Dick Latessa

Dick Latessa was an actor whose five-decade career included numerous films, television programs and nearly 20 Broadway productions. In 2003 he won a Tony Award for best featured actor in a musical, for the hit show Hairspray, in which he played Wilbur Turnblad, the uxorious husband of Edna Turnblad, played by Harvey Fierstein.

The Cleveland native began performing in his twenties, and at 30 he moved to New York City to pursue his career.

He made his Broadway debut at 38 in the musical comedy The Education of Hyman Kaplan. His other Broadway shows included Follies, Brighton Beach Memoirs, Damn Yankees, I Ought to Be in Pictures, Cabaret, Promises, Promises and The Lyons.

His many TV credits over the years included episodes of such series as One Life to Live, Get Smart, Mission: Impossible, Ironside, The Sopranos, Law & Order, The Good Wife and Odd Mom Out.

He also had roles in movies, including Stigmata and The Last New Yorker.

Latessa died on December 19, 2016, in New York City. He was 87.