George Wendt, Who Played Legendary Barfly On 'Cheers,' Dies At 76

George Wendt, whose character Norm Peterson loved hanging out with his friends at the bar on “Cheers,” has died at 76.

Wendt died in his sleep at home, his family confirmed Tuesday.

“George was a doting family man, a well-loved friend and confidant to all of those lucky enough to have known him,” a spokesperson for Wendt said in a statement. “He will be missed forever. The family has requested privacy during this time.”

Wendt, who was born and raised in Chicago, got his start with the improv group Second City in 1975.

“Wendt famously dropped out of Notre Dame with a 0.0 GPA after moving to an off-campus apartment with no car to get to class in the dead of winter,” Wendt’s page on the Second City website reads. “Wendt joined The Second City Mainstage in 1975 for the revue ‘Once More with Fooling’ after having served time in The Second City Touring Company. After a year, he was sent back to the Touring Company for further ‘seasoning’ and brought back to the Mainstage in 1978 for ‘Freud Slipped Here.’”

Wendt’s big break came in 1982 with the smash success of “Cheers,” the iconic show about a group of unexpected friends hanging out in a Boston bar, the place where “everybody knows your name.” Wendt played Norm Peterson, the lovable barfly who liked to sit on his stool, guzzle beer and comment on the will-they-won’t-they tension between characters Sam Malone and Diane Chambers.

“I had no idea where the cameras were, ever,” Wendt said in a conversation last year with his fellow co-stars Ted Danson and Woody Harrelson. “I was only ever playing to the house.”

“Oh, you mean during ‘Cheers’?” Harrelson asked.

“For the first couple years,” Wendt clarified. “Afterwards, I was like, ‘I’m not drinking this piss, the camera’s way over there.’”

Wendt also appeared in several movies, including “Fletch” (1985), “Never Say Die” (1988), “Forever Young” (1992) and “Spice World” (1997).

Wendt, the uncle of actor and Saturday Night Live alum Jason Sudeikis, is survived by his wife, three children and two stepchildren.

CORRECTION: A previous version of this story misspelled the last name of “Cheers” character Norm Peterson.