Cindy Morgan, who went from Chicago radio host to a role in the classic comedy “Caddyshack,” has died at the age of 69.
Morgan’s body was discovered in her bedroom in her Lake Worth Beach, Florida, home on Dec. 30, following a 911 call from her roommate, who last saw Morgan alive 11 days prior, according to a report from the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office.
The roommate told police that she had just returned from “a holiday visit” when she knocked on Morgan’s door and received no response. The roommate also noticed a “strong odor coming from her room,” according to police.
Morgan is said to have died of “natural causes,” with no foul play suspected, the sheriff’s office said. It’s unclear when Morgan died.
Morgan was born Cynthia Ann Cichorski in Bucktown, according to her official Facebook bio. Chicago radio listeners first knew her as a personality on WSDM-FM (97.9), a jazz and pop station called “the station with the girls.” The talent on-air, all women, also included future broadcast stars Linda Ellerbee and Yvonne Daniels.
Later renamed WLUP, the station now goes by WCKL.
Morgan made her feature film debut as the promiscuous Lacey Underall in the golf comedy “Caddyshack” in 1980 alongside actors Bill Murray, Chevy Chase and Rodney Dangerfield.
In a 2012 interview, Morgan said: “ ‘Caddyshack’ was my first film and I’ll say that the end product was so completely different, it was originally about the caddies. So at first, I had nothing to lose to audition. It was fun. All I did was focus on making the person sweat. Look ’em in the eye, do that thing many women know how to do.”
It wasn’t long before Morgan’s appearance and mere existence as a female in a then male-dominated industry became the center of her acting career. In the same 2012 interview, Morgan recalled a conversation with producer John Peters in which he told her that she was “f- - -ed in this business” for prohibiting Playboy to take photos of her on set. Morgan said that Playboy came anyway and that her “agent didn’t handle it.”
Morgan found ways to push back. She mentioned that a still of her in “Caddyshack” wearing a FILA shirt without a bra was the most popular photo she sold of herself to her primarily male fan base. In a separate interview included in the Tampa Bay Times, Morgan said, “it was 1979, and women had just burned their bras. It was a political statement more than anything.”
Morgan is also known for her roles in Disney’s original “Tron” film and the TV series “Falcon Crest” and “CHiPs,” among others.
Her most recent role was voicing Mason’s Mother in the 2022 indie film “Face of the Trinity.”
Contributing: Sun-Times staff
