Richard Belzer, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Star, Dead at 78

Richard Belzer, the actor best known for playing John Munch in Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, has passed away at age 78. The news broke early Sunday morning when friends of the actor began to post about his death. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Belzer died early Sunday at his home in Bozouls in southwest France. “He had lots of health issues, and his last words were, ‘Fuck you, motherf*cker,’” Belzer’s friend Bill Scheft told the outlet.

Belzer was born in Bridgeport, Connecticut, and got his start doing stand-up in New York City in the 1970s before becoming the warm-up comedian for SNL. He was a featured player on the National Lampoon Radio Hour alongside some of SNL‘s original cast members. He also made three guest appearances on SNL between 1975 and 1980. In the late ’70s, Belzer began acting in film and television. His first onscreen appearance was in the sketch comedy film The Groove Tube alongside Chevy Chase followed by appearances on Sesame Street. 

Original Saturday Night Live cast member Laraine Newman took to Twitter to share a tribute to the actor. “I’m so sad to hear of Richard Belzer’s passing. I loved this guy so much. He was one of my first friends when I got to New York to do SNL. We used to go out to dinner every week at Sheepshead Bay for lobster. One of the funniest people ever. A master at crowd work. RIP dearest,” Newman wrote. 

Belzer went on to appear in films such as Fame, Night Shift, Scarface, Fletch Lives, A Very Brady Sequel, Species II, Man on the Moon, and more. Belzer’s television career included appearances in Moonlighting, Miami Vice, Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman, The Larry Sanders Show, The X-Files, Mad About You, South Park, 3rd Rock from the Sun, Arrested Development, The Wire, 30 Rock, and more.

Of course, Belzer’s run as John Munch on Law & Order: Special Victims Unit was the actor’s claim to fame. He first played the role in the show’s pilot in 1999 and went on to appear in 326 episodes. His final episode of the series was in the show’s 17th season in 2016. Despite not appearing on the show in a few years, SVU recently gave an update on Munch, saying he retired and moved back to Baltimore before marrying a divorced Rabbi (via CinemaBlend).

In addition to his comedy and acting career, Belzer was also an author and wrote multiple books about conspiracy theories. His list of books includes UFOs, JFK, and Elvis: Conspiracies You Don’t Have to Be Crazy to Believe, Dead Wrong: Straight Facts on the Country’s Most Controversial Cover-Ups, Hit List: An In-Depth Investigation into the Mysterious Deaths of Witnesses to the JFK Assassination, and Someone Is Hiding Something: What Happened to Malaysia Airlines Flight 370? He wrote Dead Wrong and Hit List with journalist David Wayne, and both books made it on The New York Times Best Seller list.

Belzer married Harlee McBride in 1985 and became the stepfather to her daughters, Bree Benton and Jessica. Belzer survived testicular cancer in 1983 and spoke about the experience in his HBO special Another Lone Nut. Belzer was also cousins with Happy Days alum Henry Winkler. After leaving SVU, Belzer moved to the South of France. Our thoughts are with his friends and family at this time.