George Maharis, Route 66 and Fantasy Island Actor, Dies at 94
George Maharis passed away on May 24th at the age of 94. Maharis was an American actor, singer, and artist who was best known for his role as Buz Murdock in the first three seasons of the TV series, Route 66. Born in Astoria, Queens in 1928, Maharis got his start off-Broadway and eventually had 70 film and television credits to his name. Maharis' friend Marc Bahan posted about the actor's passing on Facebook yesterday (via Deadline).
"George is well known for his stardom in Route 66, stage productions, singing, artist, and above all a great guy would do anything for anyone. My dear friend, you'll be terribly missed," Bahan wrote. According to reports, Maharis died in his Beverly Hills home.
Maharis' first onscreen credit was as a dancer in an episode of The Philco Television Playhouse in 1953. He also played Marlon Brando in an episode of Mister Peepers in 1955. His television credits included The Phil Silvers Show (1958), Naked City (1959-1960), Search for Tomorrow (1960-1961), Route 66 (1960-1963), Bob Hope Presents the Chrysler Theatre (1966), The Most Deadly Game (1970-1971), Mission: Impossible (1973), Shaft (1974), The Bionic Woman (1976), Police Story (1973-1977), Logan's Run (1978), Fantasy Island (1978-1982), Superboy (1989), Murder, She Wrote (1990), and more.
Maharis's film credits included The Mugger (1958), Exodus (1960), Quick, Before It Melts (1964), Sylvia (1965), The Satan Bug (1965), A Covenant with Death (1967), The Happening (1967), The Desperados (1969), Land Raiders (1969), Death in Space (1974), The Sword and the Sorcerer (1982), and more. Maharis' final film credit was in the 1993 film Doppelganger, which was helmed by Avi Neshar and starred Drew Barrymore and George Newbern.
Of all his credits, Maharis was best known for his role in Route 66, a series he notoriously left during the height of its fame due to health issues. The show was an indirect spin-off of Naked City and ended up running for another season after Maharis's exit. In 1962, Maharis received an Emmy nomination for "Outstanding Continued Performance by an Actor in a Series (Lead)" for his role in Route 66. The award ended up going to E. G. Marshall for The Defenders.
In addition to acting, Maharis also released albums and records earlier in his career. His biggest hit was a cover of "Teach Me Tonight" which hit #25 on the Top 40 list in June of 1962. He also performed in nightclubs and was an impressionist painter.
Our thoughts go out to Maharis' friends and family at this difficult time.