Urich Recalled as Actor and Friend

Hundreds of friends and celebrities mourned TV star Robert Urich on Friday as a down-to-earth actor who never let success go to his head.

Urich died Tuesday at the age of 55 after a long battle with cancer.

Actors Tony Danza, Gavin MacLeod and Tom Selleck joined the nearly 1,000 mourners at St. Charles Borromeo Catholic Church in North Hollywood.

“It’s sad because of who Bob is and was. You see the friends he had, real friends. It’s not just show business, it’s true friendship that brings these kind of people out,” Selleck told reporters outside the church.

A framed black-and-white photograph of the actor was positioned outside the church amid an array of flowers.

During his 30-year TV career, Urich was best-known for playing private investigators in “Vega$” and “Spenser: For Hire” and a luckless cowboy in “Lonesome Dove.”

His death came one day after the debut of the television movie “Night of the Wolf,” in which Urich co-starred as a ranch foreman.

He earned his first TV role in the 1973 comedy series “Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice.” He also appeared in the TV series “S.W.A.T.” before being cast as Peter Campbell in “Soap.”

Other TV credits include “Crossroads,” “Vital Signs,” “It Had to Be You” and “The Love Boat: The Next Wave.”

Among his film roles were appearances in “Turk 182!” with Timothy Hutton, and in “Ice Pirates” with Anjelica Huston.

After being diagnosed with cancer, Urich became active in cancer research. He and his wife established the Heather and Robert Urich Fund for Sarcoma Research.