Gil Gerard, Star of TV Series ‘Buck Rogers,’ Dies at 82

He was best known for playing the title character in “Buck Rogers in the 25th Century,” which ran on NBC from 1979 to 1981.

Gil Gerard, an actor best known for his role as Buck Rogers in the science-fiction television show “Buck Rogers in the 25th Century,” died on Tuesday in hospice care in Georgia. He was 82.

His death, from cancer, was announced in a social media post by his wife, Janet Gerard.

Gilbert Cyril Gerard was born on Jan. 23, 1943, in Little Rock, Ark. He attended the University of Central Arkansas, where he was part of a singing group and acted and directed plays.

He later worked as an industrial chemist in Arkansas, conducting studies of the petroleum industry.

“But I was just kind of bored,” he told Tulsa World in 2017. “I was like this is OK, but this is not something I want to be doing when I’m 70.”

In the late 1960s, Mr. Gerard decided to quit his job and move to New York City, where he drove a taxi, working 12-hour shifts overnight while attending acting school.

He began his career in show business as a model and working in television commercials — more than 400 by his count — before landing roles in soap operas, including “The Doctors,” and in films, like “Airport ’77,” in which he played a love interest.

Mr. Gerard was approached in the late 1970s to play the role of William “Buck” Rogers, which was based on a character in a comic strip that began running in newspapers in 1929 and that was later adapted for radio and film. At first, he wasn’t interested.

“I don’t want to do this campy stuff,” he recalled thinking, in a 2018 interview. “I saw what it did to Adam West’s career with ‘Batman,’ and this was another cartoon character.”

After turning down the part twice, his agent asked him to at least read the script before he passed on the project.

“So I read it, and I said, ‘Well, yeah, I like the character,’” he said. “Got a good sense of humor. It’s kind of fun.”

Mr. Gerard signed onto the project, a film that would later become the pilot for “Buck Rogers in the 25th Century,” which ran on NBC for two seasons, from 1979 to 1981.

The series, created in the wake of the movie “Star Wars,” takes place in the year 2491 and follows Buck Rogers, a pilot who is launched into space on America’s last deep-space probe, only to be frozen in time for 500 years. When he wakes up, he discovers that Earth has been through a nuclear holocaust and is populated with humans, exotic aliens and robots.

Buck is a freelance problem-solver of sorts, fighting baddies and sharing the best of 1970s culture — including disco — with the rest of the galaxy.

“I thought the character had a sense of reality about him,” Mr. Gerard said in 2017. “He wasn’t a stiff kind of a guy. He was a guy who could solve problems on his feet, and he wasn’t a superhero.”

Despite running for only two seasons, the show was well-received among viewers and for years has been remembered fondly by fans.

Mr. Gerard went on to produce the 1983 Broadway musical “Amen Corner,” adapted from a 1954 play by James Baldwin, and continued acting. In the 1990s, he had roles in the CBS series “E.A.R.T.H. Force” and on the NBC soap opera “Days of Our Lives.”

In 2007, he appeared in a documentary on the Discovery Health Channel, “Action Hero Makeover,” which chronicled his decision to have gastric bypass surgery after struggling for years with obesity.

Speaking in 2018, Mr. Gerard said that what he enjoyed most about making movies was the way it brought groups of people together. “When you’re on a movie set, it’s like there’s such a great energy on that set, because it’s all aimed at getting the day’s work done,” he said. “Doing the best job you can.”

In addition to his wife, he is survived by his son, Gib, whom he had with his first wife, the actor Connie Sellecca.

When announcing his death, Ms. Gerard also posted a note that Mr. Gerard had recently written on social media.

“If you are reading this, then Janet has posted it as I asked her to,” it read. “My life has been an amazing journey. The opportunities I’ve had, the people I’ve met and the love I have given and received have made my 82 years on the planet deeply satisfying.”

“Don’t waste your time on anything that doesn’t thrill you or bring you love,” he added. “See you out somewhere in the cosmos.”

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