Actor, singer, teen idol Bobby Sherman star of ‘Here Come the Brides,’ and more dies at 81

If you grew up watching TV in the 1960s, you probably remember Bobby Sherman — first as an actor, then as a chart-topping singer who became one of the biggest teen idols of the early ’70s. He passed away on Tuesday at the age of 81.

Countless young fans eagerly waited for Here Come the Brides to air, swooning over his all-American charm and boy-next-door looks.

Sherman’s wife, Brigette Poublon, announced his death on social media, saying he “left this world holding my hand – just as he held up our life with love, courage and unwavering grace through all 29 beautiful years of marriage.”

“I was his Cinderella, and he was my Prince Charming,” she wrote. “Even in his final days, he stayed strong for me. That’s who Bobby was – brave, gentle, and full of light. As he rested, I read him fan letters from all over the world – words of love and gratitude that lifted his spirits and reminded him of how deeply he was cherished. He soaked up every word with that familiar sparkle in his eye. And yes, he still found time to crack well-timed jokes. Bobby had a wonderful, wicked sense of humor. It never left him. He could light up a room with a look, a quip, or one of his classic one-liners.”

A cause of death was not revealed, but Poublon announced earlier this year that Sherman had been diagnosed with kidney cancer.

A Santa Monica native, Sherman first gained attention on the musical variety show Shindig! in the early 1960s, later landing a guest spot on The Monkees and eventually appearing in the late 1960s on ABC’s Here Come the Brides, playing one of three siblings, with the others portrayed by Robert Brown and David Soul, who later starred on Starsky & Hutch.

His TV fame helped fuel his singing career, scoring a series of top-10 hits in 1969 and 1970, including Little Woman, La La La (If I Had You), Easy Come, Easy Go, and Julie, Do Ya Love Me.

Sherman also continued a successful television career, appearing on shows including The Partridge Family, Emergency!, The Mod Squad, Frasier, and Ellery Queen.

In the 1990s, he returned to the music stage, touring with Peter Noone and Davy Jones.

Later in life, he became an emergency medical technician and trained paramedics at the Los Angeles Police Academy. He was also a reserve Los Angeles police officer and a San Bernardino County sheriff’s deputy.

In her social media post on Tuesday, Poublon said Sherman was “a man of service.”

“He traded sold-out concerts and magazine covers for the back of an ambulance, becoming an EMT and a trainer with the LAPD. He saved lives. He showed us what real heroism looks like – quiet selfless and deeply human,” she wrote. “… He lived with integrity, gave without hesitation and loved with his whole heart. And though our family feels his loss profoundly, we also feel the warmth of his legacy – his voice, his laughter, his music, his mission. Thank you to every fan who ever sang along, who ever wrote a letter, who ever sent love his way. He felt it.”

Sherman is survived by his wife, along with sons Tyler and Christopher and six grandchildren.

– City News Service contributed to this report.