MOVIE NEWS – Dean Stockwell gave many memorable performances over a career spanning seven decades.

Sadly, another legendary actor has died: Dean Stockwell, star of the classic late 1980s time-travel series Quantum Leap, who appeared in such films as Blue Velvet, David Lynch’s adaptation of Dune, Beverly Hills Cop 2, The Gambler and The President’s Plane, and was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performance in 1988’s The Godmother. The 85-year-old Stockwell’s family confirmed that the actor died at his home of natural causes on Sunday morning.

Dean Stockwell was born in California in 1936 and began performing on Broadway at the age of seven. His first film roles came in 1945, appearing in such films as the comedy Anchor Up, starring Frank Sinatra and Gene Kelly, and Elia Kazan’s 1947 drama The Gentleman’s Honour.

As a young adult, he returned to the stage in Compulsion, the 1959 film version he starred in alongside Orson Welles and won the Best Actor Award at Cannes. He was awarded the same prize again three years later for Sidney Lumet’s Long Walk into Night performance.

In the 1970s, Dean Stockwell also starred in two Columbo parts, and when his career seemed to be on the rocks, he was cast in Wim Wenders’ critically acclaimed drama Paris, Texas. He went on to appear in a growing number of films as a character actor. One of his most famous roles came in 1989 in the sci-fi series Quantum Leap. He played the time-travelling best friend Al Calavici, who was stuck in time travel and played different people from different eras in each episode. He won a Golden Globe Award for his performance.

He also starred as Doctor Yueh in Dune and worked with Lynch again in Blue Velvet. Dean Stockwell retired in 2015 after a career as an actor spanning some seven decades and has devoted his old age to fine art. He married twice, had two children by his second marriage, and was known to those close to him as a true rebel who loved to laugh, smoke cigars and play golf. We loved and still love his films and series. May he rest in peace.

Source: Deadline