Remembering Phil Foster, ‘Laverne & Shirley’s Frank DeFazio
What To Know
- Phil Foster, born Fivel Feldman in Brooklyn, began his entertainment career in vaudeville and nightclubs before serving in World War II and building a reputation as a comic storyteller.
- Foster’s career included television and film roles, but he is best remembered as Frank DeFazio on Laverne & Shirley, a role he landed thanks to his friendship with Garry Marshall.
- Off-screen, Foster was married with two sons and continued acting until his death from a heart attack in 1985 at age 72.
For many fans of Laverne & Shirley, Phil Foster will always be Frank DeFazio, Laverne’s old-school father. Although his television fame arrived later in life, Foster’s journey through entertainment stretched across vaudeville stages, wartime service, early television and Hollywood sitcoms. In honor of the show’s 50th anniversary on January 27, 2026, let’s take a look back on Foster and his career.
How did Phil Foster begin his career?
Born Fivel Feldman on March 29, 1913, in Brooklyn, New York, Foster was the son of Jewish immigrants from Russia. He grew up in a working-class neighborhood, and as a child, he and his friends entertained crowds outside neighborhood movie theaters by singing and dancing. He later adopted the stage name Phil Foster, reportedly inspired by Foster Avenue in Brooklyn, and briefly used the name Michael Feldman early in his career.
Everett Collection
During the depths of the Great Depression, Foster worked wherever performance opportunities arose, appearing in makeshift theaters and back rooms. He later recalled earning modest weekly wages while sharing cramped living quarters with fellow performers. His earliest ambitions leaned toward dramatic acting, but a turning point came in the late 1930s when he was unexpectedly pushed onstage to fill in for a missing nightclub comic in Chicago.
Foster served in the United States Army during World War II and returned to New York afterward to continue pursuing acting. He developed a popular variety act built around humorous stories drawn from his Brooklyn upbringing, earning steady work in clubs and television appearances throughout the 1950s. He also filmed comedy shorts for Universal-International and appeared in George Pal’s science-fiction film Conquest of Space.
How did Phil Foster join Laverne & Shirley?
Everett Collection
Foster’s television profile continued to grow with appearances on The Ed Sullivan Show, The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson and The Patty Duke Show. Foster also appeared in films, including Bang the Drum Slowly.
A longtime friendship with Garry Marshall proved pivotal when Marshall encouraged Foster to return to Hollywood, first with a role on The Odd Couple and later as Frank DeFazio on Laverne & Shirley. After the show, he continued making guest appearances on series such as The Love Boat and Fantasy Island while maintaining film work into the early 1980s. His final film role came in Texas Godfather in 1985.
Gene Trindl/TV Guide/Everett Collection
Off-screen, Foster was married to Joan Featherston, and the couple had two sons, Michael and Danny. He occasionally appeared on television alongside his wife, including the game show Tattletales. Foster died of a heart attack on July 8, 1985, in Rancho Mirage, California, at the age of 72.
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1970s Fall TV
September 2023
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