Mitchell Ryan, who played the father of Thomas Gibson’s character on “Dharma & Greg,” died Friday in Los Angeles. He was 88.
Ryan suffered from congestive heart failure, his stepdaughter Denise Freed said.
Kathryn Leigh Scott, his co-star on the 1960s gothic soap opera “Dark Shadows,” remembered him in a private post on Facebook. “My sweet, beloved friend Mitch died early this morning,” she wrote on Friday. “He was a great gift in my life. I cherish my warm memories of his beautiful soul. I’m heartbroken.”
Soap opera fans knew Ryan as Burke Devlin on “Dark Shadows” until 1967, when he was replaced by Anthony George. He was also known for his roles as notorious mobster Frank Smith on “General Hospital” and as merciless businessman Anthony Tonell on “Santa Barbara.”
His film appearances included “Liar Liar,” “Lethal Weapon,” “Magnum Force,” “High Plains Drifter,” “Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers,” “Ed” and “Grosse Pointe Blank.” His screen debut was an uncredited appearance in the 1958 Robert Mitchum moonshine-running drama “Thunder Road.”
On TV, he Ryan played Will Riker’s father Kyle on “Star Trek: The Next Generation,” and guested on “Wings,” “Murder, She Wrote,” and “Dallas.”
The Hollywood Reporter was first to report his death.
