{"id":826,"date":"2016-02-16T18:20:11","date_gmt":"2016-02-16T23:20:11","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/?p=826"},"modified":"2016-02-17T18:21:31","modified_gmt":"2016-02-17T23:21:31","slug":"george-gaynes-of-punky-brewster-police-academy-fame-dies-at-98","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/2016\/02\/16\/george-gaynes-of-punky-brewster-police-academy-fame-dies-at-98\/","title":{"rendered":"George Gaynes, of &#8216;Punky Brewster, &#8216;Police Academy&#8217; Fame, Dies at 98"},"content":{"rendered":"<figure id=\"attachment_825\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-825\" style=\"width: 660px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-825\" src=\"http:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/george_gaynes_police_academy_6_1988_cropped.jpg\" alt=\"George Gaynes in Police Academy 6: City Under Siege Photo: Warner Brother 1988\" width=\"660\" height=\"299\" srcset=\"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/george_gaynes_police_academy_6_1988_cropped.jpg 660w, https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/george_gaynes_police_academy_6_1988_cropped-300x136.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 660px) 100vw, 660px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-825\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">George Gaynes in Police Academy 6: City Under Siege Photo: Warner Brother 1988<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>George Gaynes, who portrayed an irritable foster parent on the &#8217;80s sitcom <em>Punky Brewster<\/em>, the bewildered commandant in seven <em>Police Academy<\/em> films and a soap opera star with a crush on Dorothy Michaels, whom he doesn&#8217;t know is Dustin Hoffman&#8217;s character in drag, in the hit feature comedy <em>Tootsie<\/em>, died on Monday in North Bend, Wash. He was 98.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_823\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-823\" style=\"width: 239px\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-823\" src=\"http:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/george_gaynes_in_doctors_wives_1971-239x300.jpg\" alt=\"George Gaynes in DOCTOR'S WIVES 1971 Columbia Pictures\" width=\"239\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/george_gaynes_in_doctors_wives_1971-239x300.jpg 239w, https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/george_gaynes_in_doctors_wives_1971-768x965.jpg 768w, https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/george_gaynes_in_doctors_wives_1971-815x1024.jpg 815w, https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/george_gaynes_in_doctors_wives_1971.jpg 1194w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 239px) 100vw, 239px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-823\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">George Gaynes in DOCTOR&#8217;S WIVES 1971 Columbia Pictures<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>George Gaynes was born George Jongejans on May 16, 1917 to Dutch and Russian parents in Finland, he grew up in France, England and Switzerland; after serving in the Royal Netherlands Navy during World War II, he immigrated to the United States and began his acting career on Broadway.<\/p><div id=\"morty-3636127016\" class=\"morty-content\"><script async src=\"\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js?client=ca-pub-4937602850188786\" crossorigin=\"anonymous\"><\/script><ins class=\"adsbygoogle\" style=\"display:block; text-align:center;\" data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-4937602850188786\" \ndata-ad-slot=\"5227734695\" \ndata-ad-layout=\"in-article\"\ndata-ad-format=\"fluid\" data-full-width-responsive=\"true\"><\/ins>\n<script> \n(adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); \n<\/script>\n<\/div>\n<p>Gaynes&#8217; most recognized role&#8217;s in cinema was arguably that of Commandant Eric Lassard in the <em>Police Academy<\/em> series and the comedy film <em>Tootsie<\/em>.<\/p>\n<p>To television fans, he is perhaps best known as the curmudgeonly but lovable foster parent Henry Warnimont on the NBC series <em>Punky Brewster<\/em>; as high-powered theatrical producer Arthur Feldman on <em>The Days and Nights of Molly Dodd<\/em>, in which Gaynes&#8217; real-life wife, Allyn Ann McLerie, co-starred as his love interest; and as Frank Smith, the mob boss brought down by Luke Spencer (Anthony Geary) on the soap opera <em>General Hospital<\/em>.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_821\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-821\" style=\"width: 300px\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-821 size-medium\" src=\"http:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/tootsie_george_gaynes_1982-300x207.jpg\" alt=\"tootsie_george_gaynes_1982\" width=\"300\" height=\"207\" srcset=\"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/tootsie_george_gaynes_1982-300x207.jpg 300w, https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/tootsie_george_gaynes_1982-768x531.jpg 768w, https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/tootsie_george_gaynes_1982.jpg 929w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-821\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Dustin Hoffman as Tootsie with George Gaynes in TOOTSIE (1982) Photo Via: www.mortystv.com<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Gaynes was born in 1917 in Helsinki, in what was then the Grand Duchy of Finland and part of the Russian Empire (Finland became independent that year), the son of Iya Grigorievna De Gay (later known as Lady Iya Abdy), a Russian artist, and Gerrit Jongejans, a Dutch businessman. His uncle was actor Gregory Gaye.\u00a0He was raised in France, England and Switzerland.