Jay Thomas
Jay Thomas passed away in his home on Monday morning after battling against cancer. He was 69. Pictured: Thomas attends the 40th Anniversary St. Jude Hollywood Gala honoring Danny Thomas and the St. Jude Children's Research Hospital March 7, 2002 in Beverly Hills, California. Getty Images/Frederick M. Brown

“Murphy Brown” star Jay Thomas has died at the age of 69.

Thomas’ good friend and agent, Don Buchwald, confirmed the actor’s demise after his battle with cancer to The New York Daily News. “Jay was one of a kind, never at a loss for words and filled with so much fun and wonderfully whacky thoughts and behavior,” he said in a statement.

Buchwald, who repped Thomas for 35 years, said that the actor’s wife, Sally, and sons Sam, Jake and J.T. were beside him when he passed away in his Santa Barbara home in California on Thursday morning. “Sally and the boys were the true passion of his life,” Buchwald added.

Thomas’ publicist, Tom Estey, also released a statement to Variety about the actor’s passing. “Jay Thomas was one of the funniest and kindest men I have had the honor to call both client and friend for 25 years-plus. He will be dearly missed by so many,” he said.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, Thomas starred in “Murphy Brown” from 1989 to 1998 as the obnoxious TV talk show host Jerry Gold. In “Cheers,” he gave life to French-Canadian goalie Eddie LeBlanc. The actor also teamed up with Annie Potts in CBS’ “Love and War” between 1992 and 1995. Additionally, he guest-starred in Showtime’s “Ray Donovan” as Marty Grossman.

As for his other acting credits, Thomas starred in ABC’s “Married People” and “Mork & Mindy.” In “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit,” he played the role of Joe Sherman. On the big screen, Thomas starred in the 1995 hit, “Mr. Holland’s Opus,” and the 2009 movie, “Labor Pains.”

In more recent years, during Christmas time, Thomas appeared on David Letterman’s talk show where he told stories about Clayton Moore. He and Letterman also engaged in hilarious games, including one where they tried to hit a meatball from atop the Christmas tree.

The Kermit, Texas native was raised by his parents in New Orleans. He started his career in the industry as a radio DJ for various stations in New York and Los Angeles. Most recently, he hosted “The Jay Thomas Show” on Sirius XM.

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