"I hold that memory very fondly" - When Jason Sudeikis recalled a dear memory with uncle George Wendt

Jason Sudeikis is not the first in his family to catch the acting bug. His uncle George Wendt was in fact a household name in America in the 90’s portraying Norm Peterson on the iconic comedy Cheers. Sadly, Wendt passed away on May 20 at 76 years old and will be fondly remembered by family and friends, including Sudeikis who has mentioned his famous uncle several times in the past.

On one particular occasion, while speaking to The A.V. Club on the red carpet of the "Second City’s Roast Of George Wendt", an event he hosted in honor of his uncle, the actor opened up about a memory in particular that stuck out. It involved the Kansas native visiting Wendt in California with his family and driving through Laurel Canyon in Wendt’s BMW. Sudeikis was open in saying that,

“I hold that memory very fondly.”

Jason recalls California drives with late uncle George Wendt

Sudeikis spared no detail recounting his memory of the drive he took with his famous uncle and father.

“We all went out to California to visit and George had just gotten a new car ... It was a badass BMW with, like, manual drive, which I’d never seen before, you know, I was pretty young.”

It is clear that at the time, Jason was enamoured by his Hollywood uncle who gave him his first look at some of the finer things in life.

“He took me and my dad for a ride. My dad sat shotgun. I was in the back all by myself. This is not when you needed, you know, mandatory seatbelts. He drove us through Laurel Canyon.”

Sudeikis then made the motion of hilly terrain to mimic the roads in the area. Despite knowing that Wendt had driven those roads countless times before, he recalls with laughter the fear he and his father experienced on the ride:

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“He had my dad holding onto (the car) like nothing you’ve ever seen. And I’m just like sliding around the background just because the seats were brand new.”

Wendt caught up with his former Cheers cast members Ted Danson, Rhea Perlman, Kelsey Grammer and John Ratzenberger in 2024 at the 75th Annual Emmy Awards which marked his last major public appearance. Wendt passed away in his sleep at home, news confirmed in a statement his family shared through his publicist.

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