Chicago native and actor George Wendt has died at the age of 76, his family confirmed Tuesday morning.

Wendt, who was born in the Beverly neighborhood of the South Side, got his start at The Second City back in the 1970s. His big break happened when he portrayed Norm Peterson on the hit sitcom “Cheers” for 11 seasons from 1982 to 1993. He received Emmy nominations for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series for six consecutive years (1984-89) while reprising his role.

“George was a doting family man, a well-loved friend and confidant to all of those lucky enough to have known him,” a rep for Wendt said in a statement. “He will be missed forever. The family has requested privacy during this time.”

Most sports fans — specifically Chicago fans — fell in love with Wendt’s work as Bob Swerski, the head superfan of “Da Bears” on “Saturday Night Live.” What a perfect way to combine ties to his hometown with the Bears’ die-hard fandom.

The skit first aired on January 12, 1991, before the Bears played the New York Giants in the divisional round of the playoffs at Giants Stadium. In the original sketch, Chicagoland actor Joe Mantegna portrayed Bill Swerski alongside Chris Farley, Mike Myers and Robert Smigel. Wendt made special appearances as Bob Swerski, Bill’s brother, in later versions of the sketch.

From absurd predictions for the score of Bears games, to leaping into hypothetical debates where the answers always were the Chicago Bears, Chicago or Mike Ditka, the superfans became a sensation.

Wendt married his wife, Bernadette Birkett, in 1978 after meeting at The Second City. The couple had three children together: Hilary, Joe, and Daniel. Wendt also is the uncle of actor Jason Sudeikis.