Canadian comedian, actor, and writer Don Harron has died. He died at his home in Toronto after reportedly choosing to forgo cancer treatment. He was 90.
An entertainer even from a young age, Deadline reports that Harron told worked in clubs when he was 10 years-old in order to raise money for his family during the Great Depression. He later spent a lot of time working in the theater, even moving to England for a few years as he worked on a production of A Streetcar Named Desire. After returning to North America in the ‘50s, Harron started working in television, including co-writing a musical version of Anne Of Green Gables.
In 1952, on an episode of variety series The Big Revue, Harron came up with the idea for Charlie Farquharson, easily his most lasting comedic creation. A farmer from rural Ontario, the character of Charlie Farquharson would satirize current events by talking about them from the point-of-view of a slightly misinformed country bumpkin. Harron even brought Farquharson to the American country music-themed variety show Hee Haw, giving the character—and Harron—a newly international fanbase. Harron also appeared on other American shows, including The Man From U.N.C.L.E. and The Outer Limits.