L.A. — Stage actor George Maharis, known for his good rugged features and cult status among 1960s American youth when he starred in the famous T.V. series “Route 66,” has passed away.
Caretaker and friend Marc Bahan announced Maharis’ death on Facebook on Wednesday. Maharis died of hepatitis at his Beverly Hills, California, home, according to Bahan’s account in the Hollywood Reporter, which first reported his death. He was 94.
In “Route 66,” Maharis portrayed Buz Murdock, a tough guy from New York City’s Hell’s Kitchen. Martin Milner, who passed away in 2015, played Tod Stiles, a privileged young man whose father’s death left him with nothing but a brand-new Corvette.
They chose to take what Steinbeck author John called “The Mother Road.” New adventures in different cities each week kept viewers glued to their screens.
The episodes of “Route 66” were unusual in that they were shot in different cities and towns for each installment. Stars of the future, including Robert Redford, James Caan, Robert Duvall, and Alan Alda, all made cameo appearances in their early careers.
The legendary roadway stole the event even more so than Maharis and Milner. Once connecting Chicago to the Pacific Ocean without a break, it was celebrated as a key factor in the westward mass movement in the United States throughout the 20th century but has since been bypassed in favor of larger, quicker interstates.
Maharis died of hepatitis at his Beverly Hills, California, home, according to Bahan’s account in the Hollywood Reporter, which first reported his death. He was 94.
In addition to allegedly being influenced by Jack Kerouac’s “On the Road,” the novel “Route 66” also created a popular musical piece by composer Nelson Riddle. The song “(Get Your Kicks On) Route 66,” which is more well-known, has nothing to do with the show.
After the third season (the show continued for one more without him), Maharis left and never again attained the same fame.
In Quentin Tarantino’s 2019 film “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood,” Leonardo DiCaprio’s character, Rick Dalton, mentions that he and “Peppard, Maharis, and Chakiris” were all considered for the Steve McQueen role in “The Great Escape.”
Maharis was born in New York to Greek immigrants and grew up in the notorious neighborhood of Hell’s Kitchen. George’s parents were restaurant owners, and they encouraged him to follow in their footsteps.
“I’m not gonna stay here,” he remarked in a 2007 interview, summarising his upbringing in Hell’s Kitchen. It’s the voyage, the going, that matters most in life. In other words, I had to leave.
Maharis died of hepatitis at his Beverly Hills, California, home, according to Bahan’s account in the Hollywood Reporter, which first reported his death. He was 94.
After harming his vocal cords in a singing accident, he pursued acting instead. After studying acting with Lee Strasberg and Sanford Meisner at the Actors Studio, he started performing in off-Broadway productions.
He became well-known after receiving rave reviews for his roles in Edward Albee’s “Zoo Story” and on the T.V. drama “Naked City.” With some previous acting experience under his belt (including a little part in “Exodus” in 1960), he was cast in “Route 66.”
After Maharis left the show, he began appearing in films, including “Quick Before It Melts,” “The Satan Bug,” and “Sylvia.” “A Deal in Death.” The Occurrence. Also known as “The Desperadoes” and “Land Raiders.”
Returning to regular television in 1970 with “The Most Deadly Game,” he played a criminologist on the show for a single season.
In the decades that followed, Maharis continued acting, making appearances in shows like “Fantasy Island,” “The Bionic Woman,” and “Murder, She Wrote,” as well as films like “Disaster in the Sky,” “Crash of Flight 401,” and “Death in Space.”
SOURCE – (AP)
