Late Actor George Wendt's Net Worth Was Definitely Something to 'Cheers' About

In the early 2000s, there was a museum located on Hollywood Boulevard aptly titled the Hollywood Entertainment Museum. It was a glorious ode to the big and small screens and featured nods to popular films and television shows. Fans of Star Trek: The Next Generation could look at latex masks made for the show or hang out on the bridge of the Starship Enterprise. There was even a fake Foley studio where audiophiles could try their hands, and feet, at creating sounds for movies.

The most impressive part of the since-closed museum was the full Cheers set. Every single piece, from the pictures on the walls to the bar itself, was moved and reassembled in this museum. Most of the cast carved their names into the bar on the last day of filming.

Sadly, actor George Wendt, who played Norm for the entire run of the show, did not. He passed away on May 20, 2025, at the age of 76, leaving behind an enduring legacy and impressive net worth.

According to Celebrity Net Worth, George was worth $10 million at the time of his death. Perhaps George could have socked away a bit more if he chose to do something with his economics degree, but his decision led to an incredible career in entertainment. It all started in 1975, four years after he graduated from Jesuit Rockhurst College in Kansas City, Mo. That's when George discovered improv at Chicago's Second City.

His first job in show business was sweeping the floors of the small theater that would eventually give birth to comedians like Bill Murray, Chris Farley, Jordan Peele, Tina Fey, and Amy Poehler. He was eventually selected to be a member of their touring company. "It was a ball," he recalled to the Democrat & Chronicle. "I had no acting experience in my background, but something just clicked."

By 1980, George was already landing small roles in films like My Bodyguard and Somewhere in Time, which starred Christopher Reeve and Jane Seymour. Two years later, George's life was forever changed when he stepped into the stool-loving role of Norm on the hit show Cheers. George sipped from countless mugs of fake beer from 1982 until 1993

After Cheers ended, George kind of made history again when he co-hosted an infamous episode of Saturday Night Live with Francis Ford Coppola. This season was dubbed The Weird Year due to the fact that it was a transitional period with a whole new cast and a fresh crop of writers. The episode George was on was directed by Francis and definitely made its mark.

He briefly had his own series, The George Wendt Show, in 1995, but it was canceled after one season. The veteran actor continued dipping in and out of various films and television shows such as Columbo, Spin City, and even Sabrina the Teenage Witch.

By the aughts, George was typically found on the stage in various productions all over the country. In what feels like the perfect ending to a long and lovely life, George passed away on the 32nd anniversary of the Cheers series finale.