Actor Gerrit Graham Dead At 77
Gerrit Graham died Tuesday September 16 in Rhinebeck, New York from lung disease and other ailments. He was 77. Variety confirmed the death Friday.
Graham built a career across four decades as one of Hollywood's most recognizable character actors, the kind of face you know without quite knowing the name.
He made his debut alongside Robert De Niro in Brian De Palma's Greetings in 1968 and followed it with Hi, Mom! before landing the role that defined him to cult film audiences: Beef, the flamboyant glam rock star who makes his entrance in a coffin in De Palma's 1974 horror musical Phantom of the Paradise.
He played sleazy car salesmen, sci-fi villains and sitcom guests, appearing in Seinfeld, Laverne and Shirley, The Wonder Years, Miami Vice, Child's Play 2, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine and Star Trek: Voyager. Nearly 130 screen credits total.
He was also a writer. He penned two episodes of the 1980s Twilight Zone revival, wrote additional dialogue for The Little Mermaid and Oliver & Company, and co-wrote songs with Grateful Dead guitarist Bob Weir, including "Victim or the Crime," which appeared on the Dead's 1989 Built To Last album. Weir died in January 2026 at 78 from cancer and lung issues. Graham outlived him by eight months.
He is survived by his brother Sam, his sons Jack and Henry, and four grandchildren.
