Ron Palillo - Welcome Back Kotter Actor Ron Palillo Dies Aged 63

Of course, 'Welcome Back, Kotter' has become hugely famous given that it featured a young John Travolta as one of the original Sweathogs, a gang formed in the High School where the series took place. Palillo's Horshack was one of the original gang too, and the actor performed with great distinction during its run on ABC between 1975 and 1979. Sadly Palillo never went on to reach the heights of Travolta, but he enjoyed a solid career nonetheless.

Following the success of his Abc run, Palillo appeared in supporting roles in various television series as well as performing voice overs for animated series including 'Laverne and Shirley in the Army', 'Darkwing Duck', and 'Rubik, the Amazing Cube.' He also enjoyed a run of playing himself in the hit 90s comedy 'Ellen'.