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Photo-Illustration: Vulture; Photos:j ohnny hardwick youtube, Everett
Comedian Johnny Hardwick, who voiced Dale Gribble on the long-running cartoon classic King of the Hill, has died at the age of 64. According to TMZ, which first broke the news, Hardwick was found dead in his Texas home during a welfare check on Tuesday, August 8. No cause has been given.
A born and raised Texan, Hardwick was a stand-up comic who frequented Dallas and Austin venues before appearing on series like Evening at the Improv and The Jon Stewart Show. After meeting Greg Daniels and Mike Judge at a gig in Los Angeles, Hardwick joined them to help create King of the Hill, first as a staff writer, until they gave him the role of Hank’s friend and Joseph’s father, paranoid gun-nut Dale Gribble. Hardwick voiced Dale from 1997 to 2010 in all but one of the show’s 259 episodes. He also produced, wrote, and story edited on the series. Dale’s conspiracy theories, rattled off in a high-strung, self-assured twang, were hilarious and ridiculous then and play like a really prescient, proto-QAnon guy now. In 1999, he and the show’s other producers won the Emmy for Outstanding Animated Program.
An official statement from 20th Television Animation and Hulu reads, “Johnny Hardwick was an incredibly beloved member of the King of the Hill family, whose tremendous talent, brilliant humor and friendship will be deeply missed by all who were fortunate enough to work with him over the past 25 years. Our deepest condolences go out to his friends and family as we mourn the loss of one of the animation greats. His voice gave life to one of our most iconic characters, and he will be truly missed.”
In January 2023, Hulu announced that a revival of King of the Hill was in the works with Hardwick set to return as Dale. Vulture can confirm that he had not completed recording the new season at the time of his death.
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