Bob Newhart, a cultural giant who is credited with pioneering modern comedy and who was open about his lifelong Catholic faith, died this week. He was 94 years old.
A native of Illinois (United States), he died at his home in Los Angeles, California, on Thursday, July 18, according to his publicist. The actor had suffered several brief illnesses before his death.
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Born in the Chicago suburb of Oak Park in 1929, Newhart gained prominence in the 1960s for his comedy stand-up. He would later star in the hit CBS television shows “The Bob Newhart Show” and “Newhart.” He was known to younger audiences for his supporting roles in the movie “Elf” and the show “The Big Bang Theory.”
Raised Catholic, Newhart attended several Catholic schools in Chicago, including St. Ignatius College Prep, before attending Loyola University Chicago, where he graduated with a degree in Business Administration.
In 2013, he joked to the Catholic business group Legatus that he “credited the Jesuits for the somewhat twisted way I look at life.”
Newhart was married to his wife, Virginia, for 60 years, from 1963 until her death in 2023. In 2013told Legatus that the couple’s Catholic faith helped keep their decades-long marriage stable.
“Being Catholic has a lot to do with it. You work a little more. “You don’t have your first fight and walk out the door,” he said.
The actor said he went to Mass twice a week. He said he regularly thanked God for helping his wife overcome a bout with liver cancer. “I go and thank him for that. “It was a very emotional moment,” he commented.
While in Los Angeles, the Newharts attended Good Shepherd Church in Beverly Hills, according to the Website of the parish. The comedian was also a member of the Catholic Motion Picture Guild, which worked to establish moral artistic guidelines in the burgeoning Hollywood film industry.
Newhart said he resisted the temptation to inject bawdy humor into his famous family comedy acts.
“There were times over 50 years, mainly in the ’70s, when there was a temptation to maybe be a little racier in my act. stand-up. I just never felt comfortable. “It was like a sweater that never felt right, you know?” he told Legatus.
His faith was known among his Hollywood friends. Actor Don Rickles, who had a long friendship with Newhart, joked in 2012: “We are apples and oranges. I am Jewish, he is Catholic. He is calm; “I’m a screamer.”
In an industry that has been defined by pervasive secularism, Newhart remained a constant, understated presence of faith for decades. At one point, he joked that when he was a child, his faith seemed universal.
“I thought everyone was Catholic when I grew up,” he said at the Chicago Emmy Awards in 1978. “Everyone I knew was Catholic. I assumed every Saturday they were just going to automatically confess.”
The comedian highlighted the benefits of humor and laughter. “No society would be pleasant or lasting without humor,” he assured Loyola University graduates in a 2001 commencement address.
“Studies have shown that people with a sense of humor tend to be less self-centered, more realistic about the world, more humble in times of victory, and less defeated in times of difficulty,” he added.
Speaking to Legatus in 2013, he hinted that God would agree.
“I think God has an incredible sense of humor. You just have to look around the world. There is no doubt that he has an incredible sense of humor,” he declared.
Translated and adapted by the ACI Prensa team. Originally published in CNA.
Daniel Payne
Daniel Payne is senior editor at Catholic News Agency. He previously worked at College Fix and Just the News. He lives in Virginia with his family.