Pat Harrington – the actor best known for playing smarmy building superintendent Dwayne Schneider on One Day at a Time – has passed away at the age of 86.
According to a statement from his family, Harrington had been battling Alzheimer’s and was recently hospitalized after a fall.
His daughters broke the news to fans on Facebook just moments ago.
Though he has more than 160 film and television credits to his name, Harrington is best-remembered for his career-making role as Schneider in all nine seasons of One Day at a Time.
Created by legendary All in the Family and The Jeffersons showrunner, Norman Lear, the sitcom – which ran on CBS from 1975 to 1984 – often tackled the serious issues of its time, and Harrington became its breakout star early on, often providing much-needed comic relief in more serious scenes.
“He turned out to be the comic strength of the show,” Lear once said.
Harrington won a Golden Globe and an Emmy for his portrayal of Schneider, and he set the stage for future scene-stealing “wacky neighbor” types such as Kramer on Seinfeld and Urkel on Family Matters.
His last public appearance paid tribute to his most famous role, as Harrington played – what else? – a building superintendent on One Day at a Time co-star Valerie Bertinelli’s more recent sitcom, Hot in Cleveland.
