"Frasier” actor John Mahoney dies; Cosby lawyers wrong; Paul Simon to retire

newsmakers

John Mahoney, who played cranky dad on ‘Frasier,’ dies at 77

LOS ANGELES

John Mahoney, who as the cranky, blue-collar dad in “Frasier” played counterpoint to pompous sons Frasier and Niles, has died at age 77.

The actor died Sunday in Chicago after a brief hospitalization, Paul Martino, his manager for more than 30 years, said Monday. The cause of death was not immediately provided.

In “Frasier,” the hit “Cheers” spinoff that aired from 1993 to 2004, Mahoney played Martin Crane, a disabled ex-policeman who parked himself in an old armchair in Frasier’s chic Seattle living room.

Mahoney, a British native who made Chicago his home town, was a two-time Emmy nominee for “Frasier” and won a 1986 Tony Award for “The House of Blue Leaves.”

His recent credits included a recurring role as Betty White’s love interest on “Hot in Cleveland.”

Cosby’s lawyers: We were wrong about hidden-evidence claim

PHILADELPHIA

Bill Cosby’s defense team says it wrongly accused prosecutors of hiding evidence from his suburban Philadelphia criminal sexual-assault case.

Cosby’s lawyers acknowledged in a court filing Monday they made the headline-grabbing claim without realizing prosecutors had told Cosby’s former lawyer about interviewing a woman who cast doubt on his accuser.

The former lawyer says he knew about prosecutors last year interviewing a woman who said accuser Andrea Constand told her she wasn’t sexually assaulted but could make up allegations to get money.

Prosecutors have blasted the allegations of hiding evidence as “outrageous and reckless.” They say Cosby’s lawyers seemed more interested in shifting the narrative than in uncovering the truth.

Constand told jurors Cosby gave her pills and molested her, which Cosby denies.

Cosby’s first trial ended in a hung jury last June. A retrial is scheduled for April.

Paul Simon announces his upcoming tour will be his last

NEW YORK

Only a few days after Elton John announced he will retire from touring in three years, another venerable music figure is throwing in the touring towel – Paul Simon.

Simon, 76, took to social media Monday to say his upcoming tour will be his last, citing the personal toll of touring and the death of his lead guitarist, Vincent N’guini.

“I feel the travel and time away from my wife and family takes a toll that detracts from the joy of playing,” he wrote. Retiring from the road “feels a little unsettling, a touch exhilarating, and something of a relief.”

Tickets for his “Homeward Bound – The Farewell Tour “ will go on sale Thursday. It kicks off in May in Vancouver, Canada, and will take him across North America and Europe. His last date is July 15 in London with James Taylor and Bonnie Raitt as special guests.

Associated Press