<\/p>\n<p>A United States citizen for most of his life, Gaynes rapidly built a reputation as a Broadway musical comedy performer in the 1940s and 1950s (his best-known appearance was in <em>Wonderful Town<\/em>, the musical version of <em>My Sister Eileen<\/em>). He had a career on the opera stages of Italy and France before World War II and in the US after the war.<\/p><div id=\"morty-19564226\" class=\"morty-content_2\" style=\"margin-left: auto;margin-right: auto;text-align: center;\"><script async src=\"\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js?client=ca-pub-4937602850188786\" crossorigin=\"anonymous\"><\/script><ins class=\"adsbygoogle\" style=\"display:block; text-align:center;\" data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-4937602850188786\" \ndata-ad-slot=\"5227734695\" \ndata-ad-layout=\"in-article\"\ndata-ad-format=\"fluid\" data-full-width-responsive=\"true\"><\/ins>\n<script> \n(adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); \n<\/script>\n<\/div>\n<p>He alternated between stage musicals and both comic and dramatic plays, including his role as Bob Baker in the original production of <em>Wonderful Town<\/em> (1953), Jupiter in the Cole Porter musical <em>Out of This World<\/em>, Gilbert and Sullivan operettas and as Henry Higgins in the 1964 US tour of <em>My Fair Lady<\/em>.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_820\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-820\" style=\"width: 251px\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-820\" src=\"http:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/george_gaynes_soleil_moon_frye_punky_brewster-251x300.jpg\" alt=\"George Gaynes and Soleil Moon Frye star in PUNKY BREWSTER\" width=\"251\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/george_gaynes_soleil_moon_frye_punky_brewster-251x300.jpg 251w, https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/george_gaynes_soleil_moon_frye_punky_brewster.jpg 696w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 251px) 100vw, 251px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-820\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">George Gaynes and Soleil Moon Frye star in PUNKY BREWSTER<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>In television, Gaynes played the role of Henry Warnimont, the eventual foster father for <em>Punky Brewster<\/em> in the eponymous series. (He also provided the voice for Henry in the animated Ruby-Spears version of the show.) Behind the camera, he directed the very last episode of <em>WKRP in Cincinnati<\/em>. Films in which he appeared include <em>The Way We Were<\/em>, <em>Nickelodeon<\/em> and <em>Tootsie<\/em>.<\/p>\n<p>In 1984, he played Commandant Lassard, the titular leader, in the first of seven <em>Police Academy<\/em> movies, and audiences of the 1980s may remember him as Frank Smith, the Mafia boss who was after Luke and Laura on the soap opera <em>General Hospital<\/em>. In 1994, he played Serybryalzov in Louis Malle&#8217;s acclaimed independent feature, <em>Vanya on 42nd Street<\/em>.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_827\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-827\" style=\"width: 300px\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-827\" src=\"http:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/gregg_berger_and_george_gaynes_1998-300x197.jpg\" alt=\"Gregg Berger and George Gaynes in Police Academy: Mission to Moscow (1994) Photo Via: www.mortystv.com\" width=\"300\" height=\"197\" srcset=\"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/gregg_berger_and_george_gaynes_1998-300x197.jpg 300w, https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/gregg_berger_and_george_gaynes_1998-768x504.jpg 768w, https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/gregg_berger_and_george_gaynes_1998-1024x672.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/gregg_berger_and_george_gaynes_1998.jpg 1215w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-827\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Gregg Berger and George Gaynes in Police Academy: Mission to Moscow (1994) Photo Via: www.mortystv.com<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Entering films and television in the early 1960s, Gaynes was a regular on the TV daytime dramas <em>Search for Tomorrow<\/em> (replacing Robert Mandan in the role of Jo&#8217;s husband, Sam Reynolds) and <em>General Hospital<\/em> (originating the role of mobster Frank Smith), and showed up in such movies as <em>The Group<\/em> (1966), <em>Marooned<\/em> (1969) and <em>Doctor&#8217;s Wives<\/em> (1971). He also played a role in the sci-fi television series <em>Sliders<\/em> for one episode, being the aged character of the leading role Quinn Mallory, played by Jerry O&#8217;Connell.<\/p>\n<p>Gaynes was married to the stage and television actress and dancer Allyn Ann McLerie from December 20, 1953; they had two children, Matthew (Matt) and Iya. After early teenage experimentation with marijuana, Matthew was sent to the Catalina Island School; there he learned ocean kayaking, and his life changed completely. He grew to be one of the most respected kayakers of his generation; he was shortlisted for the Olympic team the year that President Jimmy Carter boycotted the Olympics after the Russians invaded Afghanistan. Matt died in a car crash in India in 1989, on his way to Nepal to film a kayaking special for ESPN. He was not the driver and the car had no seatbelts. He left behind a widow whom he had married earlier that year.<\/p>\n<p>Iya Gaynes Falcone, a lawyer, served as campaign director for a variety of California political candidates, and then ran for office herself in Santa Barbara. She served on the Santa Barbara City Council for two terms. During a subsequent run for mayor, her husband of many years died, and she took actions that effectively withdrew herself from the campaign. She has since remarried.