Richard Belzer, who portrayed the iconic Law and Order character Detective John Munch for many years, has passed away at the age of 78. His manager, Eric Gardner, told outlets that he passed away peacefully Sunday morning at his home in France. According to the actor’s friends, he had been battling numerous health issues in the final few years of his life.
His passing was met with an outpouring of fan support on social media. Many longtime fans of Law and Order pointed out that, poetically, his character was recently mentioned in an episode, with a character explaining what Munch had been up to in the years following his retirement.
Illustrious Career
Belzer started his career as a stand-up comic, which isn’t surprising when you consider how witty and funny he was as Munch. He first portrayed Munch in the NBC series Homicide: Life on the Street in 1990. He reprised the role in a few episodes of Law and Order in 1999 before becoming a series regular on Law and Order: SVU.
The writers for Law and Order reportedly wrote Detective Munch with many of Belzer’s unique personality traits. Munch is dryly witty, somewhat conspiratorial, and mistrustful of authority figures. These are apparently traits he shares with the man who portrayed him.
Life on the Small Screen
Belzer told reporters that he loved playing Munch because, as much as he identified with the character, he could never see himself pursuing a real career in law enforcement. “I would never be a detective, but if I were, that’s how I’d be,” Belzer told reporters in a recent inverview. “The character is very close to how I would be. They write to all my paranoia and anti-establishment dissidence and conspiracy theories, so it’s been a lot of fun for me. It’s been a dream actually.”
Munch has become one of the most popular TV characters in history. Belzer has portrayed the character on over 30 TV shows, even appearing as a puppet version of himself on the popular children’s program Sesame Street.
Colleagues Remember Belzer
Law and Order creator Dick Wolf wrote a tribute to the late actor after news of his passing became public. “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,” Wolf said. “Richard brought humor and joy into all our lives, was the consummate professional, and we will all miss him very much.”
