Detective John Munch was portrayed by Richard Belzer in the crime drama from 1999 to 2016. Actor, comedian, and author Richard Belzer passed away. He was best known for his work on Law and Order: Special Victims Unit. He was 78. Former writer for The Late Show with David Letterman, Bill Scheft, confirmed the demise. Belzer passed away “peacefully with family by his side,” according to Scheft, at his home in Bozouls, southwest France.
Belzer has experienced a variety of health issues, including surviving testicular cancer in 1983, which served as the inspiration for his HBO comedy series Another Lone Nut in 1997.
He made light of another episode of The Richard Belzer Show where famous guest Hulk Hogan choked the host, causing him to pass out and hit his head on the stage. After Belzer filed a lawsuit, the parties reached an out-of-court settlement. Belzer’s passing was mourned by a number of notable friends once the news went public.
One of television’s greatest characters is Richard Belzer’s detective John Munch, according to Law & Order: SVU creator and executive producer Dick Wolf. Richard and I were my first coworkers on the Law. History, as they say, is what happened next. Richard was the consummate professional and brought joy and laughter into our lives. He will be sorely missed. “.
A number of people honored Belzer on Twitter after he served as the warm-up comedian for the NBC sketch comedy program during the time Laraine Newman was a cast member of Saturday Night Live from 1975 to 1980.
She wrote, “I’m deeply saddened to learn about Richard Belzer’s death. “I had a thing for this guy. He was one of my first friends in New York when I arrived to launch SNL. “Every week for supper, we used to make the trip down to Sheepshead Bay for lobster. One of the funniest people ever. A crowd-worker’s fantasy. Newman concluded, “R.I.P., beloved.
Richard Belzer passed away, Marc Maron wrote in a post paying tribute to him. He was unique in every way. You are a legend, my sweetheart. I loved the man. RIP, “The Belz… “Even when he was holding his puppy, he was always the coolest cat in the room,” Jeff Ross wrote on Facebook while posting an old picture of Belzer and his poodle-fox terrier mix Bebe.
The work of Belzer on law was most well known. Between 1999 and 2013, he made roughly 330 episodes of SVU appearances, and he also made two cameos in 2014 and 2016. In 1993, he played the role on NBC’s Homicide: Life on the Street for the first time. He returned to the role for the Law.
He told The Boomer Tube, “It was a little bit of a miracle how I got the part. “I didn’t go through the application process. Barry Levinson asked me to perform the character’s voiceover after hearing me on the Howard Stern Show. Belzer reflected on his SVU character, saying, “I would never be a detective, but if I were, that’s how I’d be. I can relate to the character quite well. Since they respond to all of my paranoia, anti-establishment dissonance, and conspiracy theories, it’s a lot of fun for me. Nearly a dreamlike experience. He appeared as a Babylon Club M.C among Belzer’s other acting roles. the leader in the 1998 film Species II, the president in the 1983 movie Scarface, and the protagonist of the 1991 TV series The Flash.
Belzer had a prosperous comedy career off-screen and was outspoken in his support of many conspiracies. Belzer has presented his distinct views on American history and culture in books and on stage.
Hit List: An In-Depth Study into the Strange Deaths of Witnesses to the JFK Assassination was written by Belzer and released in 2016. His other books include UFOS, JFK and Elvis: Conspiracies You Don’t Have to Be Crazy to Believe and Dead Wrong: Plain Facts on the Country’s Most Controversial Cover-Ups.
He is survived by his wife of over 30 years, Harlee McBride. Although he does not have any biological children, McBride does have two children from a previous relationship, Jessica and Shannon Benton. In a 2010 interview with Cesar’s Way Magazine, Belzer praised his dog Bebe for helping to prolong his life. He said, “I have a little bit of a temper, and the dog can tell when I’m aggravated. “So the dog is supposed to prolong my life. I don’t lose my cool nearly as frequently as I once did. “.
