Celeb Corner

‘Golden Girl’ and ‘Thank God It’s Friday’ actor dies at 74

By Vandana Nampoothiri

Actor Chick Vennera, famously known for playing Enrique Mas in the American sitcom ‘Golden Girls’, dies at the age of 74. The actor who was battling lung cancer died on Wednesday at his home in Burbank. The news was confirmed by his daughter Nicky Vennera. 

Vennera got his big break with the 70’s disco movie “Thank God It’s Friday”. He further acted in TV series like ‘The Karate Kid’ and ‘Different Strokes’ after which he starred in the NBC sitcom ‘Golden Girls’.

He moved to voice acting medium in the 90’s, giving voice to many characters for cartoons including “The Real Adventures of Johnny Quest”, Steven Spielberg’s “Animaniacs” and “Pinky and the Brain”. In 2002 and 2004 he voiced the character Ferret in Kid’s WB cartoon “Static Shock”.

According to IMDb, Vennera was born in Herkimer, New York, but later left the East Coast for California to study acting at the Pasadena Playhouse. He was also a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, the voting body for the Academy Awards. 

Tags: American actor American sitcom Chick Vennera Golden Girl

Vandana Nampoothiri

Vandana Nampoothiri is currently pursuing masters in Mass Communication and Journalism from St. Joseph's College (Autonomous), Bengaluru. Vandana is currently working as an intern at USAnewshour.com and can be reached at vandananamphu@gmail.com.