<\/p>\n<p>In addition to George Gaynes joining the cast of his wife&#8217;s series <em>The Days and Nights of Molly Dodd<\/em> in 1989, he and McLerie had previously worked together on <em>Punky Brewster<\/em>, when she guest starred in a first season episode as a love interest of Henry Warnimont&#8217;s.<\/p>\n<p>In a 2011 interview, he stated that he had an &#8220;easy&#8221;, &#8220;open&#8221; and &#8220;cordial&#8221; relationship with his Punky Brewster co-star Soleil Moon Frye, but added that they never had any relationship outside of their work. He also added that the series&#8217; dog, &#8220;<em>Brandon the Wonder Dog<\/em> &#8221; was named after the NBC executive Brandon Tartikoff.<\/p>\n<p>Gaynes died at his home in North Bend, Washington on February 15, 2016. He was 98. Gaynes is survived by his daughter, Iya Gaynes Falcone Brown.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>George Gaynes, who portrayed an irritable foster parent on the &#8217;80s sitcom Punky Brewster, the bewildered commandant in seven Police Academy films and a soap opera star with a crush on Dorothy Michaels, whom he doesn&#8217;t know is Dustin Hoffman&#8217;s character in drag, in the hit feature comedy Tootsie, died on Monday in North Bend, [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"jnews-multi-image_gallery":[],"jnews_single_post":[],"jnews_primary_category":[],"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"_wpas_customize_per_network":false},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-826","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-tv_news"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v27.1 (Yoast SEO v27.1.1) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>George Gaynes, of &#039;Punky Brewster, &#039;Police Academy&#039; Fame, Dies at 98 - Morty&#039;s TV<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/2016\/02\/16\/george-gaynes-of-punky-brewster-police-academy-fame-dies-at-98\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"George Gaynes, of &#039;Punky Brewster, &#039;Police Academy&#039; Fame, Dies at 98\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"George Gaynes, who portrayed an irritable foster parent on the &#8217;80s sitcom Punky Brewster, the bewildered commandant in seven Police Academy films and a soap opera star with a crush on Dorothy Michaels, whom he doesn&#8217;t know is Dustin Hoffman&#8217;s character in drag, in the hit feature comedy Tootsie, died on Monday in North Bend, [&hellip;]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/2016\/02\/16\/george-gaynes-of-punky-brewster-police-academy-fame-dies-at-98\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Morty&#039;s TV\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/mortystv\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:author\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/mortystv\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2016-02-16T23:20:11+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2016-02-17T23:21:31+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"http:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/george_gaynes_police_academy_6_1988_cropped.jpg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"morty\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@http:\/\/twitter.com\/#!\/mortystv\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@mortystv\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"morty\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"5 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/2016\/02\/16\/george-gaynes-of-punky-brewster-police-academy-fame-dies-at-98\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/2016\/02\/16\/george-gaynes-of-punky-brewster-police-academy-fame-dies-at-98\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"morty\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/ec63b069cf8528fdbe3b63a882c84e55\"},\"headline\":\"George Gaynes, of &#8216;Punky Brewster, &#8216;Police Academy&#8217; Fame, Dies at 98\",\"datePublished\":\"2016-02-16T23:20:11+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2016-02-17T23:21:31+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/2016\/02\/16\/george-gaynes-of-punky-brewster-police-academy-fame-dies-at-98\/\"},\"wordCount\":995,\"commentCount\":0,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/2016\/02\/16\/george-gaynes-of-punky-brewster-police-academy-fame-dies-at-98\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"http:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/george_gaynes_police_academy_6_1988_cropped.jpg\",\"articleSection\":[\"TV News\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/2016\/02\/16\/george-gaynes-of-punky-brewster-police-academy-fame-dies-at-98\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/2016\/02\/16\/george-gaynes-of-punky-brewster-police-academy-fame-dies-at-98\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/2016\/02\/16\/george-gaynes-of-punky-brewster-police-academy-fame-dies-at-98\/\",\"name\":\"George Gaynes, of 'Punky Brewster, 'Police Academy' Fame, Dies at 98 - Morty&#039;s TV\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/2016\/02\/16\/george-gaynes-of-punky-brewster-police-academy-fame-dies-at-98\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/2016\/02\/16\/george-gaynes-of-punky-brewster-police-academy-fame-dies-at-98\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"http:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/george_gaynes_police_academy_6_1988_cropped.