Martin Mull passed away at 80-years-old on Thursday, July 27th. His daughter, Maggie Mull, announced his passing on instagram on Friday evening (her words can be seen below). Mull was an entertainer primarily known for his comedic acting roles whose career also included contributions as a musician and painter. During his music career, he once performed right here in Montgomery County— opening for Bruce Springsteen at the Shady Grove Music Fair in Gaithersburg in October 1974.
Mull broke into show business as a songwriter, having written Jane Morgan’s 1970 country single, “A Girl Named Johnny Cash”, which peaked at No. 61 on Billboard‘s country charts. His music career began shortly after that as a musical comedian—decorating the stage with furniture from thrift stores and performing satirical and humorous songs. In addition to opening for Bruce Springsteen at the Shady Grove Music Fair, which was then the county’s biggest musical venue and was located near the I-270 ramp on Shady Grove Rd, he opened for Billy Joel, Frank Zappa and others.
Mull’s breakout on the television screen for Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman and its spin-off Fernwood 2 Night. He later landed roles in episodes of Taxi, Golden Girls, and more. A very notable role for Mull was that of Colonel Mustard in the 1985 film Clue, Leon Carp on Roseanne, Willard Kraft on Sabrina the Teenage Witch. More recently he had roles in The Ranch on Netflix and The Cool Kids on Fox.
Maggie Mull wrote the following on Instagram Friday evening, “I am heartbroken to share that my father passed away at home on June 27th, after a valiant fight against a long illness. He was known for excelling at every creative discipline imaginable and also for doing Red Roof Inn commercials. He would find that joke funny. He was never not funny. My dad will be deeply missed by his wife and daughter, by his friends and coworkers, by fellow artists and comedians and musicians, and—the sign of a truly exceptional person—by many, many dogs. I loved him tremendously.”