Peter Scolari, Emmy-Winning ‘Bosom Buddies’ and ‘Newhart’ Actor, Dies at 66

Actor Peter Scolari, who rose to stardom opposite Tom Hanks in the 1980 comedy series Bosom Buddies, has died following a two-year battle with cancer. He was 66.

His death was confirmed to Deadline by his manager Ellen Lubin Sanitsky at Wright Entertainment. Scolari is survived by wife Tracy Shayne and children Nicholas, Joseph, Keaton, and Cali.

The actor’s prolific career spanned 43 years. He was a series regular in the CBS sitcom Newhart, receiving multiple Emmy nominations for his role as Michael Harris. Scolari went on to win an Emmy in 2016 for his recurring role as Ted Horvath (the father of Lena Dunham’s Hannah) on HBO’s Girls. Most recently, he played Bishop Thomas Marx on the CBS/Paramount+ supernatural drama Evil.

On Bosom Buddies, Scolari played Henry Desmond/Hildegard alongside Hanks’ Kip Wilson/Buffy. The two-season ABC comedy centered on two single men who dressed in drag in order to afford their apartment rent. The two actors had a lifelong friendship — he had a cameo role in Hanks’ 1996 directorial debut, That Thing You Do!, and the two co-starred in the 2013 Broadway play Lucky Guy.

The actor regularly appeared in other Broadway in productions like Hairpray, Wicked, and Bronx Bombers. His additional TV credits include Fosse/Verdon, Madoff, The Good Fight, Murphy Brown, The West Wing, ER, Gotham, Law & Order: SVU, and more.

Evil showrunner Robert King paid tribute to Scolari, calling him “one of the funniest — sneakily funny — actors we’ve worked with.”

“He always took a nothing scene and found different ways to twist it, and throw in odd pauses that made it jump,” King tweeted. “I will try to collect my thoughts more. He was just wonderful.”