David Smyrl, who is perhaps best known for his role as Mr. Handford, on Sesame Street, has died. He was 80.

Smyrl’s wife, Cheryl said the Emmy award-winning actor was diagnosed with lung cancer in January. He died Tuesday at Lankenau Medical Center outside Philadelphia.

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“He was funny,” Cheryl Smyrl said. “I could say so many good things about him. He was loved by so many people. He was a mentor to a lot of children. He was a family man, loyal, true and faithful.” h/t thr

A north Philadelphia native born on Sept. 12, 1935, Smyrl performed as a poet in Greenwich Village in the 1960s, his wife said. His television career also began in New York in the 1970s, on the show Express Yourself.

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Our thoughts and prayers go out to Smyrl’s family and friends at this difficult time.