Full name, Herve Jean Pierre Villechaize; born April 23, 1943, in Paris, France; committed suicide, September 4, 1993, in Los Angeles, CA. Television audiences remember Villechaize for his trademark line "The plane! The plane!" which began each episode of the series Fantasy Island from 1978 to 1983. The show continued for one more season without Villechaize, who played Tattoo, the diminutive assistant to Ricardo Montalban's character Mr. Rourke. Villechaize,who had attended art school in Paris, moved to New York City and became a supporting actor in the 1960s, appearing in plays such as Elizabeth the First and Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead, and in films including The Gang That Couldn't Shoot Straight, The Man with the Golden Gun, and Forbidden Zone. His later work after leaving Fantasy Island included television appearances onthe Larry Sanders Show and in commercials for Coors beer and Dunkin' Donuts.Villechaize's suicide was attributed to depression brought on by chronic medical maladies.
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