Joe Flaherty (1941-2024) American Actor, writer and comedian

Joe Flaherty (1941-2024) American Actor, writer and comedian, Joe Flaherty Find a Grave Memorial, Actor and comedian Joe Flaherty dead at 82, He is best known for his work on the Canadian sketch comedy SCTV from 1976 to 1984 (on which he also served as a writer), his role as Harold Weir on Freaks and Geeks, and starring as Donald the heckler in Happy Gilmore (1996).

He was best known to television viewers for his work on the popular Canadian sketch comedy show “SCTV” from 1976 to 1984. Born Joseph O’Flaherty, he served in the United States Air Force for four years before getting involved in the dramatic theater. He later moved to Chicago and became involved with the Second City Theater and from 1973 to 1974, appeared on the National Lampoon Radio Hour. After spending seven years in Chicago, he moved to Toronto and helped establish the Toronto Second City comedy troupe and became one of the regulars on the television show “SCTV.”

Joe Flaherty
Born	21 June 1941 Pittsburgh, Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, USA
Died	1 April 2024 (aged 82) Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Occupations	Actor writer comedian
Years active	1969–2018
Spouse	Judith Dagley (Marriage 1974; Divorce 1996)
Children	2

He was a performer/writer for the show during its run from 1976 to 1984 and appeared as various characters on the show. He went on to appear in such television series as “Maniac Mansion,” “Police Academy: The Series,” “Freaks and Geeks,” “Go Fish,” “The King of Queens,” “Robson Arms,” and “The Life & Times of Tim.” In 1976, he made his film debut in “Tunnel Vision.” His later film credits would include such titles as “1941,” “Stripes,” “Club Paradise,” “Back to the Future Part II,” “Happy Gilmore,” “Slackers,” and “Summerhood.”

He also did voice work for various animated films and later taught comedy-writing at Humber College in Toronto.He was best known to television viewers for his work on the popular Canadian sketch comedy show “SCTV” from 1976 to 1984. Born Joseph O’Flaherty, he served in the United States Air Force for four years before getting involved in the dramatic theater.

He later moved to Chicago and became involved with the Second City Theater and from 1973 to 1974, appeared on the National Lampoon Radio Hour. After spending seven years in Chicago, he moved to Toronto and helped establish the Toronto Second City comedy troupe and became one of the regulars on the television show “SCTV.”

Joe Flaherty wiki bio, Life and career

Joseph O’Flaherty was born on June 21, 1941, in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, the eldest of seven children. His father was a production clerk at Westinghouse Electric and of Irish heritage and his mother was of Italian descent.

Flaherty served in the United States Air Force for four years, before becoming involved in dramatic theatre.

Flaherty moved to Chicago, where he started his comedy career in 1969 with the Second City Theater as Joe O’Flaherty and would work with future stars such as John Belushi and Harold Ramis. He dropped the “O” in his birth name as there was another Joseph O’Flaherty registered with Actors Equity. Along with several other Second City performers, he began appearing on the National Lampoon Radio Hour from 1973 to 1974. After seven years in Chicago, he moved to Toronto to help establish the Toronto Second City theatre troupe. During those years, he was one of the original writer/performers on SCTV, where he spent eight years on the show, playing such characters as Big Jim McBob (of Farm Film Report fame), Count Floyd/Floyd Robertson, and station owner/manager Guy Caballero, who goes around in a wheelchair only for respect and undeserved sympathy.

SCTV ceased production in 1984. The same year, Flaherty played Count Floyd in a short film that was shown at concerts by the rock band Rush before the song “The Weapon”, for their tour in support of Grace Under Pressure (and can be seen in the home video, Grace Under Pressure Tour).^{[citation needed]}

Flaherty appeared in a number of cult-favorite films, including an appearance as a Western Union postal worker who delivers Doc Brown’s 70-year-old letter to Marty McFly in Back to the Future Part II (1989), as well as the crazed fan yelling “jackass!” who secretly works for antagonist Shooter McGavin in Happy Gilmore. In season eight of Family Guy, Flaherty once again played the Western Union man in “Something, Something, Something, Dark Side”. He likewise satirizes his Back to the Future Part II character in “The Big Bang Theory”, this time playing a Vatican worker whose role is essentially identical to that of his Western Union character.^{[citation needed]}

In 1989, Flaherty played a guest role in Married… with Children in the season-four episode “Tooth or Consequences”, as a recently divorced dentist who must repair Al Bundy’s teeth.^{[citation needed]}

During 1997–1998, Flaherty starred in the television adaptation of Police Academy (Police Academy: The Series) as Cmdt. Stuart Hefilfinger. The series lasted for only one season.

In 1999, Flaherty joined the cast of Freaks and Geeks, an NBC hour-long dramedy set in the 1980–1981 academic year, in which he played Harold Weir, the irascible father of two teens. Despite a dedicated cult following, the show only lasted one season. In the third episode, “Tricks and Treats”, he dons a cheap vampire costume reminiscent of his “Count Floyd” character of the depicted era.^{[citation needed]}

Flaherty made appearances on the CBS sitcom The King of Queens as Father McAndrew, the priest at the Heffernans’ church. He starred on the Bite TV original program, Uncle Joe’s Cartoon Playhouse, and served as a judge on the CBC program The Second City’s Next Comedy Legend.

From 2001 to 2004, he had appeared in various Disney shows and films, including The Legend of Tarzan and Home on the Range.

In 2018, Flaherty participated in a cast reunion at Toronto’s Elgin Theatre filmed by Martin Scorsese for a yet to be released Netflix special.

Beginning in 2004, Flaherty was artist-in-residence at Humber College’s School of Creative and Performing Arts in Toronto, where he taught a comedy writing course. He previously helped found the school’s comedy writing and performance program serving as its artistic director. He was also on the program’s advisory committee.

Flaherty was married to Judith Dagley for 22 years until their divorce in 1996. They had two children, Gudrun, who is also an actress and writer, and Gabriel. His brothers, Paul and Dave, are comedy writers.