Elegy to the Outgoing Tide: Remembering the Remarkable John Mahoney (1940-2018)

On Monday evening, when news broke about the passing of actor John Mahoney--at age 77, of complications from throat cancer--reports and tweets from national news outlets and widespread fans primarily referenced his role on the NBC sitcom, Frasier.

This is certainly understandable, as the 11 years Mahoney spent starring as the lovably irascible Martin Crane--father to Kelsey Grammer's title character and his brother Niles (David Hyde Pierce)--undoubtedly represent his highest profile acting credit.

And he was great in the role.

But truth be told, I never watched Frasier all that much. I loved Cheers, from which Grammer's pompous psychiatrist was spun off onto his own show. Yet while I liked the characters of Frasier, Niles and Martin, I just wasn't compelled to tune in with regularity. Even in reruns.

Nonetheless, my admiration and appreciation for Mahoney could hardly be higher, and my sorrow over his passing feels considerably more acute than for most celebrities.

Before he was on Frasier, I enjoyed his work in the movie Say Anything with John Cusack and Ione Skye. I think this was the first I was aware of him.

He was also excellent on film in Barton Fink, Primal Fear, She's the One and more. 

Though I never had the pleasure of meeting Mahoney, I firmly believe the many wonderful things people have said--long before his passing, and profusely since--about what a nice man he was. 

And the story of his life, far beyond the success he found on Frasier, is rather remarkable. 

Per Wikipedia, Mahoney was born in Blackpool, Lancashire, England on June 20, 1940 and opted to move to the United States while still a young man.

He studied at Quincy University, in Illinois, before joining the United States Army to speed up the U.S. citizenship process, and received citizenship in 1959.

In the early 1970s, he taught English at Western Illinois University before settling in the Chicago suburbs of Forest Park and then Oak Park and serving as editor of a medical journal through much of the decade.

Dissatisfied with his career, he took acting classes at St. Nicholas Theatre, and soon decided to pursue acting full-time. After a production in Chicago in 1977, John Malkovich encouraged him to join the Steppenwolf Theatre, where he would receive raves in a play called Orphans, among several performances.

In 1986, Mahoney won a Tony Award for his performance in John Guare's The House of Blue Leaves on Broadway.

Frasier began in 1993, and after its highly successful run ended in 2004, Mahoney continued to occasionally act in TV & film.

John Mahoney in The Outgoing Tide, Northlight Theatre

But he returned to live in Oak Park and quite prolifically resumed his theater careeer on Chicago area stages.

I first saw him at Steppenwolf--where he had remained in the esteemed ensemble--in 2004, in both I Never Sang for My Father and The Dresser. I would also see him there in The Seafarer (2009), The Birthday Party (2013) and The Herd (2015).

He also appeared at Northlight Theatre in my hometown of Skokie, where 2011's The Outgoing Tide--about an aging man facing Alzheimer's and the end of his life--was one of the best plays I've ever seen anywhere.

I also really loved him in Chapatti (2014), got a kick out of seeing him act alongside the wondrous Mike Nussbaum in Better Late (2008) and enjoyed him in 2010's A Life.

Mahoney was part of Ravinia's 2005 concert staging of the Stephen Sondheim musical, Anyone Can Whistle, and in 2014 served as emcee as the Auditorium Theatre celebrated his 125th year with a showcase called Living the History.

So that makes 11 times I saw John Mahoney onstage, and every time was a treat, as I commonly shared in reviews (note the hyperlinks above).

At some points during the past decade, he appeared alarmingly frail--yet always acted terrifically--and it was heartwarming to note him being far more hale in more recent shows, though I last saw him in 2015.

Per this article, Mahoney fought cancer 20 years ago, and overcame a Stage 3 bout three years back, sharing in October 2017 that "according to my doctors, I’m clear of it now."

John Mahoney in Chapatti, Northlight Theatre

And indeed, from September to November of last year, the actor starred at Steppenwolf in The Rembrandt.

Regretfully, I didn't get to it.

Reviews of the play weren't outstanding and Cubs playoff action and various other shows kept me busy enough to not make it a priority.

Obviously, I now wish I had.

Reports are that he died on Sunday in hospice care due to complications from throat cancer. He had no direct survivors, but based on the outpouring of love, far and wide, myriad admirers.

Friends of mine from Oak Park have even shared personal anecdotes about Mahoney's accessibility and kindness.

I will acutely miss him and will always think of him fondly, not just for his good nature but for--at age 37--deciding he wanted to be an actor, and soon becoming great it.

Chase your dreams, no matter where the starting point.

And while I can't tell you what The Rembrandt was about, from all my observations it seems rather obvious that John Mahoney himself was quite a masterpiece.

With a Pair of Great Performances in Fine Irish Play, 'Chapatti' Has Me Dublin My Pleasure -- Chicago Theater Review

Theater Review

Chapatti
a world premiere play by Christian O'Reilly
directed by BJ Jones
starring John Mahoney and Penny Slusher
Northlight Theatre, Skokie, IL
Run Ended
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This won't be a barrage of statistics like my last review, but I feel it worth noting that I have now seen John Mahoney on a theatrical stage 9 times--at Northlight, Steppenwolf and once at Ravinia.

Truth be told, this is probably more than the number of Frasier episodes I've seen--I never liked the show nearly as much as Cheers, from which it was spun off--despite Mahoney playing Martin Crane, terrifically, in 263 of those.

