The actor died at his home in Los Angeles
James Garner, star of the long-running TV shows “The Rockford Files” and “Maverick” has died at 86, according to media reports.
Law enforcement sources told TMZ that an ambulance was dispatched to the actor's home in Los Angeles around 8 p.m. Saturday evening and that he was dead when they arrived. No immediate cause of death was available.
A dashing, dark-haired and dark-eyed figure with a sly sense of humor, Garner played private investigator Jim Rockford from 1974 to 1980. He came back to play the character in several TV movies in the 1990s.
He had already achieved stardom as the gun-slinging Bret Maverick from 1957-1960, and reprised that character in the 1980s. In a movie version of the show in 1994, Garner had a cameo role with Mel Gibson playing the title character.:
Garner was unusual for being successful in both film and television. He starred in more than fifty films, including “The Great Escape” in 1963, Paddy Chayefsky's “The Americanization of Emily” in 1964, Blake Edwards‘ “Victor Victoria” in 1982 and Murphy's Romance in 1985, for which he received an Academy Award nomination.
More recently he starred in the cult hit “The Notebook” in 2004 as the older version of Ryan Gosling‘s Duke.
Connect With Us