On January 5th, Patrick Sarsfield McNamara passed away peacefully in Santa Monica, California. Born on July 22nd, 1933 in New York City to Elizabeth “Betty” McNamara (nee Sarsfield), originally of Jarrow, England and John McNamara, originally of Mitchelstown, Ireland, he was their oldest son and the second oldest of their six children.

Known as “Bones” in his youth, because of his thin build, he was a great lover of baseball. As a talented, left-handed pitcher, he dreamed of playing professionally. In the days before little leagues were a common thing, he organized friends from his neighborhood in Astoria, Queens into a baseball team and convinced the local grocer to sponsor them.  After graduating from William Cullen Bryant High School, he entered the Navy during the Korean War, where he served his country.

On his return to civilian life, Pat surprised his family and turned his attentions from baseball to acting, beginning a successful and sustained, 60-year career. Despite never reaching the level of “stardom”, Pat achieved what few in the acting profession are able to, by becoming a full-time, working actor, able to support himself through his craft. He acted on stage, both on and off Broadway and in playhouses around the country, in TV and movies, as well as in commercials.

Highlights from his extensive career include roles in movies such as  Silence of the Lambs, Fight Club, The Daytrippers, Blue Thunder, Crimes of Passion, TV Shows including MASH, Barney Miller, Family Ties, Law and Order, NYPD Blue, Ally McBeal, Archie Bunker’s Place, Oz, Party of Five and numerous others. On stage, he appeared on Broadway in Brothers with Carroll O’Connor and in a revival of The Iceman Cometh with Jason Robards at the Kennedy Center, as well as playing the role of “Paddo” in Walter Macken’s Home is the Hero, in the longest running play at the Irish Arts Center in New York City, in 1974.

He won a Drama Logue Award for his work in Metamorphosis at the Mark Taper Forum in Los Angeles, in 1982. His fellow actor and friend, William Hickey, was quoted by their mutual friend, Mary Tierney (director at the Theater for the New City), as calling Pat “the best actor in America”.

Although he never married or had children of his own, as brother to five siblings and uncle to 15 nieces and nephews, he was a beloved member of a large and boisterous family. As “Uncle Pat”, he was known for his kindness, wonderful stories, fantastic laugh and marvelous sense of humor, bringing joy and entertainment to many family gatherings, both large and small. While he was a lot of fun, he wasn’t one to brag about his accomplishments and rarely told family about the projects he was working on. Most of his nieces and nephews have stories about sitting in a movie theater with friends and suddenly shouting out “Hey that’s my Uncle Pat!” while pointing excitedly at the screen. During the 1970s and early 1980s he was most famous among his relatives for his work in the Stella D’oro Breakfast Treat commercials, which seemed to be on a continuous loop in the tri-state area: “If they’re good anytime Alice, why do they call them breakfast treats?” One niece was even accused of lying by her classmates for claiming her uncle was the Stella D’oro Breakfast Treat man.

Pat was predeceased by his older sister, Elizabeth Hermida and leaves behind his brother, William McNamara and sisters, Alice Limandri, Margaret Bird and Ann Cappiello. He also leaves behind many dear, lifelong friends, including Mary Tierney, Caroline Turner, Jim DeMarse and Jim Handy, among others. He will be missed by all who loved him.

“A life well-lived leaves behind a beautiful legacy.”

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