Actor Robert Blake has passed away after a long battle with cancer. His career was marred by allegations that he murdered his wife. He was 89. His career suffered after the murder of his wife in 2001, despite his fame as the protagonist of the 1970s TV detective series Baretta and his role in the 1997 film Lost Highway.
He was found not guilty of murdering her, but a civil court ultimately held him responsible for her death. According to his relatives, Blake passed away while surrounded by loved ones. The cause of his death was heart disease, according to a statement made by his niece Noreen Austin on Thursday ( 09 March 2023).
The New Jersey native started show business when his family relocated to California, and he was cast in an episode of the Our Gang comedy series. Beginning in the late 1930s, he became known for his roles in films like The Treasure of the Sierra Madre and the film adaptation of In Cold Blood, based on the novel by Truman Capote.
The CBS TV movie Judgement Day: The John List Story, in which he starred, earned him an Emmy nomination. He also appeared in the NBC series Hell Town. Even though he was once hailed as one of the most talented actors of his day, his imprisonment severely damaged his career.
Bonny Lee Bakley, Mr. Blake’s wife, was shot dead in the actor’s automobile in the Los Angeles Studio City area. The actor claimed to authorities that he had left her alone at the Italian restaurant where they had recently eaten, returned to fetch a forgotten gun, and then discovered her body.
A Los Angeles jury found Mr. Blake not guilty of her murder four years after her death. This included a year spent in jail while he awaited trial. The trial received many parallels to the high-profile case of O.J. Simpson, who was acquitted of murdering his ex-wife in a Los Angeles courtroom ten years prior.
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In a subsequent civil action, the judge ordered him to pay $30 million (£25 million) to his ex-children, his wife’s prompting him to file for bankruptcy. After his appeal was denied, he could reduce the $30 million fine to $15 million.
Mr. Blake has always insisted on his innocence. He married Sondra Kerr, an actress, for 22 years before divorcing in 1983. The couple had four children together. They had been close friends for years before he married Pamela Hudak in 2017, but they eventually split up.
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