"The Middle" Actor Pat Finn Passes Away at Age 60

Actor Pat Finn, who made a number of appearances in ABC's The Middle, has passed away at the age of 60.

Deadline reports that Pat Finn, who had a recurring role in ABC's The Middle as friendly neighbor Bill Norwood, passed away on Monday, December 22nd at his home in Los Angeles, following a three-year battle with cancer. Finn's passing was announced by his family and manager Andrea Pett-Joseph, who called Finn “the kindest, most joyful person in any room” and said the actor passed while surrounded by family and friends.

Born on July 31st, 1965 in Evanston, Illinois, Finn joined Chicago’s Second City and iO comedy troupes after graduating from Marquette University (where he became friends with future Saturday Night Live star Chris Farley) in 1987. His TV breakthrough came in the mid-1990s, when he landed recurring roles on The George Wendt Show and Murphy Brown. In 1998, he played the party-throwing character Joe Mayo in the memorable “The Reverse Peephole” episode of Seinfeld.

Finn appeared in a number of Disney-related projects over the years, such as Spooky Buddies, Santa Paws 2: The Santa Pups, The Suite Life of Zack & Cody, Wizards of Waverly Place, Kickin' It, and The Goldbergs. From 2011 to 2018, Finn played nice-guy Bill Norwood on 23 episodes of The Middle, the neighbor to the sitcom’s main characters, the Hecks, and good buddy of Neil Flynn’s Mike Heck.

Finn is survived by his wife Donna, and their children, Cassidy, Caitlin and Ryan, his parents and other family. Our thoughts go out to Finn's family and loved ones at this time.