Actor Jay Thomas, star of Cheers and Murphy Brown, dies aged 69 from cancer

Actor Jay Thomas who starred in numerous TV shows and films, has died aged 69 after losing a battle with cancer.

Thomas starred in the hit series Cheers, where he played Carla's husband, Eddie Le Bec. He also had prominent roles in the 1970s sitcom Mork & Mindy where he played Remo DaVince.

More recently, he played Jerry Gold in Murphy Brown for which he won a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series in 1990 and 1991.

He also starred in the movies Santa Clause 2 and Santa Clause 3 as well as being an annual guest on the Late Show with David Letterman.

He was also on the airwaves, hosting the Jay Thomas Show on Sirius Satellite Radio.

He also starred in the Oscar-nominated film Mr Holland's Opus. The film's lead actor Richard Dreyufuss said according to the Hollywood Reporter: "He was a hell of a companion and easy to work with. He was light on his feet intellectually and he was fun."

His agent said: "Jay was one of a kind, never at a loss for words and filled with so much fun and wonderfully wacky thoughts and behaviour."

On Twitter, Pete Dominick wrote: "Jay Thomas was super talented and a legend. I'm lucky to have known him as a friend and mentor. Incredibly sad to have lost him."

Actor John Fugelsang said: "God bless Jay Thomas."

Actor Rob Lowe said: "Had the pleasure of casting and directing Jay Thomas many years ago. He was fantastic, an underrated dramatic actor. And a great guy."