Legendary ‘Star Trek’ and ‘Cagney & Lacey’ Star Passes Away at 97

Tom Troupe, a veteran stage and screen actor who appeared in many projects in the late 1990s, including “My Own Private Idaho,” “Star Trek,” “Cagney & Lacey,” and “Mission Impossible,” has died at the age of 97.

He passed away on Sunday morning, five days after his birthday at his Beverly Hills home due to natural causes, a family spokesperson announced, per The Hollywood Reporter.

Born on July 15, 1928, in Kansas City, Missouri, Troupe moved to New York in 1948 to pursue a career in acting. But he first served in the Korean War, where he earned a bronze star, according to his representative.

Soon after his service, Troupe returned to New York and made his Broadway debut in 1957 as Peter van Daan in a production of “The Diary of Ann Frank.”

He later moved to Los Angeles, where he would go on to appear in more than 70 television shows throughout the 1960s, ‘70s, ‘80s and ‘90s.

Troupe had notable roles in “Mission: Impossible,” “Star Trek,” “The Fugitive,” “The Man from U.N.C.L.E.,” “The Wild Wild West” and “Cheers.”

He also co-wrote and starred in the 1968 movie “Sofi,” the film version of a play based on Nikolai Gogol’s “Diary of a Madman.”

His other credits included “Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman,” “CHiPs,” “Knots Landing,” “Murder, She Wrote,” “The Big Fisherman,” “The Devil’s Brigade,” Kelly’s Heroes” and “Summer School.”

Troupe also continued his stage career, acting in productions such as “The Lion in Winter,” “Fathers Day” and “The Gin Game,” which also co-starred his late wife, Carole Cook, who died in 2023.

Troupe is survived by his son, Christopher Troupe and daughter-in-law, Becky Coulter.

Donations in his memory can be made to the Entertainment Community Fund or the Pasadena Humane Society.