Here’s What Happened to Howard Hesseman and the Cast of ‘Head of the Class’ Before and After the Show

Howard Hesseman (Charlie Moore)

Howard was born on February 27, 1940 in Lebanon, Oregon. A student at the University of Oregon, he was actually a founding member of The Committee, a San Francisco-based improvisational group (working closely with MASH star David Ogden Stiers). At one point he assumed a stage name, Don Sturdy, which he used as a radio DJ and for early acting roles.

He began acting on screen in 1968, in the film Petulia and an episode of Dragnet — playing a hippie in both of them. Other movie roles over the years include Billy Jack (1971), Shampoo (1975), The Jerk (1979), This is Spinal Tap (1985), Little Miss Millions (1993), Man About Town (2006), Bigfoot (2012), Wild Oats (2016) and Dirty Politics (2018).

On the small screen, prior to Head of the Class he appeared in two dozen TV movies, among them The Blue Knight (1973), Hustling (1975), The Amazing Howard Hughes (1977), More Than Friends (1978), Mister Roberts (1984) and Six Against the Rock (1987). There were many guest star appearances, plus recurring roles on Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman (1976 to 1977) as Dr. Robert Williams; six episodes of The Bob Newhart Show (1974 to 1978) as Craig Plager, whose character was revealed to be gay in the show’s sixth season; seven episodes of Soap (1978) as Mr. Franklin; and 16 episodes of One Day at a Time (1982 to 1984) as Sam Royer.

Howard’s biggest role prior to Head of the Class was playing disc jockey Dr. Johnny Fever on the series WKRP in Cincinnati, set in a struggling radio station. Running from 1978 to 1982, the show also stars Gary Sandy as Andy Travis, station vice president and program director; Gordon Jump as general manager Arthur Carlson; Richard Sanders as eccentric news reporter Les Nessman, Frank Bonner as sales manager Frank Bonner, Tim Reid as DJ Venus Flytrap, Jan Smithers as billing manager Bailey Quarters and, of course, Loni Anderson as receptionist — and highest-paid worker — Jennifer Marlowe.

Howard starred on Head of the Class for the first four seasons, replaced in its fifth and final one by Scottish comic Billy. As to why he left the series, he offered up some hints to the Chicago Tribune in a 1989 interview. “We’re not doing the show that I was led to believe I’d do,” he said, “and it’s difficult for me to get off that. I don’t want to air dirty laundry in public, but I do feel that the educational arena is one that offers a variety of story ideas as a means of investigating our lives, what we mean to one another and what’s important. We could do all that with considerable humor, not with jokes, but with genuine humor that comes out of character and situations.” His departure emphasizes that there were no changes forthcoming from producers.

Afterward, he moved from show to show and did more TV movies. His most recent acting gigs were A Christmas in Vermont (2016) and two episodes of Fresh Off the Boat.

Dan Frischman (Arvid Engen)

Born April 23, 1959 in Whippany, New Jersey, before he decided to become an actor, Dan pursued the idea of being a magician. He performed in Los Angeles as “The Great Houdanny,” working charity events and children’s birthday parties. As his act grew, he began introducing more elements of comedy into it.

Shifting to acting, movie roles include Get Crazy (1983), Night of the Creeps (1988), Lessons for an Assassin (2003), The Trip (2007) and Tramps and Ramblers (2010). He made his acting debut in a 1981 episode of It’s a Living, which was followed by nearly a dozen other guest appearances. Following Head of the Class, he was one of the stars of the Nickelodeon sitcom Kenan & Kel, playing Chris Potter. He moved into directing, helming three episodes of Sam & Cat.

Dan Schneider (Dennis Blunden)

One of the surprising things to come out of Head of the Class was the fact that Dan would turn into such a successful writer and producer, being given the nickname “The Norman Lear of Children’s Television.” He was born January 14, 1966 in Memphis, Tennessee. Prior to the series he appeared in the movies Making the Grade (1984), Better Off Dead and Hot Resort (both 1985), also starring in Happy Together, Nathan Gore and Jonathan Tristan-Bennet (all 1989) and Good Burger (1997, for which he also wrote the script).

Finding a home base at Nickelodeon, his credits as creator and/or producer include All That (1994 to 2005), Kenan & Kel (1996 to 2000), UPN’s Guys Like Us (1998 to 1999) the WB’s What I Like About You (2002 to 2006) and then, back at Nickelodeon, Drake & Josh (2004 to 2007), Zoey 101 (2005 to 2008), iCarly (2007 to 2012), Victorious (2010 to 2013), Sam & Cat (2013 to 2014), Henry Danger (2014 to 2020), Game Shakers (2015 to 2019) and The Adventures of Kid Danger (2018).

