Randolph Mantooth, Who Played a Firefighter/Paramedic on 'Emergency!' TV Show, Dies
Television's most famous firefighter/paramedic, Randolph Mantooth, who played John Gage on the 1970s "Emergency!" TV show passed away this week.
He died Thursday, at age 80, in a Ventura, CA, hospice center, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
Mantooth had been “ill for a number of years," his brother Donald told the Reporter.
“Hollywood lost a tremendous actor, but the fire and EMS service lost one of its greatest friends and advocates," said Firehouse.com co-founder Dave J. Iannone. "Randy Mantooth's legacy isn't only preserved in episodes of 'Emergency!'—it's alive in firehouses, ambulances and EMS stations across the country every single day."
He starred alongside Kevin Tighe, who played Roy DeSoto, on the show that aired from 1972-1977. The duo responded to every emergency immaginable in Los Angeles County Fire Department Squad 51.
Recalling casting for the television show in an interview with Amy Harrington, he told her he asked the producers, "What the hell is a paramedic?"
At the time of the show, there were very few paramedics in the country but the show launched.
Mantooth and Tighe took a paramedic class and shadowed Los Angeles firefighters before filming and were trained to start Ivs.
“When you take life-saving services out of the hospital and into the field, the number of lives that are saved is incalculable,” Mantooth said in an inteview. “The stars just lined up with this show perfectly for a purpose, for a greater purpose.
"Little did I know that the actor I idolized on television would one day become a close friend," longtime Firehouse EMS columnist Gary Ludwig told Firehouse Saturday morning. "There are many memories, including dinners, text messages, phone calls, and visits to Memphis and Champaign, where I was working at the time. Of all those memories, one of my favorites is the two of us, simply sitting outside a bank of elevators in a Las Vegas hotel, having drinks, laughing, talking, and watching the parade of people. Despite his success and recognition, Randy was genuine, kind, down-to-earth, unpretentious, humble, modest, and authentic."
According to The Hollywood Reporter, Mantooth was born in Sacramento, CA, in 1945. By the time he turned 18, he had lived in 24 states as his father, a pipeline worker, changed job sites often.
In 2000, Iannone organized EmergencyFest during Firehouse.com's infancy.
The wekeend event was held at the Hyattsville, MD, Fire Department station with thousands of fans, firefighters, paramedics and others coming together to meet Mantooth and other members of the cast.
“I had the incredible opportunity in 2000 to host Randy and the cast of 'Emergency!' for a reunion at my own firehouse, with the real Squad 51 there," Iannone said. "Thousands of people came from across the country. Looking back, what strikes me most is that we weren't simply celebrating a television show—we were celebrating the enormous community and legacy that show created.”
In a 2014 "Views From the Jumpseat" blog, Ryan Pennington explained the impact of 'Emergency!' on his career writing: "We all should take the time to sit down and compare our service to Johnny and Roy’s. Is your uniform 'stage ready?' Are you giving the customers 100% awesome care? These questions should be answered on every run we make as there is one glaring similarity to the cast on 'Emergency!' and those of us on the streets today. The cameras are on us!"
Beyond the fame he gained on 'Emergency!,' Mantooth was on several soap operas, including "General Hospital" and "As the World Turns."
Fire Service Remembers Randolph Mantooth
"When the show was on I could not have a date until after 8 p.m. It worked out. I met Randy at several events and sat next to him for dinner at several conferences. He was friendly and very open to talking with everyone. He was a genuine ambassador for the fire service." - John Buckman, former fire chief, German Township, IN, Volunteer Fire Department
"Unfortunately, I never met Randy, even though I wish I had. But I will tell you I was an avid watcher of the show "Emergency!" during the original series run. All the episodes were my favorites; it would be hard to pick just one. The show helped inspire me to become a volunteer firefighter and a paramedic. At the time of the show, I was in college trying to get into medical school. Since I am an adrenaline junkie, I decided not to go to medical school and instead became a medic. I started as a volunteer for both Fire and EMS and eventually worked at three separate paid fire departments as a firefighter-paramedic. I retired in 2015 as a deputy chief of the Philadelphia Fire Department in charge of EMS operations. Still today, teaching EMS classes, I tell my students about that show and how it helped shape the dire/EMS services of this great country." - Richard Bossert, former Firehouse EMS columnist
"I've wanted to be a firefighter since I could remember and I watched 'Emergency!' religiously growing up. One of the biggest impacts of the show for me was the introduction of emergency medicine and paramedics to the fire service which fascinated me and truly opened up a new path and goal. I have been a firefighter/paramedic for over 20 years now and Johnny Gage popping the tops off prefilled medical syringes with the "rapid two thumbs technique" in the opening scene has stayed with me all these years, and the first time I did that in paramedic school I thought it was the coolest!" - Daniel Byrne, assistant chief, Burton, SC, Fire District
"In the late 1970’s police shows were the rage, but the premiere program for us EMS nerds opened up a whole new genre! 'Engine 51, Squad 51' rang out of the TV, and oooooohhhh, my first crush…Johnny Gage and the smell of Love's Baby Soft perfume. What a magnificent duo, Gage & DeSoto were, not to mention Dixie and Dr. Brackett.
