Veteran character actor Charles C. Stevenson Jr. passed away at age 89 on January 19 in Camarillo, California, due to natural causes, his son Scott confirmed. Best known to many fans as Smitty, the affable bartender on Will & Grace, Stevenson became a familiar and comforting presence on one of television’s most influential sitcoms.

Stevenson appeared in 12 episodes across seven seasons between 2002 and 2020. Though never a main character, his steady presence behind the bar helped ground the show’s humor and chaos. His final appearance came in the season 11 episode “Accidentally on Porpoise,” which aired on February 20, 2020, filmed when he was 89.

A true working actor, Stevenson built a career spanning nearly four decades. He made his on-screen debut in 1982 on Voyagers! and went on to appear in films such as The Naked Gun, Ed Wood, Men in Black, Pleasantville, and Ghost World. His television credits included Cheers, L.A. Law, Murder, She Wrote, Everybody Loves Raymond, The Office, Weeds, Curb Your Enthusiasm, and many more.

In a Variety interview, his son Scott shared Stevenson’s humor about frequently playing clergy or officiants, saying his job was simply “marrying or burying people.” Scott recalled: “As he told it, the panic-stricken director would invariably come to him to beg him to find a way to fill in unscripted space between ‘We are gathered here together’ … and the ‘amen’ at the end of the scene… ‘Stevenson admitted that he got pretty good at that.’”

Born in Piedmont, California, Stevenson served in the Navy during the Korean War and later studied English at UC Berkeley before pursuing acting.

He is survived by five children, eight grandchildren, and six great-grandchildren. Though he may not have always been the star, Charles C. Stevenson Jr. embodied the steady professionalism that keeps the entertainment industry running, leaving a lasting impression on fans of Will & Grace and many other series.