Edd Byrnes, best known for his role as the koo-koo cool Kookie on the 1950s TV series “77 Sunset Strip” and as the suave, smooth-talking TV dance show host Vince Fontaine in the film “Grease” has died. He was 87.
Hollywoodreporter.com is reporting the actor died unexpectedly Wednesday at his Santa Monica, California home, from natural causes.
The news was made public by Byrnes’ son, Logan Byrnes, on Twitter, who wrote in part: ”It is with profound sadness and grief that I share with you the passing of my father Edd Byrnes. He was an amazing man and one of my best friends.”
It is with profound sadness and grief that I share with you the passing of my father Edd Byrnes. He was an amazing man and one of my best friends. Please see the press release attached. @extratv @enews @AP @CNN @cnbc @MSNBC @foxnewsdesk @FOXLA @KTLA @latimes @KUSINews pic.twitter.com/d7jgJ8ohMq
— Logan Byrnes (@LoganByrnes) January 9, 2020
Byrnes quickly achieved bona fide teen idol status thanks to his work on “77 Sunset Strip.” On the series, which ran from 1958-1964 on ABC, his character, the quirky, comb-wielding Kookie, parked cars at Dino’s Lodge. The swanky nightclub was located next door to private detective agency run by Stuart Bailey (Efrem Zimbalist Jr.) and Jeff Spencer (Roger Smith). Byrnes also turned the role into record gold with the release of the 1959 single “Kookie, Kookie, Lend Me Your Comb,” a duet with starlet Connie Stevens.
According to the Hollywood Reporter story, at the peak of his popularity, Byrnes received more than 15,000 fan letters a week. ”As Kookie, I was one of the first young fellows on television, one of the first that the young could identify with,” the actor said in 1969.
He was born Edward Byrne Breitenberger in 1933 in New York City. He performed summer stock after high school and arrived in Hollywood when he was 22.
His film credits include “Marjorie Morningstar” (1958), “Up Periscope” (1959), and “Troop Beverly Hills” (1989). TV credits include “Mannix,” “Police Woman,” “Fantasy Island” and “Charlie’s Angels.”
He published his autobiography “Kookie No More” in 1996.
More to come....