Prolific actor Richard Belzer, who was finest identified for his position as Detective John Munch on “Homicide: Life on the Street” and “Law & Order: SVU” (amongst different reveals), has died on the age of 78, The Hollywood Reporter has confirmed. The actor’s longtime buddy author Bill Scheft advised the outlet Belzer died Sunday at his residence in Bozouls in southwest France. “He had a number of well being points, and his final phrases have been ‘F*ck you, motherf*cker,'” Scheft mentioned.
The unhappy information was first shared by the actor’s buddy and fellow actor Laraine Newman on Twitter. “I’m so unhappy to listen to of Richard Belzer’s passing. I liked this man a lot. He was considered one of my first buddies once I received to New York to do SNL. We used to exit to dinner each week at Sheepshead Bay for lobster. One of the funniest folks ever. A grasp at crowd work. RIP dearest,” she wrote.
Born August 4, 1944, Belzer started his profession as a standup comic in New York City earlier than changing into the warm-up comic for “SNL” through the present’s early seasons. He went on to seem on the sketch-comedy collection 3 times over the course of his lengthy profession. By the time the ’80s rolled round, the actor was a well-established comic who earned roles in movies together with “Fletch Lives,” “Night Shift,” and “Scarface.”
However, it was the position of Munch that might outline Belzer’s profession. In 1993, he originated the position on “Homicide: Life on the Street” the place he performed the misanthropic detective all through the collection till it wrapped in 1999. He then introduced the character over to “Law & Order: SVU” the place Munch continued to resolve crimes till 2016 when the actor retired from Hollywood.
Earlier this month, “SVU” gave an replace on Munch when the character’s former companion Fin (Ice-T) revealed what his previous buddy has been as much as since leaving the Special Victims Unit behind. “See, I had a companion years in the past, an previous murder detective. He had the identical actual protection mechanism. . . . He retired,” Fin says in “Dutch Tears.” “I suppose he simply ran out of gasoline. Last I heard, he moved again to Baltimore. Met a divorced feminine rabbi. And he purchased again his previous cop bar. It’s 1:30 a.m. He’s most likely cracking a joke to some barfly. That skinny b*stard had a punchline for each second of the day.”
In addition to taking part in Munch on “Homicide: Life on the Street” and “SVU,” Belzer additionally portrayed the character on eight different collection, together with “The X-Files,” “Arrested Development,” “The Wire,” and “30 Rock.” When he wasn’t performing, Belzer was a famous conspiracy theorist who wrote 4 books about subjects like UFOs and the assassination of John F. Kennedy. Munch was a conspiracy theorist as nicely.
Belzer is survived by Harlee McBride, his spouse of greater than 40 years, and his stepdaughters, Jessica and Bree.