Actor George Maharis, who starred in the classic series ‘Route 66,’ died Wednesday (5/24) at his Beverly Hills home, aged 94.
A New Yorker born to Greek immigrants, he studied acting at the famed The Actors Studio, alongside Marlon Brando, and played a few avant-garde parts on the Off-Broadway circuit before beginning small TV roles and being cast in 1960 as co-star in ‘Route 66’.
Created by Stirling Silliphant and Herbert B. Leonard, the series was inspired by beatnik literature and follows two young men (Maharis and Martin Milner) who cruise the highways of the United States in a Corvette and find adventures along the way. The production was a television phenomenon, giving Maharis a parallel career as a singer – he also released records during that time.
However, it wasn’t an easy job. All 116 episodes of the series, spanning four seasons, were filmed in different cities across the United States, resulting in a grueling production schedule. The constant commute created food and health problems for the team, and midway through the third season, in late 1962, Maharis contracted hepatitis, was hospitalized for a month, and missed several episodes.
Nominated for an Emmy in 1962 for his role, the actor wanted to return to the series, but relapsed. After leaving the production, he was replaced by another actor in the 4th season: the public rejected the change and, with a decline in ratings, the series ended up being canceled in the same year.
After two years of battling hepatitis, Maharis decided to try a less strenuous career in film, starring in Delbert Mann’s spy comedy Hurry Before It Melts in 1964. ), by John Sturges, the drama “Sylvia” (1965), by Gordon Douglas, in which he was paired with Carroll Baker, the crime drama “Taken from the Arms of Death” (1967), by Lamont Johnson, and the comedy criminal “Everything Happens” (1967), by Elliot Silverstein, in which he played a hippie.
But she soon found herself back on TV, joining the cast of the series ‘Jogo Mortal’, which ended up being canceled in its first season in 1971. , ‘Gallery of Terror’, ‘Barnaby Jones’, ‘The Bionic Woman’, ‘The New Centurions’ “, “Escape from the Stars”, “Fantasy Island” and “Murder in Writing”.
Maharis still made occasional comebacks in films, including “See What Happened to Rosemary’s Baby” (1976), a television sequel to Roman Polanski’s classic, playing Rosemary’s husband, played by John Cassavetes in 1968. Subsequently, he reappeared in the film cinema as a resurrected sorcerer in the fantasy “The Sword and the Barbarians” (1982). His next film was also his last screen role, as a doctor who examines Drew Barrymore in the horror “The Half-Blood” (1993).
Source: Terra
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