Johnny Hardwick, voice of Dale on ‘King Of The Hill’, dies aged 64

Johnny Hardwick, the voice actor who played Dale Gribble on King Of The Hill, has died aged 64.

The actor died Tuesday (August 8) at his home in Austin, Texas, as confirmed by the Austin coroner’s office (via Deadline).

According to TMZ, police were called to Hardwick’s home for a welfare check. No foul play is suspected, and a cause of death is yet to be revealed, pending the coroner’s investigation.

Along with being credited as a producer and writer on the earlier seasons of Fox‘s King Of The Hill, Hardwick played Dale on the animated sitcom, the conspiracy theorist and friend of lead character Hank Hill, played by Mike Judge.

The character took on many jobs including exterminator, bounty hunter and camp counsellor throughout 257 of the show’s 258 episodes.

The actor started his career in local stand-up comedy in 1990, going on to make appearances on The Jon Stewart Show.

He later went on to appear on reality TV shows Ace Of Cakes and Boomer Vs Zoomer. He also had his own YouTube channel where he would perform song parodies in his King Of The Hill character’s distinctive voice.

King Of The Hill aired for 13 seasons from 1997 to 2010. The series followed the Hill family, comprising of propane salesman Hank Hill, his wife Peggy, their son Bobby and Peggy’s niece Luanne, along with other residents in the fictional city of Arlen, Texas.

In February this year, it was confirmed that a reboot of King Of The Hill is officially underway at Hulu, with original creators Judge and Greg Daniels set to return and executive produce.

Hardwick was due to return along with original cast members Kathy Najimy, Stephen Root, Pamela Adlon and Lauren Tom.

The post Johnny Hardwick, voice of Dale on ‘King Of The Hill’, dies aged 64 appeared first on NME.