Mahoney was actually born in England, the seventh of eight children, and that’s where he first got the acting bug, working at the Stretford Children’s Theatre at a young age. An unhappy home and the second World War made Mahoney long to move to the United States, and he did so when he was young, studying at Quincy University in Illinois. He probably had no idea how much he would return to Illinois even after becoming famous, appearing in plays in Chicago so much that he became a reliable staple at places like the Steppenwolf and Goodman, and moving back here after the show was done. He spent time all over the area, living in Macomb, Forest Park, and Oak Park before a friend named John Malkovich encouraged him to join Steppenwolf. Mahoney was incredibly successful there, including an award-winning performance in the original run of Lyle Kessler’s “Orphans,” and would go on to Broadway, where he won a Tony for “The House of Blue Leaves.”
As so many stage actors do, Mahoney transitioned into film, getting his first major film role in “Tin Men,” the 1987 Barry Levinson picture. In those few years before “Frasier,” he made an indelible mark in film that’s too often overlooked. Cameron Crowe’s “Say Anything…” isn’t nearly as successful without his heartbreaking work and he caught the eye of the Coen brothers enough to appear in “Barton Fink” and “The Hudsucker Proxy.” Other film roles included “Eight Men Out,” “In the Line of Fire,” “Reality Bites,” and “The American President.” He also did regular voice work throughout his career, including a memorable turn in “The Iron Giant.”
After “Frasier,” John Mahoney seemed like he could do anything and bounced seamlessly from film to TV to stage and back again. He would guest star on shows like “Burn Notice” and “In Treatment,” and appear in films like “Dan in Real Life,” but he also notably returned wholeheartedly to the Chicago theater scene, appearing in “The Outgoing Tide” at the Northlight and “The Birthday Party” at the Steppenwolf, among others. He lived in Oak Park, a Chicago suburb, at the time of his passing, and died there in hospice care.
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