Tuesday, August 10, 2021

RIP Alex Cord

 

Alex Cord, Star of Military Drama ‘Airwolf,’ Dies at 88

 

Variety

By Jordan Moreau

August 10, 2021

Alex Cord, the actor best known for playing Michael Coldsmith Briggs III, a.k.a Archangel, in the ’80s military drama “Airwolf,” died on Monday at his home in Valley View, Texas, his rep Linda McAlister confirmed to Variety. He was 88.

Cord starred in 55 episodes of the action series, which ran for four seasons from 1984-1987, alongside Jan-Michael Vincent, Ernest Borgnine, Deborah Pratt and Jean Bruce Scott in the first three seasons on CBS. The show followed the military crew of a high-tech helicopter called Airwolf as they undertook various high-stakes espionage missions. The show was canceled on CBS after three seasons, but USA Network picked it up for a fourth with a brand new cast and smaller budget.

Born in Floral Park, New York, in 1933, Cord attended New York University and the American Shakespeare Theater in Connecticut. He became known for appearing in Westerns, action and crime projects across TV and film. His first TV role came in an episode of the NBC western series “Laramie” in 1961. A month later, he appeared in an episode of the CBS western show “Frontier Circus.” His first film credit was in Warner Bros.’ “The Chapman Report” in 1962.

He appeared in dozens of TV shows from the 1960s through the 1990s. Some of his noteworthy credits include “Route 66,” “Police Story,” “The Six Million Dollar Man,” “The Love Boat,” “Fantasy Island,” “Murder, She Wrote” and “Walker, Texas Ranger.” He’s also one of the few actors to appear on both the original and revived version of the CBS series “Mission Impossible.”

His film credits include “Stagecoach,” “Stiletto,” “The Last Grenade,” “The Dead Are Alive,” “Grayeagle,” “Jungle Warriors” and “The Naked Truth.”

 

CORD, Alex (Alexander Viespi Jr.)

Born: 5/3/1933, Floral Park, New York, U.S.A.

Died: 8/9/2021, Valley View, Texas, U.S.A.

 

Alex Cord’s westerns – actor:

Frontier Circus (TV) – 1961 (Nino Sanchez)

Laramie (TV) – 1961 (John Sanford)

Branded (TV) – 1965 (Jed Colbee)

Stagecoach – 1966 (Ringo Kid)

A Minute to Pray, a Second to Die – 1967 (Clay McCord)

Gunsmoke (TV) – 1972 (Pete Brown)

Inn of the Damned – 1975 (Cal Kincaid)

The Quest (TV) – 1976 (McWhorley)

Grayeagle – 1977 (Grayeagle)

Wild West Showdown – 1994 (West)

Walker, Texas Ranger (TV) – 1995 (Larry Curtis)

Dobie and a Company of Heroes (TV) – 2002 [himself, narrator]

Western Trails – 2015 [himself]

Floating Horses: The Life of Casey Tibbs – 2017 [himself]

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