S.W.A.T. actor Steve Forrest passes away at 87

Forrest died peacefully and no cause of death was given.

LOS ANGELES:

Actor Steve Forrest, who was best known for his lead role in the short-lived ‘70s television drama S.W.A.T., recently died at the age of 87 in Thousand Oaks, California, near Los Angeles, said wife Christine on Thursday.

Forrest appeared in 1954’s Prisoner of War, which also featured Ronald Reagan, who was later elected as US president. In the ‘60s Flaming Star, he played alongside Elvis Presley and Barbara Eden. Forrest’s older brother, Dana Andrews, was the star of the ‘40s films Laura and The Best Years of Our Lives.

Forrest died peacefully on May 18, his family said in a statement. No cause of death was given.

He gained a following as Lt Hondo Harrelson on ABC’s crime drama series S.W.A.T., which ran for 37 episodes from 1975 to 1976 and was produced by Hollywood titans Leonard Goldberg and Aaron Spelling.

Forrest also made a guest appearance in the 2003 film adaptation of the series.

The actor, who fought in the US Army at the Battle of the Bulge in World War Two, got his big break when actor Gregory Peck saw him in a theatre production in 1950, which led to a contract with film studio MGM.

Forrest also starred in the 1965 British TV spy thriller series The Baron, which was one of the country’s first colour television programmes.

He was born on September 25, 1925, in Huntsville, Texas and was the youngest of 13 children.

He has left behind a wife, three sons and four grandchildren. 

Published in The Express Tribune, May 25^th, 2013.

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