Stuart Margolin was a longtime character actor who starred as con man Evelyn “Angel” Martin on “The Rockford Files.”
- Died: Monday, December 12, 2022. (Who else died on December 12?)
- Details of death: Died of natural causes at the age of 82.
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Longtime character actor
Stuart Margolin was at a theater summer camp in Colorado when he met Barney Brown who was a mentor to Dustin Hoffman and Gene Hackman. He went out to California to study with Brown at his acting school. He guest-starred on many TV shows including “The Virginian,” “The Monkees,”, “M*A*S*H” and “That Girl.” He was one of the ensemble actors on “Love American Style” who appeared on the show in multiple sketches every week. His first major movie role was in 1970’s “Kelly’s Heroes” with Telly Savalas. He began a long collaboration and friendship with Hollywood star James Garner when he cast Margolin on his 1971 TV series “Nichols” where Margolin played a shifty yet lovable sidekick. His biggest role was playing con man “Angel” Martin on Garner’s TV detective series “The Rockford Files,” which earned him two Emmy Awards. He worked with Garner again on his 1981 TV series “Bret Maverick.” On the big screen, he appeared in Blake Edwards’ “S.O.B.” and “The Hoax” with Richard Gere. Margolin was a successful TV director who directed episodes of “The Mary Tyler Moore Show” and “Northern Exposure.”
Notable Quote
“I was being sought after as a young character actor and comedian until I had a choice to be on The Mary Tyler Moore Show or on Nichols with Jim Garner.” “I chose to work with Jim Garner because I thought I’d have more fun, which I never regretted.”
“It was a great series with great writers and the favorite show Jim ever did,” he continued. “It closed down after a year, and then I was approached by Jim’s executive producer and Stephen J. Cannell to be part of [NBC’s] The Rockford Files. So my career got a little bigger, I won a couple of Emmys, and I’ve had a real steady career over the years with a lot of parts.” – He told The Hollywood Reporter in 2017
Tributes to Stuart Margolin
Full Obituary: People
