Veteran actor Robert Walker Jr., known for appearing on theStar Trekseries and a plethora of other TV and movie roles, has died. According to his wife, Dawn, Walker passed away on Thursday in Malibu at the age of 79, though an exact cause of death wasn’t revealed. In addition to Dawn, Walker is also survived by his seven children, Michelle, David, Charlie, Jordan, Colette, Henry, and Emily, along with five grandchildren.
“Bob always beat to his own drum and stayed true to himself in all of his endeavors,” Dawn says of her late husband in a statement confirming his passing. She adds: “Although an accomplished actor, his true art was living fully. He was a photographer, drummer, raconteur and gallery owner. His love of the ocean kept him in Malibu, and he had great tales of his adventures paddling to Catalina from there. Bob [also] had a constant interest in developing his internal martial arts practice.”
As the eldest son of actors Robert Walker Sr. (Alfred Hitchcock’sStrangers on a Train) and Jennifer Jones, Walker took a very early interest in acting. By his early ’20s, he was starring in movies likeThe HookandThe Ceremony; for the latter, Walker won a Golden Globe Award for Most Promising Male Newcomer. Some of his other most notable movie roles include parts inEasy Riderwith Peter Fonda and Dennis Hopper,The War Wagonwith John Wayne, and the titular role inYoung Billy Youngalongside Robert Mitchum. He would later appear in movies likeThe Savage Seven,The Man from O.R.G.Y.,Beware! The Blob, andEvil Town.
Walker had plenty of experience working on the small screen as well, as he had secured roles on various TV series includingCharlie’s Angels,CHiPs,Murder, She Wrote, and a memorable role as Harding Devers on multiple episodes ofDallas. One of his most well-known roles came on an early episode of the originalStar TrekTV series, which saw him playing Charlie Evans - the sole survivor of a spaceship crash who has strange paranormal abilities. Though the character was 17-years-old, Walker was 26 at the time of filming.
Heading into the early ’80s, Walker began to slow down with his acting career, appearing in a small handful of movies before backing off from Hollywood by 1983. During that time, he turned in a few more performances for movies likeHambone and Hillie,Making of a Male Model, andThe Devonsville Terror. More than three decades later, Walker would step out of retirement for one last performance, playing Agent Mills in the 2016 thrillerBeyond the Darknessfor what would ultimately become his final acting role.
Walker has done some great work on both the big and small screen, and his passing means the world has lost another talented performer. Our thoughts are with Walker’s family at this time, and may herest in peace. This news comes to us fromThe Hollywood Reporter.
