Bill Wendt loved theater and spent most of his life teaching others to appreciate it. He had appeared in several Broadway musicals and in the movie "The Godfather."
He appeared in his first Broadway musical, "Milk and Honey," after leaving the armed forces, and later appeared in "Kiss Me Kate" and "South Pacific."
"He loved performing and presenting great plays and beautiful musicals to the audience," said his wife, Carole.
They lived in Manhattan, but she said he wanted to come back to die where he grew up. He was born in Winona, Minn., and studied at the University of Minnesota during the 1950s. During his undergraduate studies, he traveled with a three-person troupe and performed at high schools in five states.
Wendt, 64, died Dec. 11 of lung cancer.
After receiving a bachelor's degree in theater from Minnesota, he went to New York and acted in off-Broadway productions. After being drafted in 1959 he worked in the Armed Forces Radio Service for two years, entertaining armed forces throughout the world with his movie-star interviews.
He also appeared in two Academy Award-winning movies, "The Godfather" and "The French Connection."
When Wendt found out that he had cancer, he donated his collection of more than 300 plays to Rutgers University in New Jersey.
In addition to his wife, he is survived by sisters Ruth Lundgren, of White Bear Lake; Adeline Meekins, of Arlington Heights, Ill., and Karen Lee Wendt, of St. Paul.
