'King Of The Hill' Star Johnny Hardwick Mourned by Fans, Iconic Voice Of Dale Gribble
By Jeffrey Harris on August 13, 2023 at 11:30 AM EDT
Voice actor, comedian, and producer, Johnny Hardwick, best known as the voice of Dale Gribble on the classic animated sitcom, "King of the Hill," has passed. TMZ reports that Hardwick was found and pronounced dead at his home in Austin, Texas earlier this week on Tuesday (Aug. 8). No foul play was suspected. He was 64 years old.
Writer, Producer, & Star Of TV's 'King Of The Hill' Has Died
Hardwick's passing was confirmed on Thursday (Aug. 10) by the Austin medical examiner's office. No details on the cause of death were reported or immediately available.
Hardwick served as both a writer and story editor for the hit television series during its original run, along with voicing one of those show's main characters, the eccentric exterminator and conspiracy theorist Dale Gribble. The hit show was created by Mike Judge ("Beavis & Butthead," "Office Space") and Greg Daniels. The show ran for 13 seasons and 259 episodes from 1997 to 2010. Dale Gribble, voiced by Hardwick, appeared in every episode of the series.
Dale was one of Hank Hill's longtime best friends. He was constantly paranoid and delved into various conspiracies. His wife, Nancy, is best known for her subplot where she was having a longtime extramarital affair with John Redcorn, siring Joseph Gribble, who Dale never realizes is not his son.
Throughout the series, Nancy eventually does fall in love with Dale, breaking off her affair with Redcorn. However, the series finale hinted that Dale was always aware of what was happening between the two.
In 1999, Hardwick won a Primetime Emmy Award for his work on the series for Outstanding Animated Program, and he received two other nominations for his work on the show.
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Earlier this year, Hulu announced a revival of the hit animated series, with original co-creators Judge and Daniels attached to return and oversee the new season. When Hulu announced the revival in January of this year, Hardwick was announced as part of the original voice talent returning for the series, including Judge (Hank Hill), Kathy Najimmy (Peggy Hill), Stephen Root (Bill Daughtry), Pamela Adlon (Bobby Hill), and Lauren Tom (Connie and Minh Souphanousinphone). Judge and Daniels had been working on the reboot since reuniting with the cast at the 2017 San Francisco Sketchfest, where they celebrated the show's 20th anniversary.
Variety notes Hardwick was an Austin, Texas native, where he began his career as a stand-up comic. He later had an appearance on "The Jon Stewart Show." During his time performing standup at the Laugh Factory in Los Angeles, he gained the attention of Judge when he and Daniels were gearing up for "King of the Hill," and they asked Hardwick to join their team.
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Hardwick also appeared on "Ace of Cakes" and "Boomer vs. Zoomer." He also voiced Dale Gribble in the "King of the Hill" video game. The full series lineup of "King of the Hill" is streaming now on Hulu. On his YouTube channel, Hardwick also liked to perform covers of songs, such as The Beatles' "Let It Be," but as his character Dale Gribble.
