James Theodore Wuertemburg died peacefully at his home in Oak Harbor Oct. 18, 2014, at the age of 71. He was born in Santa Monica, Calif., May 7, 1943, to Barrett and Nellie Wuertemburg.

Jim attended a boys military school for a time and completed his education at public schools in Santa Monica.

At age 17, when Jim was a sophomore, he left school and enlisted in the U.S. Army. He did complete his GED while in the service.

Following his discharge, Jim returned home and began working in the aerospace industry as a machinist. Jim had family members working in the motion picture industry, and he soon joined them.

He began a career in stage lighting and worked his way up to assistant lighting director, or “best boy,” and finally to lighting director, or “gaffer,” as he was known in the industry.

Jim made many friends in the industry.

He counted David Carradine and Jack Nicholson as friends. Jim spent much of his time working on movies but also did work for television.

Jim was considered a real “ladies man.” He was married twice and had even dated Linda Carter (“Wonder Woman”) for a time.

He worked on the series “Charleston” and then moved to “Cheers.” While on the set of “Cheers,” he met Diane Overdiek, a production coordinator.

Jim and Diane soon fell in love and became engaged. The cast of “Cheers” hosted a great engagement party for them.

On Feb. 7, 1987, Diane and Jim were married in North Hollywood, Calif. Jim and Diane became very involved with English Bulldogs. They bred, raised and showed their dogs and spent a significant amount of time traveling to various events. They produced a number of American Kennel Club Champions over the years.

Jim became totally disabled in 1994. However, in 1990, Jim and Diane were able to purchase property in Oak Harbor.

After retiring from the motion picture industry, they moved to Oak Harbor and in 2004 built their home and a very large dog kennel.

Their home has a vast collection of bulldogs and bulldog memorabilia. For the past several years, Diane has been Jim’s primary caregiver.

Graveside funeral services for Jim Wuertemberg will be held at 1 p.m. Monday, Oct. 27, 2014, at Maple Leaf Cemetery, Oak Harbor, with military honors to follow under the auspices of the U.S. Army Honor Guard.

Funeral services were entrusted to Wallin Funeral Home. Please visit Jim’s page in the Book of Memories at www.wallinfuneralhome.com to share memories and condolences.