The team behind The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel paid tribute to Brian Tarantina Saturday, following news of the actor’s death at age 60.
Tarantina played Jackie, the emcee at the Gaslight comedy club where Midge performs, on the popular Amazon series. Amy Sherman-Palladino and Daniel Palladino, who write and direct the comedy, issued a joint statement saying they will “forever miss” the actor.
“For over twenty five years, Brian Tarantina has been in our lives. He was in Amy’s first pilot. And he’s been in every significant thing we’ve done since,” the statement said. “He came in with that voice and that timing and he made every scene better. And weirder. Every moment was completely unique. You can’t describe a guy like Brian, you just had to be there. And lucky for us, we were. We love him and will forever miss him.”
Tarantina was also honored with a tribute from the cast and crew via the show’s official Twitter account.
“The Gaslight won’t be the same without you. Thank you Brian Tarantina for sharing in all of the laughs. Sending love to his family and friends in this difficult time,” the tweet said.
Tarantina was found unresponsive on a couch in his apartment in New York City at 12:40 a.m., the NYPD confirmed to Deadline. Emergency medical services personnel responded to the location and pronounced him deceased at the scene.
The medical examiner’s office in New York will perform an autopsy to determine his official cause of death.
The New York native got his start in television on One Life to Live. His other numerous credits included Gilmore Girls, Law & Order, Blue Bloods, The Sopranos, Heroes, and The Blacklist. He also had roles in the films BlacKkKlansman and The Kitchen.
Tarantina took home a Screen Actors Guild Award along with the rest of The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel cast earlier this year for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series.