RIP Richard belzer LAst 2 Words before died was shocking | He knew it
Richard Belzer famous comedian who was 78 years old when he passed away.
Writer and close friend Bill Scheft confirmed Belzer's death to The Hollywood Reporter on Sunday at his home in Bozouls, southwest France.
This legendary artist made his film debut in 1974's The Groove Tube and warmed up early Saturday Night Live crowds. Belzer's recurring television detective role John Munch on Homicide debuted in the pilot episode in 1993 and made his final appearance on Law & Order: SVU in 2016. In 2014, Munch retired from the New York Police Department, but he returned to the show for the episode "Fashionable Crimes" in the show's 17th season.
Belzer was called a "consummate professional" by Dick Wolf and his production business, which released a statement praising him for "bringing laughter and joy into all our lives."
The Instagram post proclaims, "Richard Belzer's Detective John Munch is one of television's legendary characters." After working with Richard for the first time on the "Law & Order"/"Homicide" crossover, I told Tom Fontana that I wanted Richard to be an original character on "SVU." That was then, this is now.
Hargitay, who worked with the late actor, expressed her sadness for her friend and co-star in an Instagram post. Your brilliant personality and fresh perspective on life in this weird planet will be much missed. I count it a great fortune to have spent so much of my life in close proximity to you, learning from you and loving you while working side by side. Well, the heavens are lucky to have you. I can almost make out their giggling now.
Christopher Meloni joined SVU showrunner Warren Leight in tweeting his condolences. In a quick post to Twitter, Meloni said, "Good bye mon ami. Leight praised the actor for being "open, warm, caustic, whip smart, surprisingly nice," and the actor responded with a simple "I love you."
"When I first arrived at SVU, Richard Belzer was the first actor to greet me," he continued. Having the opportunity to work with Belz and contribute to Munch's publication was a highlight of my life. We all knew this was his last act. Wishing Belz the best of luck..."
Working with the late performer "from Homicide to SVU has been a humorous, surprising, and always pleasant experience," said SVU executive producer Julie Martin. I have no doubt that he is the source of many belly chuckles in the heavenly realm. "I'm really missing Richard Belzer right now."
Belzer got his start in comedy when he responded to an ad in The Village Voice inviting people to audition for Channel One, a New York East Village comedy team led by Ken Shapiro and Lane Sarasohn. The success of the show Groove Tube, which featured sketches mocking TV stereotypes like children's show clowns and news anchormen, led to a film deal and subsequent stand-up performances at Catch a Rising Star, the Improv, and Pips. In addition to being the audience's warm-up comedian when Lorne Michaels premiered Saturday Night Live in 1975, he also performed with Chevy Chase, John Belushi, Gilda Radner, Bill Murray, and Harold Ramis on the National Lampoon Radio Hour.
She was one of the first people to openly mourn Belzer's death, and original SNL cast member Newman expressed her feelings about how much she loved him on Twitter on Sunday, writing, "loved this guy so much. When I moved to New York to audition for Saturday Night Live, he was one of my first close pals. We used to have weekly lobster dinners at a restaurant on Sheepshead Bay. A truly hilarious individual. One who is adept at influencing large groups of people. Rest in peace, sweetie.
After hearing of Belzer's death, Billy Crystal tweeted his condolences, writing that the comedian "was absolutely wonderful." The master of crowd control. Director and writer Paul Fieg reminisced on his time working with Belzer, saying, "I worked with Belzer back in the '90s and he was such a lovely, humorous guy. All the way through, we were in fits of laughter. Unparalleled ability. Please accept our sincere gratitude, Richard, for making this available to us.
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