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2016-02-16T23:20:11+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2016-02-17T23:21:31+00:00\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/2016\/02\/16\/george-gaynes-of-punky-brewster-police-academy-fame-dies-at-98\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/2016\/02\/16\/george-gaynes-of-punky-brewster-police-academy-fame-dies-at-98\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/2016\/02\/16\/george-gaynes-of-punky-brewster-police-academy-fame-dies-at-98\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"http:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/george_gaynes_police_academy_6_1988_cropped.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"http:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/george_gaynes_police_academy_6_1988_cropped.jpg\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/2016\/02\/16\/george-gaynes-of-punky-brewster-police-academy-fame-dies-at-98\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"George Gaynes, of &#8216;Punky Brewster, &#8216;Police Academy&#8217; Fame, Dies at 98\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/\",\"name\":\"Morty's TV\",\"description\":\"TV  News, Big Brother Fan Pages with Daily Updates, and Obits\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Morty's TV\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/seo-logo.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/seo-logo.jpg\",\"width\":1226,\"height\":375,\"caption\":\"Morty's TV\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/mortystv\",\"https:\/\/x.com\/mortystv\",\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/mortystv\/\",\"https:\/\/mortystv.bsky.social\/\"]},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/ec63b069cf8528fdbe3b63a882c84e55\",\"name\":\"morty\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/d9771bc18cd2dc9f943285b8991604b9daa4e9c946c102fe5588c3c25ac52295?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/d9771bc18cd2dc9f943285b8991604b9daa4e9c946c102fe5588c3c25ac52295?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"morty\"},\"description\":\"TV historian and Big Brother fan. Former contributor to The Philadelphia Inquirer TV section.\",\"sameAs\":[\"http:\/\/mortystv.com\",\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/mortystv\",\"https:\/\/x.com\/http:\/\/twitter.com\/#!\/mortystv\"],\"url\":\"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/author\/morty\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"George Gaynes, of 'Punky Brewster, 'Police Academy' Fame, Dies at 98 - Morty&#039;s TV","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/2016\/02\/16\/george-gaynes-of-punky-brewster-police-academy-fame-dies-at-98\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"George Gaynes, of 'Punky Brewster, 'Police Academy' Fame, Dies at 98","og_description":"George Gaynes, who portrayed an irritable foster parent on the &#8217;80s sitcom Punky Brewster, the bewildered commandant in seven Police Academy films and a soap opera star with a crush on Dorothy Michaels, whom he doesn&#8217;t know is Dustin Hoffman&#8217;s character in drag, in the hit feature comedy Tootsie, died on Monday in North Bend, [&hellip;]","og_url":"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/2016\/02\/16\/george-gaynes-of-punky-brewster-police-academy-fame-dies-at-98\/","og_site_name":"Morty&#039;s TV","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/mortystv","article_author":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/mortystv","article_published_time":"2016-02-16T23:20:11+00:00","article_modified_time":"2016-02-17T23:21:31+00:00","og_image":[{"url":"http:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/george_gaynes_police_academy_6_1988_cropped.jpg","type":"","width":"","height":""}],"author":"morty","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@http:\/\/twitter.com\/#!\/mortystv","twitter_site":"@mortystv","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"morty","Est. reading time":"5 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/2016\/02\/16\/george-gaynes-of-punky-brewster-police-academy-fame-dies-at-98\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/2016\/02\/16\/george-gaynes-of-punky-brewster-police-academy-fame-dies-at-98\/"},"author":{"name":"morty","@id":"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/ec63b069cf8528fdbe3b63a882c84e55"},"headline":"George Gaynes, of &#8216;Punky Brewster, &#8216;Police Academy&#8217; Fame, Dies at 98","datePublished":"2016-02-16T23:20:11+00:00","dateModified":"2016-02-17T23:21:31+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/2016\/02\/16\/george-gaynes-of-punky-brewster-police-academy-fame-dies-at-98\/"},"wordCount":995,"commentCount":0,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/2016\/02\/16\/george-gaynes-of-punky-brewster-police-academy-fame-dies-at-98\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"http:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/george_gaynes_police_academy_6_1988_cropped.jpg","articleSection":["TV News"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/2016\/02\/16\/george-gaynes-of-punky-brewster-police-academy-fame-dies-at-98\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/2016\/02\/16\/george-gaynes-of-punky-brewster-police-academy-fame-dies-at-98\/","url":"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/2016\/02\/16\/george-gaynes-of-punky-brewster-police-academy-fame-dies-at-98\/","name":"George Gaynes, of 'Punky Brewster, 'Police Academy' Fame, Dies at 98 - Morty&#039;s