| TV Actor Robert Urich Dies in
California at 55
Tue Apr 16, 6:40 PM ET
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Actor Robert Urich, who starred in television detective series "Vega$" and "Spenser: For Hire," died early on Tuesday after a long battle with cancer, his spokeswoman said.
Guagenti said that Urich was hospitalized last week for breathing problems. The tall, dark and handsome Ohio-born Urich once described himself as television's version of Harrison Ford in that both specialized in playing "Everymen" in danger. Urich grew up in Toronto where his prowess as an athlete led to a football scholarship at Florida State University. After college he worked briefly as an account executive for a radio station in Chicago and a television weatherman before linking up with actor Burt Reynolds, who was credited with giving him his first acting job in 1972 when he played Burt's younger brother in a stage production of "The Rainmaker." "Robert Urich was an athlete, artist, a wonderful friend and he was one of those rare people who never said anything unkind about anybody," said Reynolds, who in the early 1970s brought Urich to Los Angeles and let him stay in his home until he found acting work. "His professionalism was exemplary. I have known Bob for 35 years and in all that time he has been the kindest, and most loyal friend. I adore him, his wife and children, and we will all miss him greatly." Reynolds said. A successful 30-year career in Hollywood followed, mostly on the small screen. He starred as private eye Dan Tanna in "Vega$," which ran on ABC from 1978 to 1981. He returned to the genre in 1985, playing another private eye in "Spenser: For Hire," which ABC aired until 1988. Urich won critical praise for playing the ex-Texas Ranger Jake Spoon who comes to a bad end in the mini-series "Lonesome Dove." He also won an Emmy in 1992 for his narration on a documentary "U-Boats: Terror on Our Shores." When he was first diagnosed with cancer, Urich was starring as an amnesiac wanderer in the first season of "The Lazarus Man," a Western on cable's TNT network. The show's producer, Castle Rock Television, pulled the plug, fearing that Urich would not be able to continue. In 2000, he sued Castle Rock for almost $1.5 million, the amount he would have received for a second season. In 1998, he played the captain in a short-lived remake of "The Love Boat." Urich was first diagnosed with cancer in 1996 when doctors discovered a very rare sarcoma in his groin and successfully treated him. Last November, Urich told Daily Variety columnist Army Archerd that some more lumps were found that summer, but the actor added that "a wonder drug cleared them up." He had recently co-starred in the short-lived NBC sitcom "Emeril." Urich was in the process of writing his memoirs, "An Extraordinary Life" (with David Dalton), at the time of his death.
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The casket of actor Robert Urich is carried from a Catholic church following a public memorial Friday, April 19, 2002, in the North Hollywood area of Los Angeles. Urich, an Emmy-winning actor best known for his starring roles in sleuth series such as "Vega$" and "Spenser: For Hire," died Tuesday at a California hospital of cancer. He was 55. (AP Photo/Lee Celano) |
Claim to Fame: Starred as private eye Dan Tanna in the crime series Vega$ (1978-81) Significant
Other(s): Family: Education:
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