Best known to daytime fans for his portrayal as Father Lonigan on “Passions,” actor Bruce French has died. He was 79 years old.

French died Friday, February 7 in Los Angeles of complications from Alzheimer’s, his wife of 34 years, Eileen Barnett (“Days of our Lives”), told The Hollywood Reporter. French was first diagnosed with Alzheimer’s around four years ago, Barnett shared with the outlet.

On “Passions,” French made a memorable impression on the show playing a priest who had lost his sight after a church he had been in burned down while he was looking to save a statue of an angel. His primary role in Harmony was advising citizens on the problems they sought solutions to, particularly those told to him by the young adult characters.

French appeared in several hundred episodes of the drama series from its debut on NBC in July 1999 and into its run on DirecTV’s 101 Network. The series wrapped in August 2008.

Born July 4, 1945 in Reinbeck, Iowa, French graduated from the University of Iowa and served with the U.S. Army during the Vietnam War. He also studied acting at New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts. He made his onscreen debut in the 1974 Frank Perry-directed “Man on a Swing,” starring Cliff Robertson and Joel Grey.

Throughout his illustrious career, French had been credited in more than 150 film and television productions, including “Roots: The Next Generation,” “Dallas,” “Knots Landing” “Star Trek: Voyager,” “Star Trek: Enterprise,” “Star Trek: The Next Generation,” “Ally McBeal,” “The West Wing,” “Gilmore Girls,” “Grey’s Anatomy,” “Mad Men,” “Beverly Hills, 90210,” and “Pacific Palisades.”

The character actor made a noticeable impresion in such films as “Mr. Deeds,” “Jurassic Park III,” “Mission Impossible III,” and “Fletch,” among others.

In addition to his wife, French is survived by his nieces Claire and Paula.

Note: The post R.I.P. Bruce French – ‘Passions’ Actor Dies At 79 appeared first on the Soap Opera Network website.
 

 

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Edited February 10Feb 10 by Errol
Fixed year of birth for Bruce French.

R.I.P.

Here he is on Dallas.

 

3 hours ago, Errol said:

Born July 4, 1975

Thinking this is supposed to read 1945, given his age? Same age as my dad [who recently passed himself], if so.

May Mr. French rest in peace.

Sorry to hear this!!  always enjoyed him on Passions, and another actor who rose above the campiness of it all IMO!

RIP 

40 minutes ago, Wendy said:

Thinking this is supposed to read 1945, given his age? Same age as my dad [who recently passed himself], if so.

May Mr. French rest in peace.

Thanks. Not sure what happened when I wrote this because initially the headline had him at 73, even though I could have sworn I wrote 79. Had to fix that immediately after publishing. Same for 1945. Thought I wrote it but clearly I ended up typing 1975. I'm off today.

RIP

Considering how certain soap writers view faith and religion today, it was nice to have a character and an actor like this onscreen for so long to be there for the characters.

And yes, Bruce French did rise above the campiness. 

Edited February 10Feb 10 by AbcNbc247

R.I.P

I had no idea that he was married to Eileen Barnett.

I wonder how she felt about his work on Passions 😂

21 hours ago, AbcNbc247 said:

I had no idea that he was married to Eileen Barnett.

I wonder how she felt about his work on Passions 😂

I'm pretty sure she guest starred on the show at one point.