Richard Belzer, Stand-Up Comic And Law & Order Detective, Dies At 78

NEW YORK (AP) — Richard Belzer, the long-running stand-up comedian who starred as John Munch in “Homicide: Life on the Street” and “Law & Order: SVU,” has died. He was 78.

Belzer died on Sunday at his home in Bozouls, southern France, according to his longtime friend Bill Scheft. Laraine Newman, a comedian, first announced his death on Twitter. “Rest in peace, Richard,” written by Belzer’s cousin, actor Henry Winkler.

Belzer played the wise-cracking, acerbic homicide detective prone to conspiracy theories for more than two decades and across ten series (including appearances on “30 Rock” and “Arrested Development“). Belzer first appeared on “Homicide” in 1993 and last appeared on “Law & Order: SVU” in 2016.

Belzer never tried out for the part. Following his appearance on “The Howard Stern Show,” executive producer Barry Levinson invited the comedian to read for the part.

“I’d never work as a detective. But if I were, I’d be like that,” Belzer once said. “They write to all of my paranoia, anti-establishment dissent, and conspiracy theories. So far, it’s been a lot of fun. It was all a dream.”

Richard Belzer Began His Stand -Up Career in 1972

Richard Belzer’s Munch would go on to become one of television’s longest-running characters and a sunglasses-wearing presence on the small screen for more than two decades. Belzer and Michael Ian Black collaborated on the novel “I Am Not a Cop!” in 2008. He also contributed to the publication of several books on conspiracy theories, including those concerning the assassination of President John F. Kennedy and the disappearance of Malaysia Airlines Flight 370.

“He made me laugh a billion times,” tweeted his longtime friend and fellow stand-up comedian Richard Lewis.

Richard Belzer, who was born in Bridgeport, Connecticut, was drawn to comedy during an abusive childhood in which his mother beat him and his older brother, Len. “My kitchen was the most difficult room I ever worked in,” Belzer told People magazine in 1993.

Richard Belzer began his stand-up career in New York in 1972 after being expelled from Dean Junior College in Massachusetts. Belzer became a regular on Catch a Rising Star. He made his feature film debut in Ken Shapiro’s 1974 film “The Groove Tube,” a TV satire co-starring Chevy Chase, a film that grew out of Richard Belzer’s comedy group Channel One.

Before “Saturday Night Live” changed the comedy scene in New York, Belzer appeared on the National Lampoon Radio Hour with John Belushi, Gilda Radner, Bill Murray, and others. He was hired as a warm-up comic for the newly launched “SNL” in 1975. While many of the cast members rose to prominence quickly, Belzer’s roles were mostly minor cameos. He later claimed that SNL creator Lorne Michaels broke a promise to include him in the show.

SOURCE – (AP)