Actor Robert Blake has died, his long career overshadowed by accusations that he murdered his wife. He was 89.
He was known for his roles in the TV series Baretta and the film Lost Highway, but his career suffered after his wife was shot and killed in 2001.
He was charged with her murder and acquitted, but was later found civilly liable for her death.
His family said he died “peacefully with family and friends” on Thursday.
According to a statement released by his niece, Noreen Austin, he died of heart disease.
As a child, the New Jersey native got his start in the Our Gang comedy series.
In Cold Blood, a 1967 adaptation of Truman Capote’s novel, he also appeared.
His career, which was once regarded as one of the greatest of his generation, never recovered after his arrest.
Mr Blake’s wife was shot while alone in the actor’s car in the Los Angeles neighborhood of Studio City.
The actor told police that he had left her alone in order to return to the restaurant where they had just dined to retrieve a gun he had left behind, and that he discovered her body.
Four years after her death, including a year in jail while Mr Blake awaited trial, a jury in Los Angeles found him not guilty of her murder.