LOS ANGELES -- Actor Peter Evans, who won accolades for a wide range of Broadway roles but was known to a wider audience through his portrayal of Russ Merman on the television comedy series '9 to 5,' has died, officials said. He was 38.
Evans died Saturday at Century City Hospital, a nursing supervisor said. The Los Angeles Times reported that he died of complications of acquired immune deficiency syndrome.
A Yale graduate who also studied at the Central School of Speech and Drama in London, Evans made his New York theater debut in 1975 in David Storey's 'Life Class.' A year later, he won the 1976 Clarence Derwent Award and nomination for a Drama Desk Award for his portrayal of Richie in David Rabe's 'Streamers.'
The next year he starred in David Mamet's 'Life in the Theater and in 1979 played opposite Maggie Smith in Tom Stoppard's 'Night and Day.'
While touring with the national company of 'Children of a Less God,' the New York Times wrote of his performance, 'Peter Evans now has the male lead ... and it is now infinitely more moving.'
Evans also appeared in the films 'Arthur' and 'Imposters' and on the PBS series 'Best of Families.'
He had lived in Los Angeles during the last few years while playing the role of the womanizing Merman in '9 to 5.'
Evans is survived by his parents, a brother and a sister. A memorial service is planned for Friday in his hometown of Englewood, N.J. Services will also be held in New York and Los Angeles at a date to be announced.
