Richard Jay Belzer, an American actor, comedian, and novelist, was born on August 4, 1944. Belzer was born in Bridgeport, Connecticut, to candy and tobacco store owners Charles and Frances (née Abrams) Belzer. He was raised in a Jewish household. He claimed that his mother regularly beat him and his brother and that the beginning of his comedic career was an attempt to get his mother to stop beating them by making her laugh.
He is most known for his roles as John Munch in the NBC police drama series Law & Order and as the BPD Detective, NYPD Detective/Sergeant, and DA Investigator in Homicide: Life on the Street.
He appeared in several additional shows as well as a special episode of Victims Unit. Before retirement, he performed the part for 23 years, beginning in 1993 and finishing in 2016. After his first divorce, Belzer relocated to New York City, where he shared a residence with singer Shelley Ackerman and began doing stand-up comedy at Pips, The Improv, and Catch a Rising Star.
In the late 1970s and early 1980s, Belzer began appearing in films on occasion as an actor. In a 1978 episode of Sesame Street’s season 9, Richard Belzer played a younger version of himself in a brief sketch about two young men who plan a picnic and boat ride but are thwarted by a dog who eats their food.
Richard Belzer’s cause of death: How did Richard Belzer die?
On February 19, 2023, Belzer, 78, passed away at his home in France as a result of a period of deteriorating health. However, the cause of Belzer’s death is currently unknown.
