Wilford Brimley, Quaker Oats And Diabetes Care Ad Man, Dies

ST. GEORGE, UT — Wilford Brimley, most known for his commercials as a product pitchman for Quaker Oats and reminders to often check your blood sugar in diabetes ads, has died. He was 85.

Brimley died at a hospital in St. George, Utah on Saturday, TMZ was the first to report. Those close to him told the entertainment news outlet said that the iconic actor had been very sick for days and in intensive care on dialysis.

His Quaker Oats commercials were among the most popular on TV during the late 1980s and early 1990s. Here's one from 1990.

A native of Salt Lake City, Brimley developed diabetes in the 1970s and has spoken on it often for Liberty Medical, becoming their spokesman in 1999.

Brimley's impact on popular culture wasn't limited to just the world of commercials. His obituary in the New York Times describes his ability to play "cantankerous coots" in such films as "Cocoon," "Absence of Malice" and "The Natural."

On the television screen, he played Postmaster General Henry Adkins in a memorable scene from the hit 1990s sitcom "Seinfeld" and had a recurring role on "The Waltons."