Frasier's Anthony LaPaglia Confirms What John Mahoney Was Really Like Off-Camera
Australian actor Anthony LaPaglia is a familiar face on film and television, known for his performances in "So I Married an Axe Murderer," "Empire Records," "Lantana," and the crime procedural "Without a Trace." For sitcom lovers, he's best remembered for playing Simon Moon on "Frasier."
As the boorish, heavy-drinking brother to Daphne (Jane Leeves), LaPaglia appeared in eight episodes of "Frasier" from 2000 to 2004. Unsurprisingly, Simon doesn't jibe with Frasier (Kelsey Grammer) or Niles (David Hyde Pierce), who frequently take him in as a houseguest. He is loutish and rude to Roz (Peri Gilpin), or as he calls her, "Rose," and is a constant thorn in Daphne's side. Nonetheless, he gets along quite well with Martin (John Mahoney).
According to LaPaglia, his kinship with the cast, particularly Mahoney, persisted even when the cameras were off. "I had a really good time with him," LaPaglia told Fox News. "Kelsey was great and the rest of the cast was great, but John Mahoney and I really hit it off," he said of the late actor, who died in 2018 from throat cancer. "He was just a very funny, generous guy. I didn't even realize what an accomplished actor he was. In between 'Frasier,' he kept busy doing theater. He also had a substantial career even before 'Frasier.' And he's from Manchester in England, which floored me because his accent was perfect. I miss him."
Anthony LaPaglia and John Mahoney were friends on and off the screen
Anthony LaPaglia and John Mahoney's off-screen chemistry paralleled that of their characters, who bond over their shared status as pranksters and down-to-earth drinking buddies. "[Mahoney] had a set of headshots that he would give out to fans, and I would go in there and write some really insulting stuff on his headshots," LaPaglia recalled in the same interview with Fox News. "And then he would find my headshot and write some really insulting stuff on mine! And we'd put them in each other's dressing rooms. We had a very funny, juvenile relationship, but we used to make each other laugh a lot."
The off-screen antics didn't distract LaPaglia or Mahoney from delivering excellent performances. Both actors earned Emmy nominations for their respective roles on "Frasier," with LaPaglia nabbing the award for outstanding guest actor in 2002.
LaPaglia expressed interest in joining the "Frasier" reboot, though he admitted it might be difficult to shoehorn Simon into Frasier's new life in Boston. "I would do it in a heartbeat," he said. "But I'm pretty sure that I'm not in the architecture of the new [series]." Still, he's perfectly happy to watch from the sidelines and quite content with what he achieved on the original show. The actor added that he had lots of fun working on "Frasier" and wishes the best for the reboot and the continuing story of its titular character.