The following article contains references toeating disorders, suicide, and murder.
In the ’90s, Friday night belonged to ABC’s TGIF.
It was an era of beloved shows ranging from “Step by Step” to “Family Matters.”
Who could forget the Olsen twins from “Full House”?
Sadly, though, some of the actors behind our much-loved TGIF characters are no longer with us.
Take a stroll down memory lane and say goodbye to some of your Friday night family.
The show was well received, winning anOutstanding Art Direction for a Series Daytime Emmythat year.
It also won Environmental Media Awards in 1992, 1993, and 1995.
It was a puppet show that tackled real-world issues.
Voicing the dinosaur family’s matriarch, Fran Phillips-Sinclair, was actor Jessica Walter.
Walter died in her sleep at the age of 80 on March 24, 2021.
It didn’t perform too well, however, and was taken off the air by May 1993.
Matthew Perrystarred in the series Matt Bailey, a 20-something who moves back into his mother’s house.
All was well until his sister and her two kids also made the move back home.
It aired in the spring of 1993 after “Step by Step.”
She was paired with Telma Hopkins who played Dolores Dixon, the widowed mother of two boys.
Williams' career spanned six decades and included numerous film and TV credits.
Williams died at the age of 75 on January 25, 2023.
However, he is best known for playing Romeo on “The Steve Harvey Show.”
Three people were charged in connection to the killing, including a teenager named Monique King.
The show was launched in 1996, and it only lasted a couple of weeks before it was pulled.
Sadly, her career never really picked up steam.
Her cause of death was a heart attack brought on by extended amphetamine abuse.
She was 39 years old.
If you need help with an eating disorder, or know someone who does, help is available.
The Tanner family hit the ABC airwaves in 1987, and the rest is history, dude.
A sequel would also eventually reappear on Netflix titled “Fuller House.”
Bob Saget played Danny Tanner, the widowed father of the three young girls, for nearly 200 episodes.
Saget was also a stand-up comedian and even did a show in Florida the night he died.
Saget died on January 9, 2022, in a hotel room in Florida at the age of 65.
According to the OCSO report, Saget died from blunt head trauma after falling in his hotel room.
It ran for just one season and was not the hit for which ABC was hoping.
Markie Post played Julia Whitney, Andrew’s mother.
Post started her career in the late ’70s and would work consistently over the next several decades.
Post died at the age of 70 on August 7, 2021.
Sullivan Walker, a Trinidadian-American actor, played James St. Martin on the show’s 21 episodes.
Walker died on February 20, 2012, from a heart attack at the age of 65.
The sitcom was panned by critics, but people still watched maybe because it featured a young George Clooney.
Polly Bergen played Doris Campbell, the grandmother to the titular baby, in 23 episodes of the show.
In addition to acting, Bergen hosted a variety show, authored books, and founded a beauty company.
We’d say she was certainly successful!
Bergen died on September 20, 2014, at the age of 84.
After decades of cigarette smoking, she’d developed emphysema, which contributed to her death.
It premiered on ABC in 1997 and lasted for two seasons.
Conchata Ferrell played the unforgettable character of Aunt Pam.
Her screen credits include “Edward Scissorhands,” Grace and Frankie," and “True Romance.”
Ferrell died on October 12, 2020, from complications of a heart attack.
Somers died on October 15, 2023, at the age of 76.
The actor was in her Palm Springs home with her family by her side.
Somers would have turned 77 on October 16.
Rosetta LeNoire (Family Matters)
Who could forget “Family Matters”?
The TGIF show ran for nine seasons starting in September 1989.
Rosetta LeNoire played Estelle Winslow, the grandmother to the Winslow children, and appeared in over 150 episodes.
She also starred in an all-Black production of “Macbeth” helmed by Orson Welles.
It wasn’t Thomas' first turn as a sitcom girlfriend, however.
Thomas sadly died at the age of 29 from a rare punch in of stomach cancer.
Her publicist and friend, Kahdijah Bell, said Thomas didn’t complain and was full of hope.
“She was really fighting that disease with all her heart.
She wanted to live,” Bell said (viaPeople).