How cool it was that the program opened up a world of possibilities during the many ambulance calls handled in the course of a single shift. This truly set the foundation that I was able to carry through to the Chicago Fire Department. Thank you to all contributors to this program, but most of all, a fond farewell to Randy Mantooth aka: Johnny Gage." - Maggie Coen Murphy, ambulance commander (ret.), Chicago Fire Department
"Speaking from my generation, it was a staple of television viewing to watch 'Emergency!' every time it came on. Heroes weren't just the athletes and sports figures; for a lot of us the firefighter was the hero we wanted to grow up to be, and Mantooth's character was the one we all wanted to be. We grew up with the toy helmets and the toy vehicles from the show, and our friends would argue about who got to pretend to be Johnny Gage. It wasn't just the fires; remembering the show how his character always seemed to be doing the cool stuff, like rappelling or using the Jaws of Life to get someone out of a car before it blew up. The show was the launching of a culture; consider how many firefighters we know that to this day have the 'Emergency!' tones "ring tones" on their respective phones when their own department goes out for a call today." - Michael Daley, captain (ret.), Monroe, NJ, Fire District
"Just like every firefighter/paramedic in my era, I grew up wanting to be like him and actually got the opportunity in real life. I was fortunate to meet him several times but will never forget the time he walked into the speaker ready room at Fire Rescue International and he sat down next to me and shared 40 minutes of conversation over a cup of coffee. If it wasn’t for my presentation, the conversation would have carried on much longer. Randy was just a very nice person that did so much for the fire service and prehospital emergency medicine." - Jeffrey Pindelski, fire chief, Hinsdale, IL, Fire Department
"Randy and 'Emergency!' did something few television shows have ever done: they didn't just entertain people, they inspired them to choose a career and a life of service. There are generations of firefighters, paramedics and EMTs who can trace at least part of their journey back to Johnny Gage and Squad 51. I'm proudly one of them.” - Dave J. Iannone, co-founder, Firehouse.com
"I grew up next door to a fire station, and as a young boy I would stop in every week just to spend time with the firefighters. They always welcomed me with kindness, answered my endless questions, turned on the lights and unknowingly planted the seed that would become a lifelong career in the fire service.
When I couldn’t be at the station, Emergency! became my way of stepping back inside. Watching John and Roy respond to emergencies gave me a glimpse into the profession I admired so much.
One episode that always stood out was titled,The Wedworth-Townsend Act, where the series introduced the beginning of the paramedic program. It showed that emergency medicine was changing and that firefighters could provide advanced medical care long before most people understood what paramedics did. That episode, and the series as a whole, inspired me to become an Army Combat Medic, knowing the training and experience would prepare me for my goal of becoming a firefighter.
Looking back, Randy Mantooth didn’t just entertain a generation. He inspired many of us to serve others. I know I wasn’t alone in dreaming of wearing that uniform because of what he and the cast brought into our living rooms every week. He left a legacy and helped shape our minds on the importance of service." - Jerry Streich, former fire chief/U.S. Army Combat Medic (ret.)
"I was flat-out star struck. 'Emergency!' put me on the road to 9‑1‑1 paramedicine, so meeting Randy Mantooth in Reno, NV, at the annual NAEMSE symposium hit hard. He provided his autograph and picture, and I just stood there, speechless – which doesn’t happen often. What an inspirational person he will always be." - Paul Rosenberger, Clinical Practice Manager, Dallas Fire-Rescue Office of the Medical Director
About the Author
Peter Matthews
Editor-in-Chief
Peter Matthews is the editor-in-chief of Firehouse. He has worked at Firehouse since 1999, serving in various roles on both Firehouse Magazine and Firehouse.com staffs. He completed an internship with the Rochester, NY, Fire Department and served with fire departments in Rush, NY, and Laurel, MD, and was a lieutenant with the Glenwood Fire Company in Glenwood Landing, NY. Matthews served as photographer for the St. Paul, MN, Fire Department and currently is a photographer for the Fort Worth, TX, Fire Department.