Stephan William Burns (November 15, 1954 – February 22, 1990; also credited as Stephan W. Burns, Stephen W. Burns, and Stephan Burns) was an American actor best known for playing Pete Stancheck in '' Herbie Goes Bananas'' and Jack Cleary in the miniseries ''

The Thorn Birds ''The Thorn Birds'' is a 1977 novel by Australian author Colleen McCullough. Set primarily on Drogheda – a fictional sheep station in the Australian Outback named after Drogheda, Ireland, the story focuses on the Cleary family and spans 1 ...

''.

Early life and career

Burns was born on November 15, 1954 in Elkins Park, Pennsylvania and grew up in the small town of

Chews Landing, New Jersey Chews Landing (or Chews) is an unincorporated community within Gloucester Township, in Camden County, New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and ea ...

. As soon as he graduated high school, Burns moved to New York City to study theater. He worked odd jobs during the day to pay for his rent and the acting classes he attended at night. Auditions eventually led to an offer for the lead role in the national touring production of the Broadway hit '' Grease''. Burns moved to

Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywood, ...

and within six months, he was offered the role of Li'l Abner in the 1978 TV special ''Li'l Abner in Dogpatch Today''. During his short career, Burns starred as Pete Stancheck in Walt Disney Productions' '' Herbie Goes Bananas'' and appeared on several television shows, as well as starring in the

ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...

series ''

240-Robert ''240-Robert'' is an American drama series that ran on ABC from August 28, 1979, to March 21, 1981. The series title is a reference to the call-sign designation for the Los Angeles Sheriff's Department's search and rescue/paramedic teams. The ser ...

'' and ''

'' miniseries. Other credits include '' Eight Is Enough'', '' Heart of the City'' and '' Simon & Simon''.

Death

After being involved in a serious car accident in 1984, Burns received an emergency blood transfusion. Unfortunately, the blood was contaminated, infecting Burns with HIV.Stephen Burns @rhsclassof1985
Retrieved 12-13-2015. Burns died on February 22, 1990, in Santa Barbara, California.

Filmography

References

External links

* *
Stephan W. Burns
on

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Burns, Stephan W. 1954 births 1990 deaths American male film actors American male television actors Male actors from Pennsylvania Male actors from New Jersey People from New Jersey People from Santa Barbara, California AIDS-related deaths in California 20th-century American male actors Burials at Santa Barbara Cemetery