Yahoo Lifestyle John Lawlor, Phyllis and The Facts of Life Star, Dead at 83
John Lawlor, known for his roles in the sitcoms Phyllis and The Facts of Life, has died at the age of 83.
Lawlor died on Feb. 13 at a veterans’ hospice facility in Albuquerque, N.M., with his daughter Riel by his side, per an obituary posted by his family. A cause of death was not disclosed.
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Born in Troy, N.Y., Lawlor began his acting career in 1975 with The Rockford Files. While appearing in multiple guest roles throughout TV and movies, his most well-known role was as Leonard Marsh/Officer Hale in the 1976 sitcom Phyllis. He joined the sitcom during its second season and appeared in 25 episodes.
A few years later, in 1979, Lawlor played the role of Steven Bradley, the headmaster of an all-girls private school in the NBC’s Diff’rent Strokes spinoff The Facts of Life. He played the role for 13 episodes during the sitcom’s first season; the cast was then downsized/the series re-focused on the late Charlotte Rae’s Edna Garrett. Roger Perry later was cast as new headmaster Charles Parker.
Lawlor’s other TV credits include Highway to Heaven, The Bold and the Beautiful, Knots Landing, Scoundrels, Breaking Bad, Killer Women and Graves. More recently, he had a short run on Netflix’s Godless, in 2017.
Lawlor is survived by five children, three grandchildren, a nephew, and two nieces.
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