James Garner has died at 86. He was a rare hybrid – a comedic macho/tough guy. [icopyright one button toolbar]
Actor James Garner, best known for his prime-time television roles as the wisecracking frontier gambler on “Maverick” and as an ex-con turned private eye on “The Rockford Files,” has died at age 86, the celebrity news website TMZ reported on Sunday.
Garner, who built a six-decade career playing ruggedly charming, good-natured anti-heroes and received the highest honor of the Screen Actors Guild in 2004, was found dead on Saturday evening by ambulance personnel sent to his Los Angeles home, TMZ said, citing unnamed law enforcement sources.
There was no immediate word on the cause or circumstances of his death, TMZ reported.
Garner played tough guys but made fun of tough guys at the same time. My two favorite movies he made reflected the hybrid nature of his acting – Support Your Local Sheriff and Support Your Local Gun Fighter. I still watch those movies today. I remember when a character played by the late great Walter Brennan pointed a gun at him and he put his finger in the barrel. James Garner was one of a kind although Tom Selleck comes close as another hybrid. I understand that Garner had had a stroke a few years ago from which he never recovered so this is really no surprise but it’s a sad day anyway.
Update: Great Bio at TPM.