Richard Chamberlain, the handsome hero of the 1960s television series Dr Kildare who found a second career as an award-winning “king of the miniseries,” has died at the age of 90.
Chamberlain died on Saturday night in Waimanalo, Hawaii, of complications following a stroke, according to his publicist Harlan Boll.
Tall, with classic good looks and romantic style, Chamberlain became an instant favourite with teenage girls as the compassionate physician on the TV series that aired from 1961 to 1966.
Photoplay magazine named him most popular male star for three years in a row, from 1963-65.
Richard Chamberlain died due to complications from a stroke (PA)
Not until 2003 did he acknowledge publicly what Hollywood insiders had long known, that he was gay. He made the revelation in his autobiography Shattered Love.
The actor became known as “king of the TV miniseries” in 1978 when he landed the starring role in Centennial, an epic production 24 hours long and based on James Michener’s sprawling novel.
He followed that in 1980 with Shogun, another costly, epic miniseries based on James Clavell’s period piece about an American visitor to Japan.