Actor Dave Madden, who played Reuben Kincaid, the sometimes flustered, sometimes blustering father figure on 1970s musical sitcom "The Partridge Family," has died at age 82
Madden's niece told the Associated Press the actor died in a hospice near his home in the Jacksonville, Fla. area.
Co-star David Cassidy sends his "best wishes and prayers to Dave Madden's wife Sandra and his family at this sad time," according to DavidCassidy.com.
Madden died on a day of loss for fans of 1970s and 1980s television. The death of Russell Johnson, who played the Professor on "Gilligan's Island," was reported earlier on Thursday.
Canadian-born Madden was also a recurring character on the 1970s diner sitcom "Alice," and appeared on "Laugh-In." He also voiced the Ram and other characters on the 1973 animated film, "Charlotte's Web," and made appearances on numerous popular shows of the 1970s and 1980s, including "Love Boat," "Fantasy Island," "Starsky and Hutch," "Happy Days," "Love, American Style," "Bewitched" and more.
His "Partridge Family" character was the manager, not the father of the singing family, but he often played a dad-like role, especially with mischievous Danny, played by Danny Bonaduce.
"(Bonaduce and I) got to be good friends and he would come out to the beach house on weekends and hang out," Madden told the retro podcast "Just My Show" in 2011. "We were sort of adversaries on camera, but good friends off-camera."
On Thursday, Bonaduce tweeted about his fondness for his co-star.
Although Madden worked as a folksinger in his youth, Reuben didn't sing on "The Partridge Family." "They wouldn't let me snap my fingers on that show," he told "Just My Show."
He also told the podcast about his memories of the legendary psychedelically painted "Partridge Family" bus.
"The bus was terrible to drive, there was no power steering on that bus," he said. "It was like a World War II army bus."