” about a group of rule-breaking friends living in a retirement community.
Martin E. Mull was born on August 18, 1943, in Chicago to Harold and Betty Mull. He earned degrees from the Rhode Island School of Design. He did it appeared in gallery shows and at the Whitney and Metropolitan museums.
In addition to his wife, he is survived by a daughter, Maggie Mull.
In a 2018 interview with The Times, Mr. Mull describes his approach to his art as “going back and finding old Life and Look magazines, people’s family photos and things like that, and then I collage from those, make my own my images and then paint them.”
A full obituary will follow.
Alain Delaquerière contributed research.
