May 20 (UPI) -- George Wendt died Tuesday in his sleep, The Hollywood Reporter confirmed with the actor's family and People with his publicist. Wendt was 76.
Wendt was best known as Boston bar patron Norm Peterson, which he played for 11 seasons on Cheers. Norm was such a regular that the entire bar called out his name when he arrived, though he ran up an unpaid bar tab that was a recurring joke.
He reprised the role on episodes of the spinoff Frasier, and a St. Elsewhere episode from 1985 in which the doctors from that show visit the bar. Wendt frequently appeared on Saturday Night Live as a Chicago bears superfan who talked about "da Bears" with other fans..
Prior to Cheers, Wendt had appeared on episodes of Taxi, Soap, Hart to Hart and more shows. During the run of Cheers, he appeared in movies such as Fletch, Gung Ho and House, and the music video for Ghostbusters.
Other music videos in which Wendt appeared include Michael Jackson's "Black or White" and MxPx's "Responsibility."
Following Cheers, Wendt got a chance for his own short-lived sitcom The George Wendt Show. Then he appeared on The Naked Truth, Clipped and many other single episodes.
On stage, Wendt had appeared in Hairspray, Elf, Breakfast at Tiffany's and more on Broadway, and in a Los Angeles production of Re-Animator: The Musical. The film's director, Stuart Gordon, directed the adaptation, having cast Wendt in many films such as Space Truckers, King of the Ants and Edmond.
