Actor Robert Blake, best known for the murder trial he underwent in 2001, died in Los Angeles on Thursday at the age of 89.
The actor of the series “Baretta” (1975-1978) died after a long-term heart problem and the death was confirmed by his niece, according to local US media.
In 2001, Blake was charged with shooting to death his second wife, Bonny Lee Bakley, while she was sitting in Blake’s car outside a restaurant, a crime for which he was acquitted at trial in 2005.
Months later, however, Blake was found responsible for deliberately causing the woman’s murder in a civil trial and ordered to pay Bakley’s four children $30 million.
Born in New Jersey in 1933, Blake began his career as a child in films such as “Bridal Suite” (1939) and MGM’s short series “Our Gang”.
He trained as an actor in the 1950s and played major roles in films such as “The Purple Gang” (1959), “This Property is Condemned” (1966) and “Corky” (1972).
He starred in numerous television series, but it was “Baretta” that marked the career of the actor, after playing the iconic and revolutionary detective Tony Baretta.
On film, one of his most notable works was his portrayal of the psychopathic killer Perry in “In Cold Blood,” based on Truman Capote’s novel of the same name.
Blake has participated in more than 160 film and television productions, the last of which was the David Lynch film “Lost Highway” (1997).
His career was so affected by the murder allegations that the actor filed for bankruptcy and in 2012 published the memoir in a book titled “Tales of a Rascal: What I Did for Love”.
Source: DN