TV","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/2016\/02\/16\/george-gaynes-of-punky-brewster-police-academy-fame-dies-at-98\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/2016\/02\/16\/george-gaynes-of-punky-brewster-police-academy-fame-dies-at-98\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"http:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/george_gaynes_police_academy_6_1988_cropped.jpg","datePublished":"2016-02-16T23:20:11+00:00","dateModified":"2016-02-17T23:21:31+00:00","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/2016\/02\/16\/george-gaynes-of-punky-brewster-police-academy-fame-dies-at-98\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/2016\/02\/16\/george-gaynes-of-punky-brewster-police-academy-fame-dies-at-98\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/2016\/02\/16\/george-gaynes-of-punky-brewster-police-academy-fame-dies-at-98\/#primaryimage","url":"http:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/george_gaynes_police_academy_6_1988_cropped.jpg","contentUrl":"http:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/george_gaynes_police_academy_6_1988_cropped.jpg"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/2016\/02\/16\/george-gaynes-of-punky-brewster-police-academy-fame-dies-at-98\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"George Gaynes, of &#8216;Punky Brewster, &#8216;Police Academy&#8217; Fame, Dies at 98"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/#website","url":"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/","name":"Morty's TV","description":"TV  News, Big Brother Fan Pages with Daily Updates, and Obits","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/#organization","name":"Morty's TV","url":"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/seo-logo.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/seo-logo.jpg","width":1226,"height":375,"caption":"Morty's TV"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/mortystv","https:\/\/x.com\/mortystv","https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/mortystv\/","https:\/\/mortystv.bsky.social\/"]},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/ec63b069cf8528fdbe3b63a882c84e55","name":"morty","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/d9771bc18cd2dc9f943285b8991604b9daa4e9c946c102fe5588c3c25ac52295?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/d9771bc18cd2dc9f943285b8991604b9daa4e9c946c102fe5588c3c25ac52295?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"morty"},"description":"TV historian and Big Brother fan. Former contributor to The Philadelphia Inquirer TV section.","sameAs":["http:\/\/mortystv.com","https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/mortystv","https:\/\/x.com\/http:\/\/twitter.com\/#!\/mortystv"],"url":"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/author\/morty\/"}]}},"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":16189,"url":"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/2021\/01\/06\/punky-power-returns-with-all-new-punky-brewster-series-premiering-february-25-on-peacock\/","url_meta":{"origin":826,"position":0},"title":"Punky Power Returns with All-New &#8220;Punky Brewster&#8221; Series Premiering February 25 on Peacock","author":"morty","date":"January 6, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"The new PUNKY BREWSTER series will premiere on Peacock on Thursday, February 25. All ten episodes will drop at once. In this continuation of the iconic 80s sitcom about a bright young girl raised by a foster dad, Punky is now a single mother of three trying to get her\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;TV News&quot;","block_context":{"text":"TV News","link":"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/category\/tv_news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/mortystv.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/punky-brewster.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/mortystv.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/punky-brewster.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/mortystv.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/punky-brewster.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/mortystv.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/punky-brewster.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":25259,"url":"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/2021\/08\/20\/peacock-cancels-punky-brewster-reboot-after-one-season\/","url_meta":{"origin":826,"position":1},"title":"Peacock Cancels &#8220;Punky Brewster&#8221; Reboot After One Season","author":"morty","date":"August 20, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"Peacock is pulling the plug on the Soleil Moon Frye-led reboot series after one season. Peacock debuted all 10 episodes of the new \u201cPunky Brewster,\u201d featuring original star Soleil Moon Frye (who also served as an executive producer), on February 25. \"Punky Brewster was a beloved series that tackled meaningful\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;TV News&quot;","block_context":{"text":"TV News","link":"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/category\/tv_news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/mortystv.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/Punky-Brewster.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/mortystv.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/Punky-Brewster.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/mortystv.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/Punky-Brewster.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/mortystv.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/Punky-Brewster.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":17064,"url":"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/2021\/02\/02\/official-peacock-trailer-punky-brewster-show-starts-streaming-february-25-video\/","url_meta":{"origin":826,"position":2},"title":"Official Peacock Trailer: &#8220;Punky Brewster&#8221; Show Starts Streaming February 25 [VIDEO]","author":"morty","date":"February 2, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"Holy Macanoli! We're bringing back mismatched shoes and Punky Power. Watch the new trailer for the Peacock Original series \"Punky Brewster.