Wednesday, July 15, 2026

RIP David Lander, 73, One of Half of the Magical Team of Lenny and Squiggy with Michael McKean on “Laverne and Shirley”

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David Lander has died at age 73, from complications of MS, according to reports. Lander and Michael McKean were the utterly hilariously magical team of Lenny and Squiggy on “Laverne and Shirley” from 1976 to 1983. They were like a sideshow that came into town on every episode, completely nuts and unexpectedly brilliant.

Condolences to his friends and family, to Michael McKean especially. All I could think when I heard he passed was that Penny and Garry Marshall — so so missed — were waiting for him in heaven.

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Roger Friedman
Roger Friedman
Roger Friedman is the founder and editor-in-chief of Showbiz411. He wrote the FOX411 column on FoxNews.com from 1999 to 2009, where he covered Michael Jackson, and previously wrote the "Intelligencer" column at New York magazine in the mid-1990s, where he covered the O.J. Simpson trial. He also edited Fame magazine. His bylines have appeared in The New York Times, The Washington Post, the New York Daily News, the New York Post, Vogue, Details, and the Miami Herald. He is a voting member of the Critics Choice Awards (Film and Television branches), and his movie reviews are tracked by Rotten Tomatoes. With D.A. Pennebaker and Chris Hegedus, he co-produced the 2002 documentary "Only the Strong Survive," which screened at Directors' Fortnight at the Cannes Film Festival.

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