Stephen Mendillo, an actor who played a hockey player alongside Paul Newman in the 1977 classic sports film Slap Shot, has passed away.
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Mendillo, who was 84, portrayed Chiefs alternate captain Charlebois. He was one of the Charlestown Chiefs players led by Reggie Dunlop (Paul Newman). He died on Sept. 3 in Los Angeles, per his obituary. No cause of death was disclosed.
The fan page “The Making of Slap Shot” on Facebook shared a tribute to the fan-favorite comedic actor.
“It’s a sad day in Slap Shot world as we say goodbye and thank you to actor Stephen Mendillo, who played Chiefs’ alternate captain, laundry critic, and reluctant fashion show participant Jim Ahern. He passed away this week at the age of 84,” the fan page began.
“Steve grew up playing hockey in his hometown of New Haven, where his first coach was New York Rangers iron man Murray Murdoch, and where his father, a surgeon and a professor at Yale, was the team doctor with the New Haven Blades of the Eastern Hockey League,” they continued.
“He was a graduate of the Yale School of Drama, where he became close friends with classmate Henry Winkler, and he enjoyed a long career as a character actor on both stage and screen.”
As true Slap Shots fans, the page ended their tribute with a fun reference to the film and Mendillo’s character.
“Surprisingly, though, he was never hired to do endorsements for Downy fabric softener. Missed opportunity,” they concluded.
Stephen Mendillo’s Career Beyond Slap Shot
Meanwhile, Stephen Mendillo had a successful career as a character actor. According to IMDb, he appeared in high-profile shows such as The Equalizer, Law & Order, The Practice, and Cold Case.
In film, the veteran actor had a wide range of appearances in mainstream hits and also genre films. Mendillo appeared in movies like the cult holiday horror film Christmas Evil (1980), the baseball drama Eight Men Out (1988), and 1996’s Lone Star alongside Matthew McConaughey.
Mendillo also appeared as the father of William Hurt’s anchor character in the 1987 film Broadcast News.
His final onscreen appearance was in 2023’s spoof American Comedy, where he played George W. Bush.