Stephan W. Burns
Stephan William Burns (November 15, 1954 – February 22, 1990; also credited as Stephan W. Burns, Stephen W. Burns, and Stephan Burns) was an American actor best known for playing Pete Stancheck in "Herbie Goes Bananas" and Jack Cleary in the miniseries "The Thorn Birds". Early life and career. Burns was born on November 15, 1954 in Elkins Park, Pennsylvania and grew up in the small town of Chews Landing, New Jersey. As soon as he graduated high school, Burns moved to New York City to study theater. He worked odd jobs during the day to pay for  his rent and the acting classes he attended at night. Auditions eventually led to an offer for the lead role in the national touring production of the Broadway hit "Grease". Burns moved to Hollywood and within six months, he was offered the role of Li'l Abner in the 1978 TV special "Li'l Abner in Dogpatch Today". During his short career, Burns starred as Pete Stancheck in Walt Disney Productions' "Herbie Goes Bananas" and appeared on several television shows, as well as starring in the ABC series "240-Robert" and "The Thorn Birds" miniseries. Other credits include "Eight Is Enough", "Heart  of the City" and "Simon & Simon". Death. After being involved in a serious car accident in 1984, Burns received an emergency blood transfusion. Unfortunately, the blood was contaminated, infecting Burns with HIV. Burns died on February 22, 1990, in Santa Barbara, California.