\" In this continuation of the iconic 80s sitcom about a bright young girl raised by a foster dad, Punky is now a single mother of three trying to get\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;TV News&quot;","block_context":{"text":"TV News","link":"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/category\/tv_news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/mortystv.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/punky-brewster.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/mortystv.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/punky-brewster.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/mortystv.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/punky-brewster.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/mortystv.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/punky-brewster.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":17479,"url":"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/2021\/02\/16\/wwe-superstars-alexa-bliss-and-charlotte-flair-to-guest-star-on-peacocks-punky-brewster\/","url_meta":{"origin":826,"position":3},"title":"WWE Superstars Alexa Bliss and Charlotte Flair to Guest Star on Peacock&#8217;s &#8220;Punky Brewster&#8221;","author":"morty","date":"February 16, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"WWE Superstars Alexa Bliss and Charlotte Flair are set to guest star on an episode of Peacock's PUNKY BREWSTER, from UCP and Universal Television, divisions of Universal Studio Group. The new and highly-anticipated PUNKY BREWSTER series will premiere on Peacock on Thursday, February 25. In the episode, Punky (Soleil Moon\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;TV News&quot;","block_context":{"text":"TV News","link":"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/category\/tv_news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/mortystv.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/punky-brewster-vid.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/mortystv.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/punky-brewster-vid.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/mortystv.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/punky-brewster-vid.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/mortystv.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/punky-brewster-vid.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":31123,"url":"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/2021\/12\/20\/nickelodeons-new-live-action-comedy-series-warped-set-to-premiere-thursday-january-20-730pm-et-pt-video\/","url_meta":{"origin":826,"position":4},"title":"Nickelodeon&#8217;s New Live-Action Comedy Series, &#8220;Warped!,&#8221; Set to Premiere Thursday, January 20, @ 7:30PM (ET\/PT) [VIDEO]","author":"morty","date":"December 20, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"Nickelodeon's new live-action buddy comedy series Warped! is set to premiere Thursday, January 20, @ 7:30PM (ET\/PT). The show follows two employees of a popular comic book shop, Warped!, who learn to embrace their differences, become best friends, and set off to create the world's greatest graphic novel. In Warped!,\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;TV News&quot;","block_context":{"text":"TV News","link":"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/category\/tv_news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/mortystv.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/warped.webp?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/mortystv.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/warped.webp?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/mortystv.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/warped.webp?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":100573,"url":"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/2025\/05\/20\/premiere-date-announcement-hulus-limited-series-washington-black-starring-and-executive-produced-by-sterling-k-brown\/","url_meta":{"origin":826,"position":5},"title":"Premiere Date Announcement: Hulu&#8217;s Limited Series &#8220;Washington Black&#8221; Starring and Executive Produced by Sterling K. Brown","author":"morty","date":"May 20, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"Hulu has announced the premiere date for the epic adventure limited series \"Washington Black,\" starring and executive produced by Sterling K. Brown. The series is set to premiere with eight episodes on Wednesday, July 23 on Hulu in the U.S. and Disney+ internationally. Based on the bestselling novel of the\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;TV News&quot;","block_context":{"text":"TV News","link":"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/category\/tv_news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/mortystv.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/Washington-Black.webp?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/mortystv.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/Washington-Black.webp?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/mortystv.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/Washington-Black.webp?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/mortystv.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/Washington-Black.webp?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/826","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=826"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/826\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=826"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=826"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mortystv.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=826"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}