Actor Randolph Mantooth, best known for portraying firefighter-paramedic Johnny Gage on the NBC series Emergency!, has died at 80.
Mantooth passed away on Thursday in a Ventura hospice facility and was surrounded by friends and family, the actor’s brother, Donald Mantooth, told TMZ on Friday.
The actor had battled with a number of cancers for several years, including throat cancer.
Mantooth ‘kept getting thinner and thinner’ before succumbing to the illness, his brother told The Hollywood Reporter.
The Sacramento native is survived by his wife Kristen Connors, as well as his brother, his sister Tonya and nieces and nephews.
The Daily Mail has reached out to Mantooth’s representatives for comment.
Aside from his role on Emergency!, Mantooth also starred as Clay Alden/Alex Masters on the ABC soap opera Loving, and appeared on other daytime shows including ABC’s General Hospital, ABC’s One Life to Live and CBS’ As the World Turns.
Actor Randolph Mantooth has died at the age of 80 on Thursday after battling cancer for several years; Pictured in New York City in 2003
He is best known for portraying firefighter-paramedic Johnny Gage on Emergency!; Pictured in a still from the show
Mantooth, born Randy DeRoy Mantooth, worked in television, film and theater for more than 50 years.
Due to his father Buck’s career as a pipeline construction engineer, his family was constantly on the move, leading him to live in 24 different states before he even turned 18. Meanwhile, his mother, Sadie, worked as a waitress.
Fans know him best for portraying the goofy but courageous Gage in the 1970s NBC medical drama Emergency!, created by Jack Webb and Robert A. Cinader. He starred opposite Kevin Tighe, who played his partner Roy DeSoto.
The actor had a humorous response after learning he was going to play a paramedic in the show.
‘What the hell is a paramedic? At that time, there were only [a handful] in all of California,’ he said in a 2013 interview for the TV Academy Foundation website The Interviews.
He admitted he was initially hesitant to take the role because it required him to cut his hair.
Operating out of the Los Angeles County Fire Department’s Station 51, Gage and DeSoto frequently crossed paths with Rampart General Hospital’s medical staff, including Dr. Kelly Brackett (Robert Fuller), nurse Dixie McCall (Julie London), and Dr. Joe Early (played by London’s real-life husband, Bobby Troup).
Emergency! enjoyed a successful six-season run on NBC from 1972 until 1977, later expanding its legacy with seven television films and even a Saturday morning animated spin-off in 1973.
Mantooth battled with a number of cancers for several years, including throat cancer, his brother told TMZ; Mantooth pictured with actor James Van Der Beek, who died in February following a battle with cancer
The Sacramento native is survived by his brother, sister, nieces, and nephews; Pictured with wife Kristen Connors in 2002 during NBC 75th Anniversary Celebration in New York
He played Gage in the 1970s NBC medical drama Emergency! opposite Kevin Tighe (center), who starred as his partner Roy DeSoto
The actor had a humorous response after learning he was going to play a paramedic in the show. ‘What the hell is a paramedic? At that time, there were only [a handful] in all of California,’ he said in a 2013 interview
Within three years of the show’s debut, 46 states passed legislation authorizing paramedics to practice emergency medicine; Mantooth pictured in 2017 with his vehicle from Emergency!
Aside from his role on Emergency!, Mantooth also starred as Clay Alden/Alex Masters on the ABC soap opera Loving; Pictured in a still with Lisa Peluso and Jean Le Clerc
When the series first debuted, only 12 paramedic units existed across the entirety of North America.
Within three years, 46 states passed legislation authorizing paramedics to practice emergency medicine.
‘When you take life-saving services out of the hospital and into the field, the number of lives that are saved is incalculable. The stars just lined up with this show perfectly for a purpose, for a greater purpose,’ Mantooth said.
‘I could be remembered for driving a car that has a name like the General Lee, not that there’s anything wrong with that show. Instead I’m remembered for something that changed emergency medicine, forever. How lucky can any one person be?’
In 2012 he and Tighe were named honorary fire chiefs by the L.A. County Fire Department.
Mantooth also guest-starred on shows like Charlie’s Angels, Sons of Anarchy, The Fall Guy, Battlestar Galactica, Diagnosis Murder and L.A. Law.
His notable film roles include He Was a Quiet Man (2007) and Bold Native (2010).
He married his wife Kristen in 2002. He was previously married to Rose Parra from 1978 until 1991.
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