Last Living Cast Member of ‘Gomer Pyle’ Dies at 94

Television actor Ronnie Schell, who played Marine Pvt. Duke Slater in the 1960s hit sitcom Gomer Pyle: USMC, has died of natural causes at 94. He was the last surviving cast member of the popular program. Schell played the more worldly best pal of Gomer, who was played by Jim Nabors as a naive “aw shucks” private with a heart of gold. Nabors had earlier played Pyle as a sweet gas station attendant in the fictional town of Mayberry on The Andy Griffith Show, who somehow stumbled into the Marines. Nabors and Schell were close friends in real life, and their camaraderie translated to the screen. Schell called Nabors the “older brother I never had.” Schell left Gomer in the fourth season for another program but later returned for the final season. It ran for five seasons from 1964 to 1969. Schell had some 150 TV acting credits and appeared on programs including Charlie’s Angels, The Patty Duke Show, Mork & Mindy, and One Day at a Time. He died at UCLA Medical Center on Friday after hospitalization following a fall.

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