Peter Van Norden, the actor who appeared in the Police Academy and Naked Gun films, has died. He was 75.
Van Norden’s son, Robert, announced that his father died on Thursday.
“Peter passed away peacefully last night with his wife, Wendy, at his side,” Robert wrote in an Instagram post. “He was a terrific father, husband, friend, and a greatly respected member of the theater community. He will be missed.”
Born Dec. 16, 1950, Van Norden earned his first acting credit in the late 1970s in the comedy Squeeze Play. He went on to appear in numerous film projects, including the 1985 Police Academy follow-up, entitled Their First Assignment. There, Van Norden portrayed policeman Vinnie Schtulman, the first partner of Steve Guttenberg’s Carey Mahoney.
Another sequel, he acted in the second Naked Gun movie in 1991, where he took on the role of John Sununu, President George H. W. Bush’s former White House chief of staff.
On the small screen, he has acted in Three’s A Crowd (1985); an episode of Silver Spoons; a 1991 episode of Matlock; L.A. Law (1990-1992); The Stand; Murder, She Wrote (1989-1996); two 2004 episodes of Days of Our Lives; and 9-1-1 (2019).
Van Norden’s film credits include The Accused; An Innocent Man; Love Hurts; Hunky Dory; and West Virginia, among others.
Outside film and TV, Van Norden had an extensive stage career, appearing in various Broadway, off-Broadway and regional productions. His Broadway stints included features in St. Joan, Macbeth, Little Johnny Jones, Romeo and Juliet and The Inspector General. He performed his final stage role last year in Corktown ’39 at Los Angeles’ Matrix Theatre.
Van Norden was also part of The Rehearsal Room actors workshop, which “help[s] actors and artists grow their careers through challenging material.” Last August, he partook in breaking down Shakespeare’s Richard III.
He is survived by his wife, Wendy, and their son, Robert.
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