Richard Belzer, star of ‘Law & Order: SVU,’ has died. He was 78. The actor reportedly died on Sunday in his home in France after suffering from many health issues.
The tragic incident was recounted by the American actor’s cousin Henry Winkler, who lived in the southern French town of Bozouls.
“Rest in peace Richard,” tweeted Belzer’s cousin and also actor, known for his roles in Happy Days or Barry.
According to reports, Belzer failed to appear at the Law & Order casting for his part as Munch, but Barry Levinson invited him to the studios to read the script after hearing him on The Howard Stern Show. The Bridgeport, Connecticut-born interpreter then joined the cast of the well-known novel.
Belzer stepped into John Munch’s shoes for the first time in 1993, when he signed on for Homicide: Life on the Street, in which he played for 122 episodes until 1999. Following that he would return to the cast of Law & Order, which he joined in 1996 and stayed until the 2000s.
The show where Belzer would achieve his greatest popularity, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, allowed him to portray Munch for no less than 17 years and 325 chapters.
He was well-known for the conspiracy theories he fervently believed in and made headlines in 2008 for his backing of Barack Obama’s presidential campaign, which resulted in the Democrat being the first black president of the United States.