According to IMDB, he has appeared in a number of TV episodes since Frasier ended in 2004, but I believe it true to say that rather than seek continued fame & fortune in Hollywood, Mahoney has opted to focus primarily on stage acting in Chicago, where he joined Steppenwolf at the age of 37, soon after deciding to become an actor.

He is now 73--just 14 years older than his TV son, Kelsey Grammer--and it was great to note that in Chapatti he appeared a good bit heartier than he has in recent years.

It is always a joy to see him on stage, yet while he is delightful in Chapatti--a play he directly helped to facilitate a world premiere at Northlight--his only castmate, Penny Slusher, is just as terrific in a rather warmhearted piece.

I saw the show's last performance in Skokie, so won't spend much time on a detailed review, but do highly recommend it--with the same cast--to those lucky enough to be at the Galway Arts Festival in July.

Past Northlight productions with Mahoney have been staged at the Ireland theater fest, and Chapatti is actually a co-production of Northlight and the festival born from Irish author Christian O'Reilly getting his script to Mahoney, who got Northlight Artistic Director BJ Jones interested.

Jones directed the Skokie production and will do likewise in Galway.

There, the one troublesome aspect of Chapatti shouldn't be a problem. Mahoney and Slusher each adopted Irish accents, and while I don't think I missed much of the dialogue, the couple next to me audibly tried to discern what was said on several occasions.

Given Northlight's generally older audience base, I might suggest that the play should have been presented here devoid of any brogue, even if a fair amount of authenticity would have been lost. I have to assume other audience members might have had some trouble comprehending all that was said, although this may have been satiated a bit by the fact that much of it was monologue, not dialogue.

Even though the play revolves around two older Dubliners who come to intertwine, writer O'Reilly cleverly has both Dan (Mahoney) and Betty (Slusher) talking to the audience--though not all that overtly--rather than to each other, much of the time.

This enables a deeper familiarity with each character, which makes their eventual interaction richer.

The title of the play, Chapatti, is that of Dan's dog, while Betty has several cats. None of the animals are seen, but the unique structure makes them an integral part of the piece.

I imagine the work would best be classified as a drama given some weighty themes, but it has enough humor to possibly be considered a comedy.

And it is touching enough--without being maudlin--to resonate with audience members of all ages, although perhaps particularly the more mature folks who fill most of the seats in Skokie.

Yet anyone who has the chance in Galway should cherish seeing a true Chicago treasure in Mahoney, and the wonderful work of Slusher, who is every bit his equal in Chapatti.

The play itself is good enough to work well with other fine actors, so it'll be worth your time, one day, if you missed it here and won't be getting to Galway.

But though a one-line synopsis may say that Chapatti is a Dublin-based play about a late-in-life dog lover and cat person who come to find commonality, at its core it is simply a piece about humanity.

Which John Mahoney and Penny Slusher embody just about perfectly.

Astute Script, Unforgettable Performances Power Great New Play About Alzheimer's -- Theater Review: The Outgoing Tide

Theater Review

The Outgoing Tide
a world premiere play by Bruce Graham
Northlight Theatre, Skokie, IL
Thru June 26, 2011
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The Tony Awards will be presented this Sunday night. In order to be eligible for awards honoring the best of the 2010-11 season, theatrical productions must have opened on Broadway by April 28, 2011

Although I haven't seen any of the shows nominated for Best New Play--nor any productions on Broadway in the past year--I'm confident that had The Outgoing Tide opened about three weeks earlier than it did, with the exact same cast, in a Times Square theater rather than at The North Shore Center for the Performing Arts in Skokie, it would have earned a Tony nomination. As undoubtedly would its star, John Mahoney, and likely his two co-stars, Rondi Reed and Thomas Cox. (Mahoney and Reed are already Tony winners).

Produced by the routinely superb Northlight Theatre, the world premiere drama by Bruce Graham stands as the best play I've seen this year, and that includes the Goodman Theatre production of God Of Carnage, which earned the Best New Play Tony in 2009.

I feel lucky that Northlight performs 5 minutes from my home, attracts world-class talent--and Chicago stalwarts--like Mahoney and Reed and offers "Day of Show" discount tickets for $20 when available (call 847-673-6300). For this play, about a man afflicted with Alzheimer's Disease facing both his future and his past, is well-worth the effort for anyone to get to; on a trip to New York or London, you'd be unlikely to see a new dramatic work that's any better.

There are some twists and surprises from the beginning of the narrative, so I'll share very little of the play's plot, but Mahoney delivers a masterful performance as Gunner, a retired businessman not willing to passively accept the ravages of senility. His relationship with his wife, Peg (Reed), is not a simple one; she is doting but often harsh, inherently sympathetic to his plight but at times exasperated to the point of cruelty.

To see these two veterans--plus the also very fine Cox--interact for 2 hours would be worth the ticket price in itself, but Graham's script is shrewd, poignant, thought-provoking and even quite humorous. Director BJ Jones does a great job of never letting it get too cloying, or even predictable, and even the stage set would suffice just fine in a small Broadway house.  

Regular followers of Seth Saith may be ready to submit an entry to Ripley's Believe It or Not, for this is my third straight @@@@@ review. That's never happened before. But The Outgoing Tide is that good; if justice is to be served, it may yet earn a Tony nom--amidst a successful Broadway run.