Dymphna
Loyalty, Friendship, Love
LOS ANGELES - Fred Berry, the bulb-shaped, squeaky-voiced actor famous for playing red-beret-wearing Rerun on the 1970s TV sitcom "What's Happening!", has died at age 52.
Berry died Tuesday at his home in Los Angeles apparently of natural causes, police Officer Jason Lee said Wednesday. The county coroner was investigating, but friends said Berry had been ill because of a recent stroke.
He wore his red beret and suspenders in real life, and it was unclear whether he originally brought his own style to the character of Rerun or whether he was forever mimicking the goofball character that made him famous.
"What's Happening!", which ran from 1976-1979, focused on three teenage friends - Rerun, Raj and Dwayne - who learn about life, women and trouble while growing up in Los Angeles.
The name Rerun, according to Berry, referred to the character's brainlessness: In the summer, he had to rerun all the classes he failed during the school year.
The rest
Berry died Tuesday at his home in Los Angeles apparently of natural causes, police Officer Jason Lee said Wednesday. The county coroner was investigating, but friends said Berry had been ill because of a recent stroke.
He wore his red beret and suspenders in real life, and it was unclear whether he originally brought his own style to the character of Rerun or whether he was forever mimicking the goofball character that made him famous.
"What's Happening!", which ran from 1976-1979, focused on three teenage friends - Rerun, Raj and Dwayne - who learn about life, women and trouble while growing up in Los Angeles.
The name Rerun, according to Berry, referred to the character's brainlessness: In the summer, he had to rerun all the classes he failed during the school year.
The rest
