Richard Belzer, comedian and ‘Law & Order’ actor, dead at 78

[sds71]

Richard Belzer, Extraordinarily Smart-Ass as a Comic and a TV Cop, Dies at 78

The stand-up legend and 'Groove Tube' actor played Det. John Munch on 'Homicide: Life on the Street,' 'Law and Order: SVU' and eight other shows.

www.hollywoodreporter.com

Law & Order SVU star Richard Belzer dies aged 78

Richard Belzer, known for playing the character Det. John Munch on 11 different television series over the course of 22 years, has died at the age of 78.

www.dailymail.co.uk

 

[charminglane]

RIP, Munch.
Thank you.

 

[TTF14]

Awwww. RIP.

 

[BetteDavisEyes]

Munch was one of my favorite characters on SVU. I enjoy seeing him in reruns. Rest in peace.

 

[DFWNF]

Oh so very sad, Munch was great, my fav.

 

[DFWNF]

For Munch fans, I bought my partner the Homicide: Life on the Street boxed set complete series for Christmas. Nice set shaped like a file cabinet drawer, with labels etc. It's where Richard Belzer's Munch originated, before SVU.

 

[fred&edna]

He was like a fine wine and only grew better with age. Friends who knew him said he was a really great guy.

 

[sds71]

I was too excited about this:


Nov 15, 1997 at 12:00 am
Tomorrow night, Richard Belzer (l.) completes an amazing hat trick, appearing on three TV series in one week NBC's "Law & Order" and "Homicide: Life on the Street," and now "The X-Files" on Fox all as the same character, Baltimore Detective John Munch. Tomorrow's "X-Files" is a flashback to Baltimore, 1989, where Munch is interviewing a paranoid suspect (one of the troika eventually to be known as the Lone Gunmen) about a particularly baffling experience at a local warehouse. Long-time fans of both "Homicide" and "X-Files" will be rewarded, with lines of dialogue reaching back to the first "Homicide" episode, and with a key sighting of a long-dead "X-Files" character. "The X-Files," tomorrow, 9 p.

TV

Tomorrow night, Richard Belzer (l.) completes an amazing hat trick, appearing on three TV series in one week NBC's "Law & Order" and "Homicide: Life on the Street," and now "The X-Files" on Fox all as the same character, Baltimore Detective John Munch. Tomorrow's "X-Files" is a flashback to...

www.nydailynews.com

 

[hrfister]

Richard Belzer, Extraordinarily Smart-Ass as a Comic and a TV Cop, Dies at 78

The stand-up legend and 'Groove Tube' actor played Det. John Munch on 'Homicide: Life on the Street,' 'Law and Order: SVU' and eight other shows.

www.hollywoodreporter.com

Law & Order SVU star Richard Belzer dies aged 78

Richard Belzer, known for playing the character Det. John Munch on 11 different television series over the course of 22 years, has died at the age of 78.

www.dailymail.co.uk

I was a big fan. May he RIP.

 

[realanastasia]

Oh, I'm so sorry to read of Mr. Belzer's passing--he was a fixture on television my whole life, so reading this news makes me feel like it's truly the end of an era. Condolences to all who knew and loved him.

 

[DFWNF]

"Richard Belzer's detective John Munch is one of television's iconic characters," Dick Wolf, Law & Order: SVU creator and executive producer, said in a statement. "I first worked with Richard on the Law & Order/Homicide crossover and loved the character so much, I told Tom (Fontana) that I wanted to make him one of the original characters on SVU. The rest is history. Richard brought humor and joy into all our lives, was the consummate professional, and we will all miss him very much."

Richard Belzer, Law & Order: SVU Star, Dead at 78

Richard Belzer played Detective John Munch on crime drama Law & Order: Special Victims Unit from 1999 to 2016

people.com

 

[BetteDavisEyes]

'Law & Order: SVU' actor Richard Belzer dead at age 78

Belzer, a standup comedian who eventually found his home on the silver screen, starred in several television series.

www.nbcnews.com

Actor Richard Belzer, best known for his role on the beloved crime procedural "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit," died Sunday at age 78, NBC confirmed Sunday.

Belzer started out as a standup comedian and eventually found his home on the silver screen, starring in several television series over the years.

Universal Television and NBC offered condolences in a joint statement Sunday.

"Anyone who ever had the pleasure of watching Richard Belzer portray Det. John Munch — whether on ‘Homicide’ or ‘Law & Order: SVU’ — over four decades will never forget how much he inhabited that beloved character to make it his own," the statement said...

 

[realanastasia]

Those who read The Hollywood Reporter article will understand when I say his reported last words make me all the sadder he's departed this world.

 

[rsd1200]

I liked this guy. I'd forgotten how many shows he was in through the years. RIP

 

[DFWNF]

Those who read The Hollywood Reporter article will understand when I say his reported last words make me all the sadder he's departed this world.

Yep. Bless him,

 

[SophieRose]

His look alike brother, who suffered from various health problems and a broken heart after his wife's death, committed suicide back in 2014.

Richard Belzer’s brother jumps to his death

The older brother of actor Richard Belzer jumped to his death from the roof of his 16-floor Upper West Side apartment building Wednesday, law enforcement sources said. Leonard Belzer, 73, had been …

nypost.com

In a brutally candid 1993 interview with People magazine, Len and Richard opened up about their unhappy childhood in Bridgeport, Conn.

“Our mother didn’t know how to love her sons appropriately,” Len said at the time. “She always had some rationale for hitting us.”

Richard said his comedy was a defense mechanism against their mom’s overly stern hand.

“My kitchen was the toughest room I ever worked. I had to make my mom laugh or I’d get my kicked,” Richard said of his mother, who died in 1964.

 

[fred&edna]

He loved his dogs and they usually (or very, very often) accompanied him to many events, shows, etc.

An older article but still relevant... and ya' gotta' love a dog wearing his visitor pass



This is what happens when a dog visits Morning Joe

 

[SophieRose]

I was trying to find out how he came to retire in southern France and found this.

https://www.cbc.ca/news/entertainment/richard-belzer-obit-law-order-1.6753985

Belzer is survived by his third wife, the actress Harlee McBride, whom he married in 1985. For the past 20 years, they lived mostly in France, in homes he purchased partially from the proceeds of a lawsuit with Hulk Hogan. In 1985, Belzer had Hogan as a guest on his cable TV talk show Hot Properties to perform a chin-lock on him. Belzer passed out, hit his head and sued Hogan for $5 million US. They settled out of court.

 

[sds71]

A tribute to Richard Belzer of “Homicide Life on the Street.”

Belzer died Sunday at age 78. His John Munch character on "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit" and "Homicide: Life on the Street" was a Baltimore weirdo to this writer - in the most endearing way.

www.thebaltimorebanner.com

 

[sds71]

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