Dan, who married entrepreneur Lisa Lillien in 2002, saw his fortunes change in 2018 when Nickelodeon cut all ties with him. The reason had to do with anger issues that had been well-documented, and reportedly “inappropriate” behavior as well. He hasn’t been involved in any projects since.

Tony O’Dell (Alan Pinkare)

Coming off of The Karate Kid 1984 film, having played Cobra Kai member Jimmy (which he reprised in 1986’s The Karate Kid, Part II and the Cobra Kai TV series), Tony O’Dell played the preppy Alan on Head of the Class. He was born January 30, 1960 in Pasadena, California and scored his first movie role in 1979’s Good Luck, Miss Wyckoff. Other film credits include Falling in Love Again (1980), Rivals (1981), Hadley’s Rebellion (1983), Evils of the Night (1985) and Chopping Mall (1986). His TV debut was on a 1979 episode of CHiPs, followed by 17 other appearances, most recently in K.C. Undercover. Besides Head of the Class, he was also a regular on the 1985 sci-fi series Otherworld.

Robin Givens (Darlene Marriman)

Born Robin Simone Givens on November 27, 1964 in New York City. As a teen she did some modeling and had small roles in The Wiz (1978) and Fort Apache: The Bronx (1981). Though she had gone to school as a pre-med major, she ended up switching to acting full time — this at the urging of Bill Cosby, who had cast her on an episode of The Cosby Show. Roles on the Cosby spin-off A Different World, the TV movie Beverly Hills Madam and the TV miniseries The Women of Brewster Place followed.

Robin appeared in over two dozens movies between Eddie Murphy’s Boomerang (1992) and God Bless the Broken Road (2018). Besides making a number of guest star appearances, she was a series regular on Angel Street (1992), Courthouse (1995), Sparks (1996 to 1998), Tyler Perry’s House of Payne (2008), My Parents, My Sister & Me (2010), and a recurring role on both Riverdale (2017 to 2019) and its spinoff, Katy Keene (2020).

In her personal life she married former heavyweight champion Mike Tyson on February 7, 1988, which was revealed to the media to be something of a true rollercoaster ride. She claimed that Tyson was physically abusive to her, he and others claimed that she was a gold digger after his millions. Not surprisingly, the marriage came to an end in 1989, one tumultuous year later. She would go on to marry tennis instructor Svetozar Marinkovic in 1997, the two of them divorcing a year after that. She is the mother of two children, one adopted and the other from ex-boyfriend Murphy Jensen, a tennis player.

Kimberly Russell (Sarah Nevins)

She was born December 29, 1964 in Brooklyn, New York. She made a number of guest star appearances on such shows as Family Matters, Ellen, ER, Strong Medicine and The Steve Harvey Show. Movies include Fame, Ghost Dad, Hangin’ With the Homeboys, The Game and Precious. She married Hollywood cameraman Michael Bonewitz in 2000.

Leslie Bega (Maria Borges)

She’s enjoyed a career on stage, in the movies and on TV. Born April 16, 1967 in Los Angeles, Head of the Class has been her biggest credit. She had recurring roles on CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, C:16: FBI and, as Valentina La Paz, on The Sopranos. Movies include Breakin’, Breakin’ 2: Electric Boogaloo and Mobsters. And among her stage credits are King Lear, The Merchant of Venice, Gypsy, Grease, The Sound of Music and West Side Story.

Khrystyne Haje (Simone Foster)

Born December 21, 1968, she began her career as a model when she was only 14. Three years later she made her acting debut in the TV movie Crime of Innocence. This was followed by the TV movie Bates Motel (a bizarre follow-up to the Psycho films as opposed to the intriguing TV series of the same name that would come later). Many guest star appearances would follow Head of the Class, as well as such films as Scanners: The Showdown (1995), Shriek If You Know What I did Last Friday the Thirteenth (2000), Redemption (2002) and Easy As Pie (2003). She is a survivor of breast cancer.

Billy Connolly (William C. ‘Billy’ MacGregor)

When Howard Hesseman left the series following its fourth season, Billy came in as the kids’ new teacher. Born November 24, 1942 in Anderston, Glasgow, Scotland, he has worked as a folk singer and a stand-up comedian. Included among his film roles are Indecent Proposal (1993), The Boondock Saints (1999), The Last Samurai (2003) and The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies. His official title (thank you, Her Majesty) is Sir William Connolly, CBE. He was married twice, first to Iris Pressagh from 1969 to 1985 and then to Pamela Stephenson, who he married in 1989. He has five children.