Larry Drake, Emmy winner as Benny of ‘L.A. Law,’ dead at 66
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news...ner-as-benny-of-l-a-law-dead-at-66/?tid=a_inl
Almost 30 years ago, he stumbled into McKenzie, Brackman, Chaney and Kuzak, a law firm meant to represent the height of 1980s juridical glamour. But Benny Stulwicz, a client who became “L.A. Law’s” faithful mailroom clerk, did not come armed with hair gel, shoulder pads or a self-aggrandizing agenda. He was just a developmentally disabled man with an IQ “around the mid-two figure range,” as one character put it, and a heart of gold. And once acquitted of a crime he didn’t commit, he came to stay.
“I work here,” Benny proudly informed a new colleague on his first day. When the colleague observed that McKenzie, Brackman, Chaney and Kuzak was a nice place, Benny — not known for speechifying — answered: “I know.”
Now, Larry Drake, the actor who charmed America and won two Emmys playing Benny, has died at 66. As TMZ first reported, the 6-foot-3 actor, known for playing giants — gentle or otherwise — had unspecified health problems and struggled with his weight.
After “L.A. Law,” Drake was by no means out of work, but he slowly faded from the public eye. In 2006, he began working as an acting teacher, WBIR reported, and remained one until his death. His physical problems also kept him out of the spotlight, his management said.
“[Larry] was aware that overweight people are underrepresented in Hollywood,” Whitney Smith, who worked for Drake’s manager, said. “He would say that people in casting calls acted as if they might catch the fat from him.”
Even if his more recent credits couldn’t match “L.A. Law,” he remains instantly recognizable to anyone who tuned into prime time TV during the Reagan era.
“I don’t know if I’m a star now,” he said in 1988, “or just a little meteor that may burn out soon.” He added: “I’ve done fine in this business … but I’ve never made quite enough money to have a family or have many options. I keep looking at my life and thinking, ‘If I’m going to get out of this business, I’d better do it soon.’ “
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news...ner-as-benny-of-l-a-law-dead-at-66/?tid=a_inl
Almost 30 years ago, he stumbled into McKenzie, Brackman, Chaney and Kuzak, a law firm meant to represent the height of 1980s juridical glamour. But Benny Stulwicz, a client who became “L.A. Law’s” faithful mailroom clerk, did not come armed with hair gel, shoulder pads or a self-aggrandizing agenda. He was just a developmentally disabled man with an IQ “around the mid-two figure range,” as one character put it, and a heart of gold. And once acquitted of a crime he didn’t commit, he came to stay.
“I work here,” Benny proudly informed a new colleague on his first day. When the colleague observed that McKenzie, Brackman, Chaney and Kuzak was a nice place, Benny — not known for speechifying — answered: “I know.”
Now, Larry Drake, the actor who charmed America and won two Emmys playing Benny, has died at 66. As TMZ first reported, the 6-foot-3 actor, known for playing giants — gentle or otherwise — had unspecified health problems and struggled with his weight.
After “L.A. Law,” Drake was by no means out of work, but he slowly faded from the public eye. In 2006, he began working as an acting teacher, WBIR reported, and remained one until his death. His physical problems also kept him out of the spotlight, his management said.
“[Larry] was aware that overweight people are underrepresented in Hollywood,” Whitney Smith, who worked for Drake’s manager, said. “He would say that people in casting calls acted as if they might catch the fat from him.”
Even if his more recent credits couldn’t match “L.A. Law,” he remains instantly recognizable to anyone who tuned into prime time TV during the Reagan era.
“I don’t know if I’m a star now,” he said in 1988, “or just a little meteor that may burn out soon.” He added: “I’ve done fine in this business … but I’ve never made quite enough money to have a family or have many options. I keep looking at my life and thinking, ‘If I’m going to get out of this business, I’d better do it soon.’ “
