Robert Machray, Fire Marshal Dobbins on 'Cheers,' Dies at 79

Robert Machray, who famously played Fire Marshal Dobbins on "Cheers," has died at 79. 

The actor's husband, Luigi Camperchioli, confirmed to The Hollywood Reporter that Machray died Sunday in North Hollywood after suffering two strokes and a brief battle with dementia. 

Camperchioli also announced the news Sunday on Facebook, writing: "Today, I reflect on the beautiful moments shared with Bob, who has passed away peacefully at his home in North Hollywood after a brief battle with dementia. His love and smile will remain with me forever. Farewell, sweetheart."

Machray appeared as Dobbins, the bar's prank-prone fire marshal, on Cheers from 1990-93. He also starred in the 1999-2000 "Amadeus" Broadway revival and earned a 2002 Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle award for his portrayal of Orson Welles in "Orson's Shadow."

Machray received acclaim for his award-winning roles in "The Boys Next Door" and "Waiting for Godot." In the 1990s, he led Los Angeles' Classical Theatre Lab as artistic director while performing with renowned companies such as The Old Globe and Playwrights Horizons.

Born Robert Machray Ward on May 4, 1945, in San Diego and raised in St. Paul, Minnesota, he studied anthropology at Yale before attending USC. 

Machray  made his onscreen debut in the 1977 NBC telefilm "Panic in Echo Park." He also appeared in films including "Cutting Class" (1989), "A Time to Remember" (1998), and "The Master of Disguise" (2002). 

As a voice actor, he portrayed two characters in the 2001 video game "Star Wars: Rogue Squadron II — Rogue Leader." 

Additionally, Machray made appearances on episodes of "Operation Petticoat," "Three's Company," "Life Goes On," "Roseanne," "Sister, Sister," "Suddenly Susan," "Profiler," "The Drew Carey Show," "Girlfriends," "Criminal Minds," and "Parks and Recreation" in 2011, which served as his final onscreen credit.

He also gained recognition as a fainting Santa in a long-running series of M&Ms commercials, which he fondly referred to as "his TV show," according to Camperchioli.

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