Actor John Fiedler, voice of Piglet and "Bob Newhart" regular, dead at 80
{{date|June 27, 2005}}

[[w:American|American]] actor [[w:John Fiedler|John Fiedler]] died at the age of 80 on June 25. Though he worked extensively on stage, film, television, and radio for over forty years, he is perhaps most remembered for two roles: the mild, fearful voice of [[w:Piglet|Piglet]] in [[w:Disney|Disney]]'s many [[w:Winnie the Pooh|Winnie the Pooh]] productions, and the role of Mr. Peterson, nervous patient on ''[[w:The Bob Newhart Show|The Bob Newhart Show]]''. 

Born in 1925 in [[w:Ohio|Ohio]], Fiedler began his career in [[w:New York (state)|New York]], working on the radio series ''[[w:The Aldrich Family|The Aldrich Family]]'' as sidekick Homer Brown, and making his film debut in ''[[w:Twelve Angry Men|Twelve Angry Men]]'' (1957), as the nervous Juror #2. Most of his subsequent roles were as gentle or nervous types, though occasionally he broke out of the mold, notably in the original ''[[w:Star Trek|Star Trek]]'' episode "A Wolf in the Fold," as an official possessed by [[w:Jack the Ripper|Jack the Ripper]]. On Broadway he was in the original casts of ''[[w:A Raisin in the Sun|A Raisin in the Sun]]'' (as housing commmittee rep Lindner) and ''[[w:The Odd Couple|The Odd Couple]]'' (as poker player Vinnie), reprising both roles for the film versions. Other on-camera work included roles in the films ''[[w:True Grit|True Grit]]'' and ''[[w:The Cannonball Run|The Cannonball Run]]'', plus many TV guest spots from ''[[w:Bewitched|Bewitched]]'' to ''[[w:The Twilight Zone|The Twilight Zone]]'', and a recurring part on ''[[w:Kolchak: The Night Stalker|Kolchak: The Night Stalker]]'' as morgue attendant Gordy "The Ghoul" Spangler.

His distinctive voice kept him busiest, however. In addition to playing Piglet in many shorts, four features, several specials, and two TV series, he was heard in the Disney features ''[[w:The Rescuers|The Rescuers]]'', ''[[w:Robin Hood (1973 movie)|Robin Hood]]'', and ''[[w:The Emperor's New Groove|The Emporer's New Groove]]''. A cause of death has not yet been reported.

==Sources==
*{{source|url=http://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/27/movies/27fiedler.html 
|title=John Fiedler, 80, Stage Actor and Film Voice of Pooh's Piglet, Dies 
|author=Michelle O'Donnell 
|pub=New York Times
|date=June 27, 2005}}

*{{source|url=http://edition.cnn.com/2005/SHOWBIZ/TV/06/27/obit.fiedler.ap/
|title=John Fiedler, voice of Piglet, dies 
|author=[[Associated Press|AP]]
|pub=CNN
|date=June 27, 2005}}

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[[Category:North America]]
[[Category:United States]]
[[Category:Obituaries]]
[[Category:Culture and entertainment]]
[[Category:Published]]
[[Category:Star Trek]]
American actor John Fiedler died at the age of 80 on June 25. Though he worked extensively on stage, film, television, and radio for over forty years, he is perhaps most remembered for two roles: the mild, fearful voice of Piglet in Disney's many Winnie the Pooh productions, and the role of Mr. Peterson, nervous patient on The Bob Newhart Show. 

Born in 1925 in Ohio, Fiedler began his career in New York, working on the radio series The Aldrich Family as sidekick Homer Brown, and making his film debut in Twelve Angry Men (1957), as the nervous Juror #2. Most of his subsequent roles were as gentle or nervous types, though occasionally he broke out of the mold, notably in the original Star Trek episode "A Wolf in the Fold," as an official possessed by Jack the Ripper. On Broadway he was in the original casts of A Raisin in the Sun (as housing commmittee rep Lindner) and The Odd Couple (as poker player Vinnie), reprising both roles for the film versions. Other on-camera work included roles in the films True Grit and The Cannonball Run, plus many TV guest spots from Bewitched to The Twilight Zone, and a recurring part on Kolchak: The Night Stalker as morgue attendant Gordy "The Ghoul" Spangler.

His distinctive voice kept him busiest, however. In addition to playing Piglet in many shorts, four features, several specials, and two TV series, he was heard in the Disney features The Rescuers, Robin Hood, and The Emporer's New Groove. A cause of death has not yet been reported.

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North America United States Obituaries Culture and entertainment Published Star Trek