NEWS

Soap opera star and polo player Douglas Stuart “Doug” Sheehan has died at the age of 75. The cause of death was not revealed, however the Kane Funeral Home in Big Horn, Wyoming, announced that he had passed away peacefully at his home on June 29, with his loving wife at his side.

Sheehan was born in Santa Monica, California, on April 27, 1949. He attended Mesa College in San Diego and served in the U.S. Army.

“Doug was one of those truly unique people that just don’t come along often. He had movie star good looks, was a gifted actor, writer, composer and a wonderful musician that could play many instruments--he even played the bagpipes!” said friend Dr. Mike Manno, who serves on the USPA board.

He began his acting career in 1976 with the National Shakespeare Festival in San Diego, reportedly making $65 a week before making his on-screen debut in a 1978 episode of “Charlie’s Angels.”

A year later, he joined the cast of “General Hospital.” He was a series regular from 1979 to 1982 and earned a Daytime Emmy nomination for Outstanding Actor in a Supporting Role in a Daytime Drama Series.

Following his run on “General Hospital,” Sheehan joined the cast of “Knots Landing,” appearing in over 100 episodes from 1983 to 1988. That role led to a Soap Opera Digest Award nomination for outstanding lead actor in a primetime show in 1988. Earlier, it earned him a Soap Opera Digest readers’ poll award in 1984 for exciting new actor in a primetime soap opera and in 1986 for outstanding supporting actor in a primetime serial. It also led to a lucrative promotional deal for Aramis men’s cologne, with Sheehan as the Aramis Man.

Sheehan also appeared in television movies, including “Stranger In My bed” in 1987 and “In the Line of Duty: The F.B.I. Murders” in 1988. He went on to star in the sitcom “Day by Day,” which ran for two seasons on NBC. In the 1990s, he appeared in the “Clueless” television series and made appearances in “Crash: The Mystery of Flight 1501,” “A Mom for Christmas” and “Columbo: It’s All in the Game.”

He appeared in episodes of “Sabrina the Teenage Witch” in 1999 and 2003, guest starred in “Diagnosis: Murder” and “That Was Then” before his last on-screen appearance in an episode of “What I Like About You” in 2003.

Sheehan made three film appearances over the course of his career. He played a police officer in the 1979 movie “10,” a dancer in the 1982 film “Victor/Victoria,” and Bert Rogers in the 1995 film “Cops n Roberts.”

Sheehan was an avid polo player and a founding member of the San Diego Polo Club. He played there in the summers and at Eldorado Polo Club in Indio, California, in the winters. His wife Cate was a photographer and could always be found on the sidelines, taking polo photos.

“I first met Doug about 30 years ago, during the heyday of the San Diego Polo Club. Doug and I had a lot of common interests, such as hunting, fishing, sports and of course, horses and polo,” said Manno. “We played a lot together on his Angler’s Rest polo team, which was always made up of friends.”

Sheehan took up the sport in 1984 at the urging of actor Bill Devane. In a 1986 interview, Sheehan said that he was playing or practicing every weekend at the Los Angeles Equestrian Center and had three polo horses: Seumas, Estrella and Wildfire.

In a 1987 interview with the L.A. Times, he joked, “I first saw polo played at Great Gatsby Day, a charity benefit they had at Will Rogers Park a couple of years ago, and I was such a sucker for the antique Rollses and the English boots I went out and signed up for polo lessons the next day.”

In the mid-1980s, Devane put together a small celebrity polo team that often played indoors at the LAEC. It included Devane, Sheehan, Alex Cord and Pamela Sue Martin. It was sponsored by Piaget and later, by Cadillac. Sheehan also traveled extensively as captain of the Chukkers for Charity team that raised funds for many charities around the world.

“I am the captain of the Cadillac celebrity polo team. And what we do ... we fly around the country using polo ... and we play for charity, and we use our celebrity and the sport of polo to bring people to see the sport that have never seen it before and raise money for various charities. In the last three years, we’ve raised over $2 million for various charities around the country,” Sheehan told Arsenio Hall in a 1989 interview.

“Polo has lost one of its greatest ambassadors as he promoted the sport nationally and internationally,” Manno said.

In 2005, he wrote and composed a musical titled “The Lost Player’s Rapunzel,” which ran at the 550-seat Lyceum Theatre in downtown San Diego for four weeks. He also starred in the play. “He was so well known for his acting, but he was also a great musician,” said friend and former USPA CEO Bob Puetz. “There was always music around with Doug. ... We used to play piano when were together.”

That same year, a wildfire destroyed his ranch in Julian, California, where he lived and housed all his acting awards. At that point, he decided to move out of California and purchased a ranch in the polo community of Big Horn, Wyoming, next to close friends Rosie and Tommy Wayman. He retired and enjoyed a quiet, low-profile life. He and his wife were often on the sidelines at the local polo club.

In 2008, he joined Devane again for a celebrity polo match at the 25th anniversary of polo at the LAEC. It had been more than 10 years since they had played together. Very affable and with a great sense of humor, Sheehan later served as emcee for the National Museum of Polo and Hall of Fame induction ceremony for several years.

“Over the years, I was lucky to get to know him and his wife Cate, and the friendship that developed was truly one that changed my life for the better,” said Manno. “He was so funny and would always be the life of any party… His presence will surely be missed by so many, especially me. I was fortunate to call him a good friend.”

Sheehan is survived by his wife Cate, whom he married in 1981.