Actor Robert Blake dies aged 89: Was he in The Little Rascals?
The Emmy Award-winning star of ‘Baretta’ achieved huge success but was later known for being acquitted of the murder of his wife.
Emmy award-winning actor Robert Blake has passed away at the age of 89, a statement from his family has confirmed. During his career Blake was best-known as the star of ‘Baretta’ in the 1970s but would later return to public consciousness with his acquittal for the murder of his wife, Bonny Lee Bakley.
At one point Blake was one of the most famous actors of his generation and enjoyed huge commercial and critical success. He would become one of the earliest examples of a child star who made a successful transition into acting as an adult, picking up two Emmy Awards for his work in television.
However in 2001 he was charged with the murder of his wife who was shot outside a Studio City restaurant. The case gained national attention and, despite being acquitted in court by jurors, he was later found liable for her death in a civil court and ordered to pay the deceased’s family $30 million.
His death, aged 89, was announced in a statement released by Noreen Austin, his niece. The statement confirmed that Blake had died of heart disease at his Los Angeles home.
For how long was Robert Blake in The Little Rascals?
Blake began his acting career in 1939, originally known as ‘Mickey Gubitosi’ in the MGM movie Bridal Suite. However it was in MGM’s shorts series ‘Our Gang’, more commonly known as ‘The Little Rascals’, that he first gained fame.
He replaced Eugene ‘Porky’ Lee on the show and appeared in 40 of the iconic shorts between 1939 and 1944, initially under his own name. He would eventually become the show’s final lead character and his parents would even make appearances as extras.
Having started off as Mickey Gubitosi in the show he later acquired the stage name Bobby Blake. His character in The Little Rascals was subsequently named Mickey Blake.
As an adult his most famous role came in the 1970s when Blake landed the lead role in cop series ‘Baretta’. He won an Emmy Award in 1975 for his portrayal of Tony Baretta and the catchphrase, ‘Don’t do the crime if you can’t do the time’, is still well-known to this day.
He won a second Emmy in 1993 for his role in ‘Judgement Day: the John List Story,’ but his Hollywood career had largely dried up by the late 1990s and legal troubles would snuff out any hopes of a resurgence.