Pat Finn, The Middle
THE MIDDLE - "The Show Must Go On" - After almost forgetting that Brick's middle school graduation is only days away, Frankie goes on a mission to right a wrong when Brick discovers that the song he was supposed to sing at the ceremony has been cut. Meanwhile, Sue needs to be at Dollywood to begin her summer job on the same day as Brick's graduation, and Axl takes a job as a country club counselor and finds himself being mocked by a 10-year-old carbon copy of himself, on the season finale of "The Middle," WEDNESDAY, MAY 18 (8:00-8:30 p.m. EDT) on the Disney General Entertainment Content via Getty Images Television Network. (Photo by Michael Ansell/Disney General Entertainment Content via Getty Images) CHARLIE MCDERMOTT, EDEN SHER, NEIL FLYNN, PATRICIA HEATON, PAT FINN
Entertainment

Beloved Actor and Comedic Star of ‘The Middle’ Dead at 60

The actor, who was battling cancer, was roommates with Chris Farley and appeared in everything from 'Seinfeld' to 'Murphy Brown'.

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Pat Finn, best known as Bill Norwood on the ABC sitcom The Middle, has died at 60 years old. The actor was diagnosed with bladder cancer in 2022. After a recurrence, the illness metastasized. He is survived by his wife and three children.

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Comedian Jeff Dye said of the actor, "I don't like to be the guy who post pics with celebrities that pass. But this guy wasn't just a celebrity to me. He was a friend. [...] One of the best dudes I knew with a PERFECT sense of humor. I love you Pat Finn and I'll see again in the after, we can sing together and shake our heads about all the meannes in the used to be."

Pat Finn and Chris Farley Were Roommates

Finn and Chris Farley were students and rugby teammates at Marquette University in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, in 1987. They then moved to Chicago to perform at the legendary improv theater The Second City. 

"I used to go there and almost study it," Finn shared in 2022. "I was like a baseball player rewatching a game. A career in comedy didn't become a reality until I was picked up by The Second City and then the main stage."

The actor went on to star as Dan in The George Wendt Show. Based on NPR's Car Talk, the sitcom revolved around brothers who hosted a car repair radio show in Madison, Wisconsin. It was canceled after six episodes. The two remained friends, with Wendt becoming the godfather to Finn's youngest son.

Pat Finn Was Also a Pitchman

Seinfeld fans will recognize Finn as the character George Mayo from the episode "The Reverse Peephole." He also appeared in That '70s Show, Friends, and Murphy Brown. Finn was also a spokesperson for Toyota dealerships in Phoenix, where he played a father obsessed with the vehicle line. 

Yet, above all his roles, Pat Finn may be most fondly remembered as Bill Norwood from The Middle, a part he embodied from 2011 to 2018. 

Finn said, "I always say, if you were to tell me as a college kid or high school kid I'd be living in LA, driving to the beach, surfing with my son, I'd think you were crazy. I don't know how I fell into it. I feel so fortunate, and it fits. It feels right."